District spokeswoman Betti Cadmus says that the dictionary may now be permanently banned. She added that they are carefully going through it to find anything else that is “just not age appropriate.” She added “It’s hard to sit and read the dictionary, but we’ll be looking to find other things of a graphic nature.” Apparently, not quite as hard as banning books. (BTW, wasn’t the original Cadmus credited with the introduction of the first alphabet? He would be spinning in his sarcophagus).
Board member and teacher Randy Freeman agrees with the decision to put the book into quarantine, noting “a prestigious dictionary that’s used in the Riverside County spelling bee, but I also imagine there are words in there of concern.” Somehow I doubt that cunnilingus is likely to be chosen at the Spelling Bee.
Here is the definition from the online version:
Main Entry: oral sex
Function: noun
Date: 1973
: oral stimulation of the genitals : cunnilingus, fellatio
Just for the record, here is the definition for intolerant:
Main Entry: in·tol·er·ant
Pronunciation: \-rənt\
Function: adjective
Date: circa 1735
1 : unable or unwilling to endure
2 a : unwilling to grant equal freedom of expression especially in religious matters b : unwilling to grant or share social, political, or professional rights : bigoted
3 : exhibiting physiological intolerance
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