Phubbing: Phubbing is a term that was coined as part of a campaign by Macquarie Dictionary. They were looking for a word to describe what happens when someone is snubbed in favor of a mobile phone. The word ‘phubbing’ is actually just the combination of two words – phone and snubbing.

Phubbing: Phubbing is the act of snubbing someone in a social setting by being busy with your cell phone instead of paying attention.

So, you get the picture! We’re all familiar with phubbing because we’ve all had the experience of being ‘phubbed’ by someone (sometimes by many people at the same time), and rightly feeling extremely annoyed! Have you ever been in a restaurant and realized that other people at your table are pre-occupied with their mobile phones? And if they’re not, just take a look around the restaurant and see how many people are!

Is Technology Progress Always Positive?

Translation experts love languages, and languages are certainly fascinating because, not only do they update themselves, they keep themselves current with our lifestyles and attitudes. The English language is especially good at coming up with new words and phrases, thus allowing its speakers to, not only increase their communication skills but more importantly, to always be in the loop, so to speak. But what happens when we combine technology with our need to communicate? What we’re discovering today is that sometimes the results are not always positive. No-one questions the fact that, when it comes to both communicating and broadcasting information, technology has been of great help, but has it made us its slaves at the same time?

We’re Becoming More and More Isolated

It’s certainly true that when it comes to communication, technology has taken over. Most of us have become completely dependent on our communication devices, like our computers, tablets, and cell phones; and today most users of these devices couldn’t imagine performing getting through a day without them. However, through texting and social media sites, this so-called communication has isolated us, and we’re now discovering that face-to-face contact and everyday conversation is becoming a lost art.

New Technology – New Terminology!

Of course, with this new technology has come new terminology, and today, with this new and exciting lifestyle, we’re adopting new words and phrases. And so we come to the title of this article – Phubbing: Is This a Real Word? And the answer is yes! Phubbing is a new word being used to describe someone’s behavior of paying more attention to their cell phone than to their surroundings. And there’s probably no-one on this planet today who hasn’t seen an example of phubbing! Every day we see people of all ages - translation professionals included! - with their eyes fixated on their mobile phones!