← How Dictionaries Decide · Lesson 3 of 3
The word that never was
In the 1934 edition of Webster's New International Dictionary, the word "dord" appeared, meaning density. It was a mistake: a slip reading "D or d", the abbreviation for density, had been read as one word.
An editor noticed in 1939 and it was taken out of later printings. Ghost words like this are rare, but they show why evidence matters: "dord" had no citations at all.
How did "dord" get into the dictionary?
A lesson is kept once you've answered the question and written at least 8 words. Nobody grades it; it stays on this device.