Ghost words are errors in reference works, such as “dord” which appeared in Webster’s New International Dictionary in 1934. Neologisms created on the internet can also become legitimate words. Ghost words originate from misinterpretation, mispronunciation, or confusion and can take a long time to clear from use. The term was coined in 1886 by Professor Walter William Skeat.
Lexicographers call them “ghost words” – essentially, words that appear in reference works due to an error. The most famous ghost word is probably “dord,” which found its way into the second edition of Webster’s New International Dictionary in 1934. In that dictionary, “dord” is defined as a synonym for density used by physicists and chemists. Apparently the entry escaped the attention of proofreaders and remained in the dictionary until 1939, when a sharp-eyed editor marked it as false, but in fact the change wasn’t made until 1947.” Dord seems to have slipped into the dictionary when the phrase “D od” (abbreviations for density) was accidentally rewritten as a single word and “dord” was born.
Today, many newly minted words (neologisms) created on the Internet find legitimacy in dictionaries, such as memes, NSFWs, and jeggings.
There is a word for this:
Ghost words often originate due to misinterpretation, mispronunciation, or typographical or linguistic confusion.
Once authoritatively published, a ghost word can be widely copied and can take a long time to clear from use.
The term “ghost words” was coined in 1886 by Professor Walter William Skeat in his annual speech as president of the Philological Society.
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