(Image source from: NDTV.com)

A new word has entered the Oxford English Dictionary and it is completely out of the blue. The Indian word for underpants - chuddies - has become the latest entry to the Oxford English Dictionary.

Chuddies is one of the 650 words added to the Oxford English Dictionary as part of its effort to expand coverage of regional vocabularies. Added in the quarterly March update, chuddies now joins the ranks of pony bottles, jibbons, and kitbasher, among others.

Identifying it is an Indian English word in origin, the entry for chuddies in the Oxford English Dictionary provides its meaning: "Short trousers, shorts. Now usually: underwear; underpants."

In a blog post, the OED also explains how the word became popular: "Our coverage of British Indian usage gets an update with the addition of the dismissive kiss my chuddies (underpants), popularized as a catchphrase by actor and writer Sanjeev Bhaskar playing one half of the teenage duo known as the Bhangra Muffins in the 1990s BBC comedy sketch show Goodness Gracious Me."

Online, the addition of chuddies to the dictionary elicited enthusiastic responses:

“Chuddies” is now official an English word.
. pic.twitter.com/44SeJuICsz

— (@my2bit) March 22, 2019

Its official guys! “Chuddies” are among 650 new entries recognised as English words by Oxford Dictionary in a latest update released today. Ab zor se bolne mein kya sharmana? #ChaddiEntersOxford

— Junaiz Mohammed (@JunaizMohammed) March 21, 2019

Other words that made it to the Oxford English Dictionary include jibbons - the Welsh English word for "spring onions", sitooterie - a Scottish word for "a place to sit out in", and dof - a borrowing from Afrikaans meaning "stupid, ill-informed or clueless".

According to the Guardian, these words were added as part of OED's 'Words Where You Are' appeal, launched earlier this year, which invites English speakers from around the world to update the dictionary with regional words.

By Sowmya Sangam