The word "blog" has been selected as the number one searched word in Merriam-Webster’s Online Edition for 2004.

The dictionary reported that "blog" is the number one searched word for the year 2004, breaking all previous records in the history. After being in the top 50 words list per day (starting July), the dictionary’s editors decided to add a loose meaning of the word, which states – "a Web site that contains an online personal journal with reflections, comments, and often hyperlinks provided by the writer."

The dictionary has announced its decision to officially include the word in its print and online editions in 2005.

Usually, it takes around 20 years for a particular word to get included in the dictionary, after it’s usage becomes a regular part of the language, but the dictionary has decided to include it earlier due to its sole popularity and the way it was picked up by users such rapidly.

"Blog" was followed by other commonly searched words in Merriam-Webster’s Online Edition such as "incumbent", "electoral", "partisan", "insurgent", "hurricane", "cicada", "peloton", "sovereignty", and "defenestration".

Also in the top list were words like "effect" and "affect" and "love".

The publisher said that the aforementioned words are searched 10 times in a single second during regular traffic days and 100 times per second during peak traffic hours.

"Blog" is scheduled to be included, with an official meaning, in Merriam-Webster’s 11th Collegiate Dictionary, which is expected to enter the market in 2005.