The American Heritage Dictionary

We’re all defined by what we say and the words we use to express ourselves. Through posts, texts, tweets, comments, emails, and the like, our thoughts and words are shared more frequently and more broadly than ever before.

This was the insight that inspired You Are Your Words, the campaign to launch the 5th edition of The American Heritage Dictionary, featuring an interactive experience where people created and shared self-portraits illustrated by their own words. Nearly one hundred thousand portraits were made, including the one you just clicked on of NPR’s Robin Young, who made hers shortly before running a story on the launch.

A unique Twitter program also rewarded people who tweeted using words that - unbeknownst to them - were new inclusions in this latest edition. (Words like manboob, defriend, ka-ching.) Their tweets earned them a new dictionary, organically amplifying AHD’s presence to reach over 650k people as the surprise giveaway was shared and retweeting.

These engaging efforts succeeded in connecting an online audience with a book many thought had lost its relevance in the digital age.