Among the words officially added to dictionary.com this week is “Mx.,” pronounced “mix” and defined as “a title of respect prefixed to a person’s surname: unlike Mr., Mrs., or Ms., it does not indicate gender and may be used by a person with any or no specific gender identity.”
“It’s one in a line of gender-related terms we’ve been updating,” dictionary.com lexicographer Jane Solomon told me. “Especially as people are talking more openly about gender and want to be more informed on the topic and the correct language to use. In our last update, we edited agender, bigender and gender-fluid.”
(“Agender,” according to dictionary.com, is “noting or relating to a person who does not have a specific gender identity or recognizable gender expression.” “Bigender” is “noting or relating to a person who has two gender identities or some combination of both.” “Gender-fluid” is “noting or relating to a person whose gender identity or gender expression is not fixed and shifts over time or depending on the situation.”)
The Oxford English Dictionary added “Mx.” to its lineup in May.
“This is an example of how the English language adapts to people’s needs, with people using language in ways that suit them rather than letting language dictate identity to them,” OED assistant editor Jonathan Dent said at the time.
“Mx.” is one of more than 150 new words to join dictionary.com, the online reference that sees 5.5 billion searches per year. Also in the latest update are “fleek,” defined as “flawlessly styled, groomed, etc.,” “IRL,” meaning “in real life (in contrast to communication and interaction online or in a fictional situation),” and my personal favorite, “sapiosexual” — “a person who finds intelligence to be a sexually attractive quality in others.”
Unlike traditional dictionaries, dictionary.com updates its inventory of words quarterly, with a possible move to monthly updates in 2016, Solomon said.
“Because dictionary.com is a digital dictionary, we have the luxury of space,” she told me. “We have a very inclusive policy because we can.”
While “IRL” and “drunk text (to send a text message to someone while intoxicated)” are modern inventions, “Mx.” has been around for a few decades. The OED’s Dent told The Sunday Times it appeared as early as 1977 in the American magazine “Single Parent.”
Several government bodies, banks and universities in the United Kingdom offer “Mx.” as an alternative to “Mr.,” “Mrs.” and “Ms.” on official documents and drop-down menus, according to The Week, which offers a full list of institutions that include Mx. as an option here.
In August, a reader wrote to The Washington Post’s civilities columnist, Steven Petrow, asking how widely Mx. is accepted. “When is it appropriate to use? For example, without knowing your preferred honorific, is it appropriate to address you as Mx. Petrow? How about Mx. Jenner for Caitlyn Jenner? Or should it be reserved for use with those people whose gender is unknown or unclear to me?”
Petrow answered thusly:
“If people want to be addressed as ‘Mx. Bond’ or ‘Mx. Tobia,’ then that’s how I would refer to them. That’s called respect. If pull-down menus on Web sites and intake forms continue to require titles such as Mr. and Ms., then it’s time to include Mx. in the mix.
“As for me, please call me ‘Steven Petrow,’ as I see few circ*mstances to use honorifics in this day and age. But because I identify as male, I do check ‘Mr.’ on all those forms. Similarly, Caitlyn Jenner is a woman; please call her ‘Ms. Jenner’ unless she says, ‘Call me Cait.'”
There you have it.
And I especially appreciate his line about respect, since that’s what titles are meant to confer in the first place.
hstevens@tribpub.com
Twitter @heidistevens13
