We've updated our Privacy and Cookies Policy
We've made some important changes to our Privacy and Cookies Policy and we want you to know what this means for you and your data.
Word created by The Simpsons added to US dictionary
Image source, Alamy
"Embiggen" has been added to a US dictionary - a word first heard on The Simpsons in 1996.
Merriam-Webster included the word, which has been popularised partly because of the comic Ms Marvel, among 850 new words and definitions.
It is from the motto of The Simpsons' fictional town of Springfield: "A noble spirit embiggens the smallest man."
It means to "make bigger or more expansive", says Merriam-Webster.
This article contains content provided by Twitter. We ask for your permission before anything is loaded, as they may be using cookies and other technologies. You may want to read Twitter and before accepting. To view this content choose 'accept and continue'.
End of Twitter content, 1
The word was first heard is the 1996 episode Lisa the Iconoclast, where Jebediah Springfield - the founder of the town - uses it.
This article contains content provided by Twitter. We ask for your permission before anything is loaded, as they may be using cookies and other technologies. You may want to read Twitter and before accepting. To view this content choose 'accept and continue'.
End of Twitter content, 2
Bart's Springfield Elementary teacher Mrs Krabappel says she'd never heard heard the word before she moved to Springfield.
Lisa's teacher Miss Hoover replies: "I don't know why. It's a perfectly cromulent word."
The Simpsons writer Michael Price tweeted that we have writer Dan Greaney to thank for the word.
This article contains content provided by Twitter. We ask for your permission before anything is loaded, as they may be using cookies and other technologies. You may want to read Twitter and before accepting. To view this content choose 'accept and continue'.
End of Twitter content, 3
Marvel Comics, whose character Ms Marvel has the power to embiggen herself, also tweeted about the addition to the dictionary.
This article contains content provided by Twitter. We ask for your permission before anything is loaded, as they may be using cookies and other technologies. You may want to read Twitter and before accepting. To view this content choose 'accept and continue'.
End of Twitter content, 4
Kamala Khan took over as Ms Marvel in 2014 after the previous one, Carol Danvers, became Captain Marvel.
Writer G Willow Wilson, who also helped create the most recent version of the character, was also pretty pleased.
This article contains content provided by Twitter. We ask for your permission before anything is loaded, as they may be using cookies and other technologies. You may want to read Twitter and before accepting. To view this content choose 'accept and continue'.
End of Twitter content, 5
She admits that she didn't even get the Simpsons reference when she first started using the word.
This article contains content provided by Twitter. We ask for your permission before anything is loaded, as they may be using cookies and other technologies. You may want to read Twitter and before accepting. To view this content choose 'accept and continue'.
End of Twitter content, 6
Other words added to the dictionary include mansplain, glamping and tzatziki.
Follow Newsbeat on , and .
Top Stories
More to explore
Most read
Content is not available