What’s Your Word of the Year?

Every year, dictionaries select a word that captures the spirit of the times. Today, Oxford’s Word of the Year has been announced as brain rot, a term that feels particularly of the moment. Defined as “the supposed deterioration of a person’s mental or intellectual state, especially due to overconsumption of trivial online content,” it’s a phrase that resonates in our hyper-digital age.

Interestingly, while brain rot has gained fresh prominence in 2024, its roots go back to Henry David Thoreau’s Walden in 1854. Even then, it seems we were worrying about the effects of unchallenging distractions—though Thoreau didn’t have TikTok to contend with!

Other dictionaries took different paths: Dictionary.com went with demure, Collins chose brat, and Cambridge selected manifest. Each tells its own story about the words shaping our conversations this year.

But let’s take a step back. Words like brain rot might dominate headlines, but I’d like to suggest some alternatives—words that inspire and uplift. My personal list of Words of the Year includes:
Resilience – the ability to bounce back, no matter the challenge.
Curiosity – the drive to explore, learn, and grow.
Community – because together, we’re stronger.
Joy – a reminder to find delight in the everyday.
Now it’s your turn. What do you think of brain rot as Word of the Year? If you could choose your own Word of the Year, what would it be? Share your ideas with us—we’d love to hear them!

Let’s fill this year with meaningful words and conversations.

Daniel Studholme