Image showing 'Modilie' is fake, no such entry exists anywhere: Oxford Dictionary tells Rahul Gandhi

Oxford Dictionaries said on Thursday that the word "Modilie", used by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's critics to take a swipe at him, is "fake" and does not exist in any of its dictionaries.

The assertion from one of the world's most recognised English language dictionaries through its verified Twitter account came a day after Congress president Rahul Gandhi used the term to take a dig at Modi.

"We can confirm that the image showing the entry 'Modilie' is fake and does not exist in any of our Oxford Dictionaries," it said.

We can confirm that the image showing the entry ‘Modilie’ is fake and does not exist in any of our Oxford Dictionaries.

— Oxford Dictionaries (@OxfordWords) May 16, 2019

On Thursday also, Gandhi targeted the prime minister, claiming even a website now "catalogues the best 'Modilies'".

He had Wednesday tweeted a screen shot of what appeared to be an online dictionary, saying, "There's a new word in the English Dictionary. Attached is a snapshot of the entry."

The layout of the image appeared similar to Oxford Dictionaries' website.

The BJP used the tweet of Oxford Dictionaries to take a dig at is rival.

"Slapped," tweeted BJP IT cell head Amit Malviya.

In the fabricated page tweeted on Wednesday, "Modilie" was described as a "mass noun". It listed three meanings and examples of the usage of the word.

Oxford Dictionaries on its Twitter handle said, "We can confirm that the image showing the entry 'Modilie' is fake and does not exist in any of our Oxford Dictionaries."