New words. Do you love them or hate them?

When you hear a new word in your language, do you have a reaction? Are you intrigued or offended by additions to language? Several readers of last week's blog chose the origin of words as an interesting subject, so this week I'll explore the topic of new words. (For language nerds, 'neologism' is the technical term for a new word.)    

What is a word really?  Although the definition of the word 'word' seems like a no-brainer, it is not a clear cut concept. We can visualize a written word in our minds, with the letters close together and a space before and after.  But in spoken language, words are often not separated by pauses.  If you have studied a foreign language, you may have experienced frustration because the oral stream of language is not neatly marked. How did I know, for instance, that in French 'Comma ta lei vu' (sic) was really 'Comment allez-vous?"  

Small children just learning their first language have a similar problem.  "Let's go bye-bye" probably sounds like one big word to them. As a matter of fact, in Swahili, the romantic sentence "I will love you" is 'nitakupenda', with a whole English phrase appearing as a word (to us, at least) in that language.

But we all have a working definition of 'word' at least. (We'll leave it to  linguists to provide an iron clad definition.) What is of more interest to me is the effect that new words have on speakers of that language.  I myself am delighted by new words.  It's a challenge to figure out how the word was formed.  Then it's intriguing to follow a new word to see if it is being widely used and by whom.

Take the new word 'selfie'.  It was named as the 2013 Word of the Year by the publishers of Oxford English Dictionary.  Click below for definition and more information about 'selfie'.  

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/18/word-of-the-year-2013_n_4296009.html

'Selfie' was formed by adding the suffix -ie to 'self''.  It sounds familiar, like 'hippie' and 'yuppie'.   Since I first became aware of  'selfie', I have heard it numerous times on  radio and TV.  I haven't encountered it yet in personal conversation, probably because my friends and acquaintances (myself included) are still trying to figure out how to take any type of picture using these new-fangled devices.  The Pope appearing recently in a 'selfie' probably did much to promote the new word.  I  recently heard a talk show host make a joke that people were now talking about 'ussies', cell phone pictures of more than one person.  

Do you see 'selfie' and similar new words adding to the richness of the language or depleting it?  I would love to hear your opinions on this important matter!