Dictionary.com Adds New Cultural Terms, Including AAVE Phrases

Dictionary.com is expanding its word list to include several new cultural terms, such as those that stem from Black culture.

As newly developed words with a more modern meaning, such as ‘nepo baby’ and ‘NIL,’ are part of the fall 2023 update, other words that have held significance to the Black community will now be officially recognized by the platform. Box braids, for example, will now hold a rightful spot on the website, with two definitions to ensure those who look it up have a cultural and literal understanding of the hairstyle.

According to the online dictionary, a ‘box braid’ is a “triple stranded braid using the hair from a sectioned-off square on the scalp.” Another definition confirms that the hairstyle derived by Black people also includes that the shapes made over the scalp can be more than just a square. In additional detail, the publication lists the origins between 1980 and 1985.

However, one who is part of Black culture could state that with box braids, as the dictionary leaves out, additional hair is typically used and braided into one’s natural tresses to appear as varying lengths.

The definition will be even more expansive when box braids have a subsection of all the different types, including knotless and bohemian.

In another iteration of inclusivity, however, Dictionary.com has also evolved from using gendered phrases in its definitions, opting for the pronoun “they” to help describe its words.

This comes as new updates regarding the official recognition of other words derived from African American Vernacular English (AAVE) have also been established. Black Enterprise confirmed back in June that Oxford University Press is developing an AAVE dictionary, set for a 2025 release date. Henry Louis Gates Jr. will be the editor guiding the publication as it curates its vast list of words that make up the growing language of Black Americans.