Author Topic: Word suggestion  (Read 779 times)

Maudland

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Word suggestion
« on: March 22, 2021, 04:43:25 AM »
Hello,
I tried ‘immersive’ in a 7-by-many puzzle and was very surprised to get ‘sorry, not known.’ I suppose I thought it had existed for as long as ‘immerse’ but maybe it hasn’t, or has just been used so much more in recent years. (I was pleased at spotting it, too!) One to add to the common list?
Thanks,
Madeleine

Alan W

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Re: Word suggestion
« Reply #1 on: March 22, 2021, 12:43:22 PM »
Normally when someone claims to have been very surprised (or astonished, flabbergasted, dumbstruck, etc) at a word not being allowed, I don't share their surprise. However, on this occasion, I do. In fact I felt sure you must have made a mistake, Maudland. But you didn't, of course. Immersive is not in the word list currently.

It seems this word has come into wide use much more recently than I would have imagined. The OED entry for the word, which hasn't been updated recently, describes it as obsolete, and has two usage examples from the 1600s.

Apparently people started using the word again in the 1990s, but it didn't take off until the 2010s.

I'm sure I'll accept the word, but I'll have to research a bit more to decide if it should be common or rare. Does anyone else have a view about this?
Alan Walker
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Maudland

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Re: Word suggestion
« Reply #2 on: March 22, 2021, 01:06:31 PM »
I thought I’d made a mistake too, Alan, and tried it again very carefully! I’m interested to see what other people think 🙂

les303

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Re: Word suggestion
« Reply #3 on: March 22, 2021, 01:12:19 PM »
I'll dive right in & suggest that it should be common.

Jacki

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Re: Word suggestion
« Reply #4 on: March 22, 2021, 01:38:05 PM »
Common.
And Alan what an interesting insight into your world.
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ridethetalk

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Re: Word suggestion
« Reply #5 on: March 22, 2021, 02:22:45 PM »
I vote common as well... FWIW  ;D
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birdy

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Re: Word suggestion
« Reply #6 on: March 22, 2021, 02:38:59 PM »
I'd agree - common.

Alan W

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Re: Word suggestion
« Reply #7 on: April 01, 2021, 05:31:30 PM »
This chart, from the Corpus of Contemporary American English, gives an indication of how the word immersive has taken off in recent years:



An example from early in the period shown is this, from the New York Times in 1991:

Quote
The computer world and the fine arts world "really drink at different bars," said Michael Naimark, who teaches a course on "immersive virtual environments" at the San Francisco Art Institute and has tried to bridge both worlds.

Dictionary definitions often relate to the use of innovative technology, but this seems to be too restrictive. The online Oxford defines immersive as "(of a computer display or system) generating a three-dimensional image which appears to surround the user", while the Collins dictionary says "providing information or stimulation for a number of senses, not only sight and sound". However, the word seems often to be used of the effect on the user of a game or work of entertainment, even if it's via nothing more than sound and two-dimensional images.

For example, this quote, about a National Geographic TV series:

Quote
"The old traditional way was pretty much a voiceover being illustrated with images," said Executive Producer Guillermo Navarro. "Here, the visual language is what takes over. It's a much more immersive experience. That's the basic use of film language, how the power of an image can build emotion and connectivity.

In the following quote from Variety magazine, the word is used to described the qualities of a book that make it well-suited for television adaptation:

Quote
“Ken Follett is one of the great authors of our time – and ‘The Evening and the Morning’ is exactly why,” said Michael Cooper of Range Media. “Its power and beauty and brutality and humanity all swirl together in the most immersive ways. It’s a beautiful book for this medium. Range is honored to partner with Legendary to bring this stunning book to life.”

There seems to be no dissension from the idea of making immersive a common word, so I'll take the plunge and do just that.
Alan Walker
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Maudland

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Re: Word suggestion
« Reply #8 on: April 03, 2021, 10:53:31 AM »
Thanks, Alan. Amazing how recently it’s become widespread.

Now I’ll just have to spot it again!