--- title: Merriam-Webster Dictionary Adds 'Throw Shade' and 'Ghost' description: More than 1,000 words were added in this latest update — some technological, some political and many poised to clear up confusion canonical: https://time.com/4662821/merriam-webster-dictionary-throw-shade-meaning/ author: Katy Steinmetz article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-02-07T18:03:09.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T07:40:54.559Z og:title: Merriam-Webster Dictionary Adds 'Throw Shade', 'Ghost' and 'Truther' og:description: More than 1,000 words were added in this latest update og:url: https://time.com/4662821/merriam-webster-dictionary-throw-shade-meaning/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltbc9c70925e726fd7/6988b9230a4a222f3a9ccd87/gettyimages-105783894.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: Dictionary og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Merriam-Webster Dictionary Adds 'Throw Shade', 'Ghost' and 'Truther' twitter:description: More than 1,000 words were added in this latest update twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltbc9c70925e726fd7/6988b9230a4a222f3a9ccd87/gettyimages-105783894.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Merriam-Webster Dictionary Adds _Throw Shade_, _Ghost_ and _Truther_ by [Katy Steinmetz](https://time.com/author/katy-steinmetz/) ## Katy Steinmetz Feb 7, 2017 6:03 PM UTC  Tetra Images & Getty Images/Tetra images RF by [Katy Steinmetz](https://time.com/author/katy-steinmetz/) ## Katy Steinmetz Feb 7, 2017 6:03 PM UTC On Tuesday, Merriam-Webster added more than 1,000 words to their dictionary — some technological, some political and many poised to clear up confusion for the type of people who believe “throwing shade” could involve lamps. --- > “” --- While slang words have a habit of expanding and changing to take on new meanings, being added to the dictionary is a sign that such terms are settling down — at least for now. “These are words that have demonstrated frequent and increasing use in a variety of sources,” writes editor-at-large Peter Sokolowski, “and are therefore likely to be encountered by a reader — and should be in the dictionary.” Other ascendant slang terms that got the dictionary treatment in this update include [_ghost_](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ghost) (a verb meaning “to abruptly cut off all contact with someone by no longer accepting or responding to texts, etc.”), [**w**_eak sauce_](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/weak%20sauce) (a term for “something inferior, ineffective, or unimpressive”), and [_face-palm_](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/face%20palm) (a verb that means “to cover one’s face with the hand as an expression of embarrassment, dismay, or exasperation”). Many of the other new additions reflect how central technology has become in English speakers’ lives — for good and for hours upon hours on the couch. There’s [_binge-watch_](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/binge%20watch) (a verb meaning “to watch many or all episodes of a TV series in rapid succession”), [_net neutrality_](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/net%20neutrality) (the idea that “Internet service providers should or must treat all Internet data as the same”), and [_CRISPR_](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/CRISPR) (a “gene-editing technique” with a very long and involved definition page). From politics, Merriam gets the likes of [_truther_](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/truther) (“one who believes that the truth about an important subject or event is being concealed from the public by a powerful conspiracy”), [_FLOTUS_](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/FLOTUS) (an acronym for the first lady of the United States) and [_town hall_](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/town%20hall) (“an event at which a public official or political candidate addresses an audience by answering questions posed by individual members”). And many more will be coming soon. These additions “represent a continuing record of our evolving language,” Sokolowski writes, “and we’re already at work on the next batch.” For further examples, visit Merriam-Webster’s website [here](https://www.merriam-webster.com/words-at-play/new-words-in-the-dictionary-feb-2017). ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4662821/merriam-webster-dictionary-throw-shade-meaning/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4662821/merriam-webster-dictionary-throw-shade-meaning/"},"headline":"Merriam-Webster Dictionary Adds Throw Shade, Ghost and Truther","datePublished":"2017-02-07T18:03:09.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T07:40:54.559Z","description":"More than 1,000 words were added in this latest update","url":"https://time.com/4662821/merriam-webster-dictionary-throw-shade-meaning/","keywords":["Newsfeed","language","onetime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltbc9c70925e726fd7/6988b9230a4a222f3a9ccd87/gettyimages-105783894.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Katy Steinmetz","jobTitle":"","url":"https://time.com/author/katy-steinmetz/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltbc9c70925e726fd7/6988b9230a4a222f3a9ccd87/gettyimages-105783894.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Dictionary","caption":"Dictionary","creditText":"Tetra Images & Getty Images/Tetra images RF","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-newsfeed/","name":"Newsfeed"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4662821/merriam-webster-dictionary-throw-shade-meaning/","name":"Merriam-Webster Dictionary Adds Throw Shade, Ghost and Truther"}}]}] ```