Parents trying to keep up with Miley Cyrus' shenanigans are getting a helping hand from Oxford Dictionaries.
The company announced quarterly additions Wednesday to its Oxford Dictionaries Online — "twerking" among them. According to the Oxford scholars, "twerking" refers to dancing "to popular music in a sexually provocative manner involving thrusting hip movements and a low, squatting stance."
Also read: Miley Cyrus' Twerk-tastic VMA Performance: By the Numbers
Which should help answer the question that's been sweeping the nation this week: "What in god's name was Miley Cyrus doing at the Video Music Awards?" (Oxford makes no mention of a giant novelty foam finger.)
Other additions for the pop-culture clueless include "selfie" ("a photograph that one has taken of oneself, typically one taken with a smartphone or webcam and uploaded to a social media website"); "squee" (an exclamation "used to express great delight or excitement"); and "A/W" (for the fashion-unforward, an abbreviation of "autumn/winter," relating to clothing designed for those seasons).
See photos: The Evolution of Miley Cyrus: From Clean and Chipper to Controversial Stripper
We humbly suggest that next quarter, Oxford add "OMGmakeitstop."