America's suburbs: An age of transformation

Re:America's suburbs: An age of transformation by georgecmu on Friday May 30, 2008 @12:38PM (#204561)

Not according to OED (see http://dictionary.oed.com/cgi/entry/50107551?single=1&qu...):

Article for homogenous only has two meanings listed: 1. Biol. = HOMOGENETIC 1. 2. Surg. Of transplanted tisssue: = HOMOPLASTIC a. 2.

I suppose the confusion in everyday speech made it into American dictionaries, but I still find its appearance in a magazine perceived to cater to intellectual snobs amusing.

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Re:America's suburbs: An age of transformation by jmilton on Friday May 30, 2008 @01:34PM (#204626)

While the OED may be considered the definitive source for the vast majority of words, many entries reflect the last print publication in 1989, and are not as in-step with modern usages. Language is continually evolving, and as always, it is best to consult a variety of sources.

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Re:America's suburbs: An age of transformation by georgecmu on Friday May 30, 2008 @02:50PM (#204732)

I prefer "changing" to "evolving" to describe this phenomenon. It is certainly interesting to observe two unrelated words with similar spelling become synonyms in less than 20 years.

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Re:America's suburbs: An age of transformation by gojomo on Friday May 30, 2008 @01:14PM (#204599)

Definitions that are (1) in common use; and (2) not hidden behind a paywall are going to win out. The OED could learn a few things from the Economist.

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