Merriam-Webster has added more than 5,000 words to its Collegiate Dictionary, including “beast mode,” a phrase long associated with former Seattle Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch.
The publishing company announced the update Thursday, describing it as one of the most expansive dictionary revisions in years.
The new entries reflect words and slang terms commonly used in popular culture, technology, and everyday conversation.
Among the highlighted additions is “beast mode,” which Merriam-Webster defines as “an extremely aggressive or energetic style or manner that someone adopts temporarily to overpower an opponent in a fight or competition.” The dictionary gave an example sentence: “He needed to go beast mode to smash the world record.”
The phrase became nationally recognizable in 2010 when Lynch powered through multiple New Orleans Saints defenders during a playoff game, a moment that was quickly dubbed the “Beast Quake.”
The term “beast mode” became synonymous with his hard-hitting running style and has since been widely adopted in sports, fitness, and pop culture.
Other new entries cover a wide range of topics.
“Dad bod” is defined as “a physique regarded as typical of an average father, especially one that is slightly overweight and not extremely muscular.”
“Dumbphone” refers to a basic cellphone without the features of a smartphone.
Food culture also earned a spot with “farm-to-table,” which is defined as food sold and distributed directly from its source to customers.
Phrases like “hard pass” (a firm refusal), “love language” (a person’s way of showing care), and “side-eye” (a sidelong glance expressing suspicion or disapproval) are also among the additions.
The dictionary update reaches into science and technology as well.
“Teraflop” is defined as “a unit of measure for the calculating speed of a computer equal to one trillion floating-point operations per second.”
Some of the terms, like “petrichor,” describing the earthy scent after rain, have been used in science and literature for years but are now officially recognized.
More recent slang entries include “rizz,” shorthand for romantic charm or appeal.
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