More disturbing news in August for crossword editors. This time we found ourselves undermined by no less an authority than the Oxford English Dictionary, which used to be such a present help in trouble with setters as to whether or not a word was OK to use, or to be used in a particular sense. Of course, the OED has always moved with the linguistic times, but until recently it moved at a dignified pace in that direction, rather than bustling along in order to be up with the trendy set.
It was bad enough to learn that two years ago (and without telling us) it had cut the ground from under our pedantic feet, as we fought the good fight to maintain that 'literally' means 'in a literal manner or sense'. The 2005 edition of the 1-volume Oxford Dictionary of English has a clear 'usage note' to the effect that the word was now commonly used in non-literal contexts (eg 'we were literally killing ourselves with laughter'), but that this usage is 'not acceptable in standard English, though it is widespread'. (This 2005 injunction was despite the fact that Frances Brooke used the word in this 'unacceptable' way in 1769, when writing The History of Emily Montague, as did Mark Twain in 1876 in Tom Sawyer.) Eight years is a long time in lexicography.
But now we learn that Oxford University Press, source by its own claim of 'The World's Most Trusted Dictionaries', last month gave its seal of approval to a whole slew of new words, including 'omnishambles' and 'selfie' (or should that be 'selfy'?). As a matter of fact, even before last month, I would have been inclined to let 'omnishambles' slip through, despite the fact that it was in no dictionary (though not selfie). Be that as it may, you can see how the foundations on which we try to build our house now feel more like sand than rock. And the effect of this process can only be that crossword editors will become more arbitrary in their judgements and behaviour, refusing to allow this word, even though someone has found it in some dictionary, and accepting another, though none has yet recognised it. Oh, what tension!
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Eric Westbrook is a registered blind member of the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB), with a long involvement in developing IT applications to make crosswords available to the blind and partially sighted. He has also been the driving force behind the development of the three-dimensional crossword puzzle, where the solutions fit into a 3-D grid in three different directions (across, down and top to bottom). He has for some years organised and promoted for the RNIB an annual wall calendar, based on 3-D puzzles. Several Guardian setters have contributed puzzles to this venture. In 2011 he organised the first RNIB competition for solving a 3-D puzzle, which got substantial national publicity. This year the RNIB 3-D Crosswords Cup will be contested in Holborn, London on the afternoon of Saturday 12 October. Details and information on how to book tickets are to be found at http://www.calendarpuzzles.co.uk/rnib.html . All the proceeds will go to the RNIB Pears Centre for Specialist Learning.
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While in charitable mode, you might like to know that Richard Cleaver has for some time been raising money for Macmillan Cancer Support by setting themed quizzes with prizes and cryptic-style clues, which he lets you have in return for a donation to Macmillan. He has so far raised over £9,000 towards his target of £10,000. Details can be seen at www.justgiving.com/FoodQuiz2013 and at macmillanquizzer.blogspot.com .
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And, with only about 110 shopping days to go until Christmas, I pass on to you details of a delightful stocking filler that could have been designed for crossword buffs. It is a book full of apt anagrams (many in poor taste, such as 'a fresh one but he's stupid' for PRESIDENT BUSH OF THE USA and 'to copulate he finds interns' for PRESIDENT CLINTON OF THE USA; and oxymorons (or, if you prefer it, oxymora), not just the well-worn standards, like MILITARY INTELLIGENCE, but ones new to me, at least, like POSTAL SERVICE or YOUNG CONSERVATIVE; and all sorts of other word play besides. It is Tyrannosaurus Lex by Rod L. Evans.
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