Cougar

Cougar… Rrrrrrrr! This word may bring one of two images to your mind. Typically, the first thing that most people would instantly associate with cougar is the image of a courageous feline. In contrast, some people might correlate cougar with an aggressive, slightly older lady. (This definition will get more detailed as you read later.) Depending on which image came to mind, you are indiscreetly revealing your age or the generation you grew up during. Oxford English Dictionary Online defines cougar as “a large feline quadruped, found in most parts of America; also called puma, red tiger, American lion etc.” More enticing, one of my favorite definitions of many from the Urban Dictionary defines cougar as: (see also hunt, prowl, corner, pounce). Noun. A 35+ year old female who is on the "hunt" for a much younger, energetic, willing-to-do-anything male. The cougar can frequently be seen in a padded bra, cleavage exposed, propped up against a swanky bar in San Francisco (or other cities) waiting, watching, calculating; gearing up to sink her claws into an innocent young and strapping buck who happens to cross her path. "Man is cougar's number one prey.” There is obviously great distinction in these diverse definitions. One refers to and animal and the other is in reference to an older female. Such contradiction derives from the sources of authority behind each of these established definitions. Authority in the Oxford English Dictionary Online is prescriptive because their definitions are established by educated and qualified individuals to give a standard meaning to the word. It is typically used as a standard dictionary for a scholar. The Urban Dictionary is a descriptive authority because it is how we speak, the plain fact, and not a standard. This dictionary would be good for trying to define newer terms or slang words that have recently developed. Such a divergence in one definition is due to how the word’s use has changed over time. Younger generations would more likely associate with the second image of the word cougar because it is becoming increasingly popular to use the slang “cougar” to describe these older ladies. Although I am bias of the Urban Dictionary definition of “cougar”, I still believe that an Oxford English Dictionary definition would be more accurate because it is the typical definition of cougar. It is a dependable source. Urban Dictionary is an unreliable and inaccurate source for many words because it does not have a standard for who can establish the definition of a word. Therefore allowing anyone to have the capability to change a word based on what they think it is will vary drastically and be inconsistent among numerous amounts of people. This is why there were pages of definitions of “cougar” although many of them were similar everyone seemed to have their own different way of defining this word. A definition should be consistent and accurate.