We are pleased to share key information and additional insight about the 2024 Oxford Word of the Year ‘brain rot’, our shortlist and previous winners, along with imagery, videos, and other assets for your use.
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Word of the Year
Highlights of 20 years of Oxford Word of the Year
From ‘selfie’ to ‘omnishambles’ and ‘rizz’, Oxford Word of the Year has highlighted the language that has shaped our conversations and reflected the cultural shifts, patterns, and sentiments of a particular year.
For more information about the winners and shortlist from the past twenty years, see our Oxford Word of the Year fact sheet; containing definitions, unique facts and further information about the previous winners.
Previous Winners
This word is used in British English. ‘Chav’ is considered derogatory.
Further information:
The word ‘chav’ grew in prominence in the decade of the 2000s, particularly in the UK. It was a high-profile word when selected for Oxford Word of the Year 2004 and was frequently invoked in conversations about changes in society and behaviour. However, as public attitudes about the appropriate language for discussing social class have shifted over time, and usage of the word has declined. While ‘chav’ is still publicized in our dictionaries, it is listed as derogatory (Oxford Dictionaries Online and Oxford English Dictionary).
To make (a digital recording of a broadcast) available on the internet for downloading to a computer or personal audio player.
Further information
‘Podcast’ is an example of a word that has grown in frequency. As a relatively new concept, in 2005, podcast was used on average 0.68 times per million words. Since then, it has grown hugely in frequency, undergoing a spike of usage in 2021. Now in 2024, ‘podcast’ is used at around 50 times per million words, indicating it is well established in our day-to-day language.
In which the amount of carbon dioxide produced has been reduced to nothing or is balanced by actions that protect the environment.
Further information
In 2006, our US experts named ‘carbon-neutral (adj.) as the winner, and in 2007 carbon footprint (n.) was the UK winner, reflecting greater public discussion about environmental concerns.
The environmental impact of a particular individual, community, or organization, or of a specific event, product, etc., measured in terms of the total associated greenhouse gas emissions, and typically expressed in terms of the (annual) equivalent in tons of carbon dioxide.
Further information
After being selected as the Oxford Word of the Year in 2007, the term ‘carbon footprint’ saw a spike in usage frequency in 2010. Its usage then gradually declined until 2018, when it began to increase significantly year-on-year, peaking in 2021. This trend demonstrates that our environmental impact has become a more regular topic of discussion.
The section of society regarded as particularly affected by inflation, wage freezes, and cuts in public spending during a time of economic difficulty, consisting principally of those on low or middle incomes.
Further information
Our experts researched and finalized this combined term across the UK and the US, creating our first global Word of the Year.
A photograph that one has taken of oneself, especially one taken with a smartphone or webcam and shared via social media.
Further information
In 2013, usage of ‘selfie’ grew by 17,000% on the previous year in our corpus, as it pivoted from a social media buzzword to a mainstream word for a self-portrait photograph.
Officially called the ‘Face with Tears of Joy’ emoji.
Further information
A situation in which urgent action is required to reduce or halt climate change and avoid potentially irreversible environmental damage resulting from it.
Further information
The global events of 2020 resulted in no singular Word of the Year finalist. Our experts instead developed an insightful report into the varying trends we saw.
Further information
A type of behaviour which is unapologetically self-indulgent, lazy, slovenly, or greedy, typically in a way that rejects social norms or expectations.
Further information
Style, charm, or attractiveness; the ability to attract a romantic or sexual partner.
Further information
Our 2024 shortlist
Find out why our six words made the 2024 shortlist:
brain rot
(n.) Supposed deterioration of a person’s mental or intellectual state, especially viewed as a result of overconsumption of material (now particularly online content) considered to be trivial or unchallenging. Also: something characterized as likely to lead to such deterioration.
Origin
The first recorded use of ‘brain rot’ that we’ve identified was in Henry David Thoreau’s book Walden in 1854: “While England endeavors to cure the potato rot, will not any endeavor to cure the brain rot which prevails so much more widely and fatally?” A small number of further uses of the term also occurred in the nineteenth century.
Why is it in our shortlist?
Although it is not a new or recent concept, ‘brain rot’ has been widely used on social media this year, particularly on TikTok, and the term has become more prominent, increasing by 250% in frequency per million words between 2023 and 2024 in our corpus.
Katherine Martin, Product Director for Oxford Languages:
“With ‘brain rot’, we see this concern about how our capacity for thought might be negatively impacted by consuming a lot of algorithmic online content, like short-form video. There’s an anxiety coming through about striking the right balance between engaging with the online world and losing touch with the real world. Young people also use this term to refer to the type of language used by people who overindulge in online content, which I think is wonderfully recursive and self-referential.”
demure
(adj.) Of a person: reserved or restrained in appearance or behaviour. Of clothing: not showy, ostentatious, or overly revealing.
Origin
The earliest use of ‘demure’ in the Oxford English Dictionary is from 1377, referring to the sea being calm.
The OED sense—‘Of persons (and their bearing, speech, etc.): Sober, grave, serious; reserved or composed in demeanour’—is attested from the late 1400s and has been in continuous use since then. We’ve seen use referring to unostentatious clothing since at least the seventeenth century.
Why is it in our shortlist?
We saw a big increase in usage of ‘demure’ in August 2024, after Jools Lebron used the word in a short viral video on TikTok. Lebron’s use of the phrase ‘very demure, very mindful’ to refer to her clothing and makeup choices was picked up and widely repeated by users on the platform and in the media.
Some commentators saw the trend as a reaction to the idea of a ‘brat summer’ (popularized in the wake of Charli XCX’s album Brat); while ‘brat’ was widely associated with impulsive, hedonistic, and self-confident behaviour and outlook, ‘demure’ is linked to an idea of personal reserve and careful self-presentation.
Casper Grathwohl, President of Oxford Languages:
“’Demure’ was used by an online influencer, Jools Lebron, who said, in the famous phrase from August, “very demure, very mindful”. It caused an instant spike in usage. What’s interesting about ‘demure’ is that, even though it had faded from contemporary vocabulary before 2024, online communities and others, particularly young people, are rediscovering and reclaiming some old language and revitalizing it. That’s part of what gives our shortlist a bit of frisson this year.”
dynamic pricing
(n.) The practice of varying the price for a product or service to reflect changing market conditions; in particular, the charging of a higher price at a time of greater demand.
Origin
‘Dynamic pricing’ is a loan translation—or ‘calque’—of the Swedish term ‘dynamiska prisbildning’. It found its way into English through the work of two Swedish economists: Gunnar Myrdal, who coined the original phrase in 1927, and Erik Lindahl, who translated Myrdal’s work into English in 1929.
Since then, the term has been regularly used in economic and business contexts, but has recently become prominent in less specialized use.
Why is it in our shortlist?
Whilst dynamic pricing is not a new phenomenon, this year has seen a heightened awareness of—and controversy over—its use. In some high-profile cases, dynamic pricing was used in setting prices for concert tickets, resulting in fans (often reluctantly) paying very high prices to see their favourite artists. In some cases, fans were in a virtual queue for hours before realizing how much they would be asked to pay, leading to questions about the transparency of dynamic pricing practices, as well as value for money.
Fiona McPherson, Senior Editor of the Oxford English Dictionary:
“As a concept, dynamic pricing is nothing new. It’s been around for decades, used in economic and business contexts, commonly in transport, and in the entertainment world for theatres and cinemas. But this year, it’s been especially noticeable, with a particularly high-profile instance of it in the headlines this year. I think another reason why dynamic pricing has come under so much scrutiny this year—and why we’re seeing so much written about it—is the continuation of cost-of-living pressures for so many people in so many places. If individuals are struggling to make ends meet and cutting back on what they may see as discretional spending, maybe quite a few people are thinking that companies and already-rich performers are taking advantage and resent this.”
lore
(n.) A body of (supposed) facts, background information, and anecdotes relating to someone or something, regarded as knowledge required for full understanding or informed discussion of the subject in question.
Origin
The oldest sense of ‘lore’ in the Oxford English Dictionary is ‘the act of teaching; the condition of being taught; instruction, tuition, education’, coming from the Blickling Homilies, a collection of Old English sermons which is around 1,000 years old.
Another sense refers to ‘the body of traditional facts, anecdotes, or beliefs relating to some particular subject; as in animal lore, bird lore, fairy lore, plant lore, etc.’.
Why is it in our shortlist?
In recent years, people have been using ‘lore’ in different ways and in new contexts. For example, they might now talk about the lore surrounding a particular celebrity, or a character in a book or film, or even refer to their own personal history as their lore. Online cultures and social media have seen the emergence of new kinds of celebrities and highly-engaged fandoms, and the word has been applied much more widely.
It is often a sign of ‘gatekeeping’ behaviour, in which some fans lay claim to a superior knowledge as a means of asserting themselves over other fans who they claim ‘do not know the lore’ as well as them.
Casper Grathwohl, President of Oxford Languages:
“‘Lore’ reminds me a little bit of last year’s Word of the Year, ‘rizz’, in that it’s that Gen Z and Gen Alpha community online that’s driving its usage, and it’s been growing over the course of the year. With ‘lore’, I find it really interesting that it’s being used a lot around people’s own personal histories. It’s usually used where you’re revealing something that was mysterious or hidden in a certain way, and you’re bringing it out into the light.”
romantasy
(n.) A genre of fiction combining elements of romantic fiction and fantasy, typically featuring themes of magic, the supernatural, or adventure alongside a central romantic storyline.
Origin
In this sense, ‘romantasy’ originates from 2008 when the word was used as a genre label by Random House in Germany, for a German translation of an English romantic fantasy novel.
Why is it in our shortlist?
After a gradual increase in use over time, ‘romantasy’ has sharply increased in use and become mainstream in the past year. This increase could be down to a couple of factors. The romantasy genre is very popular in spaces on TikTok where people discuss and recommend books—a community known as BookTok—which may have contributed to wider awareness and use of the word. Meanwhile, the popularity of the romantasy genre itself could perhaps be linked to an increased appetite for escapism to counteract widespread political and economic gloom.
Fiona McPherson, Senior Editor of the Oxford English Dictionary:
“It’s interesting to think about why we’re seeing this eightfold increase in usage now. Social media has to be a factor: BookTok is a phenomenon on TikTok where people are discussing and recommending books to each other; and there’s also Books of Instagram. But I think perhaps there is a desire for escapism. The news cycle can seem almost relentlessly grim, and sometimes you just want to get away from it with something that’s a bit more feel-good. A romantasy author, Georgia Summers, has actually been quoted about the rise of this type of book, and she said that previously there was another subgenre of fantasy called ‘grimdark’, but we’re now seeing “the rise of cozy fantasy” and romance, and fairy tale fantasy books, which have a more uplifting feel.”
slop
(n.) Art, writing, or other content generated using artificial intelligence, shared and distributed online in an indiscriminate or intrusive way, and characterized as being of low quality, inauthentic, or inaccurate.
Origin
‘Slop’ has been used to refer to cultural material since at least the mid-nineteenth century, originally being applied to overly sentimental literature, and later more generally to nonsense or rubbish.
Why is it in our shortlist?
In 2024, we have seen a 332% increase in the use of ‘slop’ to refer specifically to material produced using a large language model (LLM), which is often viewed as being low-quality or inaccurate. This type of low-quality, AI-generated material is becoming increasingly visible to people using internet search engines or social media, who often view it as unwanted or inferior.
Katherine Martin, Product Director for Oxford Languages:
“We look back and can see that actually similar use of ‘slop’ has existed for some time. It was previously used to refer to cultural material regarded as not being of high quality—that might have been overly sentimental literature back in the day—but now we’re seeing that coalesce into this idea of ‘AI slop’, this large amount of content that is just unsatisfying and unnourishing, washing over us. You can see there’s a bit of resonance here with the word ‘spam’, which also refers to the somewhat hollow nature of a certain type of human-created content, created for a purpose that does not have high integrity.”
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Oxford Word of the Year first started in 2004 in recognition of the dynamic nature of language. While we regularly update our dictionaries to reflect language changes, we recognized the value in taking a moment to pause and explore words from the year that capture key trends and shifts in usage. Word of the Year is a unique way to look back at the past 12 months and round off the year, and we’ve been delighted to see growing global interest and engagement in this moment.
Our language experts analyze the data from our 26-billion-word corpus, which is updated monthly with new sources from all around the world. This allows our lexicographers to investigate words that have had the most significant changes in usage. Editorial insights and expertise also feed into the Word of the Year process, with our expert lexicographers frequently recording exciting new developments in word usage that might not be visible in corpora. This might be because an existing word has developed a new sense, or because a new word is associated with a particular type of language that is not well represented in the corpus.
