'Vape' Is the International Word of the Year

The clueless Oxford Dictionary thinks vaping started with the invention of the e-cig in 2003. Fact is vaporization has been a common term in the marijuana world for the last two decades or more.

Willie Nelson takes a vape hit of marijuana.

"The language usage of the word vape and related terms in 2014 has shown a marked increase," says editorial director Judy Pearsall. "Vaping has gone mainstream."

Oxford traces the earliest use of the word to a 1983 article about nicotine vapor.

The term "vape pen" is clearly a marijuana product, as opposed to an e-cig. However, it is true that vaping is now common among tobacco users. There's even a magazine called Vape entirely devoted to nicotine-related products.

Vaporizing marijuana was first written about by Dr. Lunglife in several articles showing how to build a whip-style vaporizer published in 1989 editions of High Times. 

Also on Oxford's shortlist of hot 2014 words: budtender.

Steve Bloom

Steve Bloom

Publisher of CelebStoner.com, former editor of High Times and Freedom Leaf and co-author of Pot Culture and Reefer Movie Madness.