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Connections
Connections

New words in the dictionary in 2023

By Evan Dawson,
Megan Mack
Published October 16, 2023 at 3:04 PM EDT
(foreground) Chris Fanning, (background) Amanda Chestnut, and Linda Sue Park on "Connections"
Megan Mack
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WXXI News
(foreground) Chris Fanning, (background) Amanda Chestnut, and Linda Sue Park on "Connections with Evan Dawson" on Monday, October 16, 2023
A smiling man with short dark hair wearing a blue button-down shirt and a grey blazer. He is holding a pair of eyeglasses. The word "Connections" appears on the left side of the photo in vertical letters.
WXXI News

Merriam-Webster added nearly 700 new words to its dictionary in September. This hour, we bring back one of our favorite Connections traditions: discussing those new words, quizzing our listeners and our guests about what they mean, and exploring how language evolves. Ngl, it’s going to be great, and we didn’t use generative AI to plan this discussion.

Our guests:

  • Linda Sue Park, author of “Prairie Lotus,” “A Long Walk to Water,” and many more
  • Chris Fanning, deputy director of Writers & Books
  • Amanda Chestnut, educator, artist, and communications manager for Writers & Books
Connections
Evan Dawson
Evan Dawson is the host of "Connections with Evan Dawson." He joined WXXI in January 2014 after working at 13WHAM-TV, where he served as morning news anchor. He was hired as a reporter for 13WHAM-TV in 2003 before being promoted to anchor in 2007.
See stories by Evan Dawson
Megan Mack
Megan Mack is the executive producer of "Connections with Evan Dawson" and live/televised engagement programming.
See stories by Megan Mack