Tweet, as networking word, officially joins English language

The Oxford English Dictionary has made it official; "tweet" is now not just a bird sound, it's a word with a second definition, thanks to technology. The accepted authority on the English language has added a new definition of "tweet:" "To make a posting on the social networking service Twitter. Also: to use Twitter regularly or habitually." Tweet, as a technology term, was added officially to the English language in a June update to the Oxford dictionary, PC Magazine reported Monday. "The noun and verb tweet [in the social-networking sense] has just been added to the OED," John Simpson, the dictionary's chief editor, wrote in the update. "This breaks at least one OED rule, namely that a new word needs to be current for 10 years before consideration for inclusion. But it seems to be catching on." The OED, available in an electronic version since 1988, is revised every three months to update existing entries and add new words. Tweet joins a number of new tech words like bloggable, sexting, crowdsourcing, e-reader and mouseover in the Oxford dictionary.