The Collins English Dictionary has taken to Twitter to find new words for the next edition of the lexicon, and is asking users to choose which words should make the final edition.
The shortlist includes fracktivist, which refers to someone who protests against fracking, and felfie - a term used to describe a farmer who takes a selfie.
The 12th edition of the dictionary will be the first to contain a word that has been voted for by Twitter users.
Until midnight on May 28, Twitter users can vote for the word that will go into the next edition of the dictionary, released in October.
Andrew Freeman, associate publisher at Collins, said: "Twitter offers us an immediate snapshot of how much a word is used. The tried and tested approach to compiling dictionaries has to adapt to embrace the ways in which language is developing through use on social media."
Collins has been publishing the dictionary since 1819 and is the largest single volume dictionary in print.
This new process, which has its own website where Twitter users can vote, looks to take advantage of the freedom of Twitter when it comes to the written word.
According to language experts, the list is a sign of the way language is changing in the 21st century.
Ian Brookes, lexicographer and consultant editor to the Collins English Dictionary, said: "Language has always had to develop in response to changes in society and technology.
"In the 21st century, the growth of social media has had a comparable effect."
Twitter users can vote for their choice by visiting twictionary.collinsdictionary.com
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article