Twerking is officially mainstream. The provocative dance move – often associated with hip-hop music – is set in stone, a.k.a. now included in the Oxford English Dictionary.
According to The Huffington Post, the official definition reads: “Twerk, v. To dance to popular music in a sexually provocative manner involving thrusting hip movements and a low, squatting stance.”
While some may associate the word with current pop culture (and, especially post-VMAs, Miley Cyrus), Oxford spokeswoman Katherine Connor Martin explained the word’s possible origin.
“There are many theories about the origin of this word, and since it arose in oral use, we may never know the answer for sure," Martin said, according to Huff Post. "We think the most likely theory is that it is an alteration of work, because that word has a history of being used in similar ways, with dancers being encouraged to `work it.' The `t' could be a result of blending with another word such as twist or twitch."
“Twerk” was added as a part of the dictionary’s quarterly update. According to the Chicago Tribune, other words added include “selfie,” “buzzworthy,” and “srsly.”
Image from MTV press