On Tuesday, Merriam-Webster added more than 1,000 words to their dictionary — some technological, some political and many poised to clear up confusion for the type of people who believe “throwing shade” could involve lamps. throw shade, v.: to express contempt or disrespect for someone publicly especially by subtle or indirect insults or criticisms While slang words have a habit of expanding and changing to take on new meanings, being added to the dictionary is a sign that such terms are settling down — at least for now.