We have got news for you . American publisher Merriam-Webster announced it has added 455 new words to its dictionary for October 2021 . The publisher said , “Just as the language never stops evolving , the dictionary never stops expanding .” The 455 new words came from what the publisher called “extensive and established use .” Merriam-Webster said the quick and informal nature of messaging , texting and tweeting online has increased during the pandemic . That , in turn , has given rise to a vocabulary filled with shortened forms of words and expressions . Listen to the conversation below to hear some of these new words in use : FTW is an abbreviation for “for the win .” It is often used to express approval or support on social media . TBH is short for “to be honest .” And the word amirite is a shortened way to spell “am I right ?” The COVID-19 pandemic that started in early 2020 gave us terms like contact tracing , flattening the curve , and social distancing . Even with record-setting vaccination programs , we know the pandemic is still not over . And new pandemic-related words have been added to our daily vocabulary . Here are some of those phrases that Merriam-Webster has added to its dictionary : Digital technology has helped many of us continue with our daily lives during the pandemic . The use of technology has led to new ways to describe technology-related risks . When digital information in an image or audio recording cannot be read , it is called a bit rot . And zero-day is a term to describe weakness in computer systems that cybercriminals discover . From political events , we have whataboutism . This is “the act or practice of responding to an accusation of wrongdoing by claiming that an offense committed by another is similar or worse .” And vote-a-rama describes the unusually large number of debates and votes that happen in one day in the United States Congress . Other new words come from foods and drinks . One such word is fluffernutter . This is a sandwich made with peanut butter and marshmallow between two pieces of white bead . Another is horchata – a cold drink made from ground rice or almonds , with spices like cinnamon or vanilla . Eating too many fluffernutters could give you a bit of a dad bod . In today's program , we have only had time to tell you about 16 of the 455 new words from Merriam-Webster . And this is not even the first time this year it has added hundreds of new words . Last January , the dictionary publisher added 520 new words . That is a lot of new vocabulary for you to study .