SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — The Caribbean has elbowed its way into the Oxford English Dictionary with 12 new words commonly used in the region that officials publicly recognized on Wednesday.
The longest of the words is “carry-go-bring-come,” and it dates from 1825. Variations include “bring-back-carry-come” and “bring-come-and-carry-go,” but they all mean the same thing: gossip, or a person who spreads it, according to the dictionary.
Also under the letter ‘C’ is the cute-sounding “cou-cou,” a Caribbean dish that incorporates okra, butter and cornmeal, and, of course, the “cou-cou-stick,” which is self-explanatory.
Four other new words added to the dictionary also refer to food.
You have “bulla,” derived from the Spanish word “bollo,” or bread roll. It is “a small, round, flat cake from Jamaica, made with flour, molasses, brown sugar, and various spices and flavourings such as ginger, nutmeg, coconut, and pineapple.”
(Hungry yet?)
Also under ‘B’ is “buss up shut,” which is not a rude way of telling someone to shush, but rather “fried unleavened bread with a flaky texture, similar to paratha or roti.” It is one of the most popular dishes in Trinidad and Tobago.
“The name represents the Caribbean pronunciation of bust-up shirt, apparently because of the flaky bread’s resemblance to rags of fabric,” according to the dictionary.
Also popular in Trinidad and Tobago and elsewhere in the region is “pholourie:” “an Indo-Caribbean dish made of fried flour balls, ground split peas and spices.” The word was first quoted in a 1936 song by the Trinidadian calypso singer and composer Rafael de Leon.
Rounding out the food words is “saltfish.” It dates from 1558, making it the oldest new word from the Caribbean added to the dictionary. It is, well, fish that has been salted and dried.
The Oxford Dictionary also added “bobolee,” “a stuffed and dressed up effigy … set up as a target for beating on Good Friday”; “cry long water” which means either to cry a lot or insincerely; and “broughtupsy,” a nod to polite manners stemming from a proper upbringing.
The last two words are “Jamaican Creole” and “tantie,” a title of respect that refers to any older woman, not necessarily an aunt.
There are some 500,000 words and phrases in the Oxford English Dictionary, which details the history of words, some of which go back to the 11th century.
FILE - Gavin James buys a packet of flour from shopkeeper Ann Marie Cawley, in St. Elizabeth, Jamaica, May 17, 2021. (AP Photo/Collin Reid, File)
WENGEN, Switzerland (AP) — Host Italy has a new contender in Alpine skiing with the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics three weeks away.
Giovanni Franzoni claimed his first World Cup victory on the famed Lauberhorn course in a super-G Friday — four months after his close friend and former roommate, Matteo Franzoso, died in a crash during preseason training in Chile.
The 24-year-old Franzoni — a former world junior champion in super-G, downhill and Alpine combined — was the first racer on course and took advantage of the No. 1 bib to deliver a near-perfect run.
Reaching a top speed of 140.44 kph (87 mph), Franzoni finished 0.35 seconds ahead of Stefan Babinsky of Austria and 0.37 ahead of downhill world champion Franjo von Allmen of Switzerland.
Franzoni handled the tricky Canadian Corner and Kernen S sections on the upper portion of the course cleaner than anyone else.
“I made the difference on the turn where I crashed a few years ago,” he said, referring to his season-ending fall in a super-G in 2023 that resulted in thigh surgery.
Swiss overall World Cup leader Marco Odermatt, a four-time winner in Wengen, placed fourth, 0.53 behind.
The top American was Ryan Cochran-Siegle in sixth.
Franzoni also led both downhill training sessions and could be a contender in the classic downhill on Saturday. His previous best World Cup finish was third in a super-G on home snow in Val Gardena last month.
Now Franzoni will be among the leaders for Italy’s team in Bormio, where men’s Alpine skiing will be contested during the Olympics.
“If you had told me that I would be third in Val Gardena and then win here — on the two courses that I've had the most trouble on — I wouldn't have believed it,” Franzoni said.
The opening ceremony for the Games is scheduled for Feb. 6.
“I don't know about the future, but the present has changed," Franzoni said. "We always live day by day.”
Marco Schwarz, the Austrian who won the previous super-G in Livigno, Italy, last month, missed the race due to sickness.
Also sitting out this weekend is Aleksander Aamodt Kilde, the Norwegian standout who returned this season after a horrific crash in Wengen two years ago.
“This year," Kilde said on Instagram this week, "it’s just a little too early.”
AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics
Giovanni Franzoni of Italy takes a jump during the alpine ski, men's World Cup super-G race, in Wengen, Switzerland, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (Jean-Christophe Bott/Keystone via AP)
Switzerland's Marco Odermatt reacts at finish line during an alpine ski, men's World Cup super-G, in Wengen, Switzerland, Friday Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Giovanni Zenoni)
Switzerland's Franjo von Allmen reacts at finish line during an alpine ski, men's World Cup super-G, in Wengen, Switzerland, Friday Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Giovanni Zenoni)
Austria's Stefan Babinsky speeds down the course during an alpine ski, men's World Cup super-G, in Wengen, Switzerland, Friday Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Gabriele Facciotti)
Italy's Giovanni Franzoni reacts at finish line during an alpine ski, men's World Cup super-G, in Wengen, Switzerland, Friday Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Giovanni Zenoni)
Italy's Giovanni Franzoni speeds down the course during an alpine ski, men's World Cup super-G, in Wengen, Switzerland, Friday Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Gabriele Facciotti)
