Apparently the word 'abbey' (PA photo) and 'monarch' have now been excluded from the new version of Oxford University Press's Junior Dictionary in favour of 'celebrity' and 'broadband'.Nature-related words like 'heather' and 'willow' have also been removed, I gather. See article in the Telegraph.
"We are looking at the loss of words of great beauty. I would rather have 'marzipan' and 'mistletoe' than 'MP3 player', " says one headmaster.
Words taken out: Acorn, allotment, almond, apricot, ash, bacon, beech, beetroot, blackberry, blacksmith, bloom, bluebell, bramble, bran, bray, bridle, brook, buttercup, canary, canter, carnation, catkin, cauliflower, chestnut, clover, conker, county, cowslip, crocus, dandelion, diesel, fern, fungus, gooseberry, gorse, hazel, hazelnut, heather, holly, horse chestnut, ivy, lavender, leek, liquorice, manger, marzipan, melon, minnow, mint, nectar, nectarine, oats, pansy, parsnip, pasture, poppy, porridge, poultry, primrose, prune, radish, rhubarb, sheaf, spinach, sycamore, tulip, turnip, vine, violet, walnut, willow.
Word put in: Celebrity, tolerant, vandalism, negotiate, interdependent, creep, citizenship, childhood, conflict, common sense, debate, EU, drought, brainy, boisterous, cautionary tale, bilingual, bungee jumping, committee, compulsory, cope, democratic, allergic, biodegradable, emotion, dyslexic, donate, endangered, Euro.
Hm.
