戴着瓶底眼镜的书呆子们曾经被嘲笑为无用的"geek",然而时代在变化,咸鱼也有翻身的一天!柯林斯词典给了这个词一个全新的、积极的含义。
In the past,they were laughed at for being eggheads(书呆子) wearing glasses with a passion for the pointless.But now,being a member of their group has become a source of pride,with Collins online dictionary naming the term "geek" as UK's "Word of the Year" on December 16.
"Geek" tops the list for 2013 because of its "positive makeover", a spokeswoman for Collins Dictionary told The Scotsman newspaper.
The word originally appeared in the 19th century as a variant(变形) of "geek", meaning "a simpleton (傻瓜)".
"In the 1980s,the word still had a negative meaning,referring to someone who was boring and socially awkward.However,from the late 20th century,due to the increasing importance of technology in society,the word has come to mean a clever,switchedon and cool person," noted The Scotsman.
In September,the dictionary changed the main definition of "geek" from "someone preoccupied with computing" to "a person who is very knowledgeable and enthusiastic about a specific subject".
"'Geek' is a great example of a word that has evolved from having a negative meaning to having a positive one." Ian Brookes,consultant editor to Collins Dictionary told The Guardian."This change in meaning represents a positive change in views of specialist expertise(专长;专业知识),and is a result of the influence of technology on people's lives."
The Telegraph's John Bingham believes that the transformation of the word was helped along by the success of the US movie The Social Network,about the creation of the US website Facebook."Commentators said the film showed that it had become fashionable to be a geek," Bingham wrote.