Poutine made it into Merriam-Webster this year! Well done, poutine.

I recently happened upon this article from the Boston Globe about the new words added to several American dictionaries in 2014. This kind of a thing seems to be a staple of newspapers around this time of year, and every time it strikes me how many new words have to do with food. But then maybe it’s not so surprising—we’re a nation of eaters and eventually the names of our new favorites work their way into the very fabric of our language. I don’t think I’d ever heard of or tasted hummus until I was in high school, but it’s now hard to remember being hummus-less since it’s long been a staple of my refrigerator and my dictionary.

So here’s a little lexicographic puzzle for 2015: can you put the following list of twelve words in the order that they were added to the Oxford English Dictionary? Some of these words are far older in other languages, obviously, but keep in mind that words are only added to English-language dictionaries as many English speakers begin to use them.

• al dente
• foodie
• melt-in-the-mouth
• noshery
• pad thai
• gastropub
• five second rule
• mai tai
• microbrew
• brunch
• chocoholic
• appletini

Don’t scroll down or click continue until you’re ready to see the answers! Continue reading →