Merriam-Webster Adds ‘Metaverse’ and ‘Altcoin’ to Dictionary in Nod to Crypto

America’s oldest dictionary publisher makes room for crypto.

Of the new terms added, “altcoin” and “metaverse” are perhaps the most relevant additions for crypto enthusiasts.

The publisher defined “altcoin” as any of the now approximately 20,000 cryptocurrencies in circulation “which are considered alternatives to established cryptocurrencies and especially to Bitcoin.”

This definition may come as a disappointment to Ethereans, who have argued for years it Ethereum—next to Bitcoin—is no longer an altcoin. The second largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization also leads the crypto community in developer activity, fee volume, decentralized finance and other metrics.

According to the company list in addition to September, the “metaverse” is “a persistent virtual environment that allows access to and interoperability of multiple individual virtual realities.”

This is in contrast to “meatspace”, officially defined as “the physical world and environment, especially in contrast to the virtual world of cyberspace.”

The dictionary’s seal of approval can also bring clarity to a once-nebulous phrase for the general public.

Mark Zuckerberg—WHO rebranded his company around the concept last year—have previously defined the metaverse as “an embodied internet where you are in the experience, not just watching it.”

Crypto-related technologies such as non-fungible tokens (NFTs), which got the Collins Dictionary’s Word of the year prize in 2021, plays a major role in the metaverse. They help provide a neutral layer for owning digital assets that can be transferred between different virtual worlds.

Current examples include metaverse games such as The sandboxwhich allows users to buy and sell virtual assets in the form of a game.

Merriam-Webster takes a page from crypto-Twitter

Webster’s list included hundreds of other financial terms that you’re likely to see on crypto Twitter.

Words such as “unbanked” and “underbanked” refer to individuals with no or limited access to banking services.

Meanwhile, “shrinkflation” is the reduction of a product’s volume per unit despite being offered at the same price. This is related to “inflation”, which has been central to driving central bank activity, global markets and by extension crypto markets.

Finally, “use case” refers to “a use to which something can be put,” something kryptos harshest critics claims the asset class is fundamentally lacking.