The Process
Lexis is a registry and historical record — a patent office for words, except cultural, not legal.
You file the word like a historical document: spelling, phonetics, definition, example usage, and etymology, with your name attached as inventor. Lexis assigns a permanent registry document number and a shareable page that doubles as your certificate. From that moment the record exists — dated, attributed, and public.
A baseline scan runs at submission, then the registry rescans the public internet weekly — social platforms, forums, news, and publications — counting genuine citations of your word. The count becomes your Usage Score, charted on your word’s page.
Proposed
Just submitted, under review. Every submission starts here while the review team checks it against existing dictionaries.
Emerging
Detected in social media usage. The word has been spotted in the wild — people other than you are using it.
Established
Found in publications and mainstream use. Journalists, bloggers, or authors have used the word in published writing.
Certified
Crossed the threshold, officially documented by Lexis. The word has demonstrably entered the language. The record notes you as its inventor, permanently.
Does Lexis have official authority over the English language?
No language body has official authority over English. English is governed by use, not decree. Lexis documents invention and tracks adoption — the same process that made “selfie,” “google,” and “vibe” real words.
Do I legally own my word after registering it?
No — words cannot be owned, and Lexis is not a trademark office. What you own is the historical record: a timestamped, verifiable document showing you coined the word first. That record is permanent.
How does usage tracking actually work?
On submission, Lexis runs a baseline scan for existing usage of your word across the public web. Every week after that, the registry rescans social platforms, forums, and publications, and updates your word’s citation count and status tier accordingly.
What does it take for a word to become Certified?
A word becomes Certified when its tracked citations cross the registry threshold: sustained usage by people unconnected to the inventor, appearances in independent publications, and growth across at least three consecutive months.
Can a submission be rejected?
Yes. Words that already exist in major dictionaries, direct trademark conflicts, and slurs are declined during review, with a full refund. Everything else enters the record as Proposed.