OXFORD, England (The Adobo Chronicles) – Webster’s Dictionary has chosen its ‘word of the year,’ and it is not really a word. So has Oxford Dictionary, and it’s actually two words.

Webster’s word of the year is the suffix, ‘ism,’ and was the most searched dictionary entry in all of 2015.  People have been searching the meaning of words such as racism, sexism, ageism and terrorism.  Webster says it’s a reflection of what people around the world have been reading  in the news, or concerned about as they go about their everyday lives in these troubled times.

Oxford Dictionary, on the other hand, has chosen an international word(s) for its new 2015 entry: laglag bala. 

Laglag bala refers to a scheme at Manila’s Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) whereby unsuspecting passengers are questioned and detained for having live bullets in their luggage.  It appears that the scheme is part of a modus operandi by some unscrupulous airport personnel aimed at extorting money from local and foreign passengers.

Laglag bala was the most searched term in Oxford Dictionaries, online and off-line and has dominated local and international news for most of the last quarter of 2015.

Yet another international record for the Philippines!