The Macquarie Dictionary’s word/s of the year for 2014 are “share plate” and “mansplain”

IT is a sign of changing times that the word of the year in 2013 was “selfie”, followed by “twerk”. Throw both of those away, apparently there’s a new word we like more.

Bondi Social: Food&drink

THE words “selfie” and “twerk” are so 2013. There’s a new word in town and apparently everybody is using it.

Well, two words technically.

“Share plate”. That’s right. The words “share plate” were today declared word of the year by Macquarie Dictionaries.

The noun, meaning a “serving in a restaurant designed as multiple small portions so that several can share the same dish”, was selected by the people, too, so it must be a real thing.

The word “Mansplain”, meaning to “explain something to a woman in a way that is patronising because it assumes that a woman will be ignorant of the subject matter” was the Committee’s Choice for first place.

Honourable mentions were bestowed upon the words “bamboo ceiling”, “lifehacking” and “selfie stick”. All words were selected from a list of new words included in Macquarie’s annual update.

The announcement follows rival dictionary Oxford’s word of the year for 2014 which was “vape” — “to inhale and exhale the vapour produced by an electronic cigarette or similar device”.

Previous winners were “podcast” (2005), “hypermiling” (2008) — we don’t know either — and “simples” (2009).