'Brat' has been named the word of the year by Collins Dictionary thanks to Charli XCX, with Taylor Swift and TikTok also contributing to some updated definitons.
Lexicographers at the dictionary monitor the 20 billion word Collins Corpus which draws from a range of media sources, including social media, to create the annual list of new and notable words that reflect our ever-evolving language and the preoccupations of those who use it.
They've named 'brat' the Word of the Year thanks to the Charli XCX album of the same name which became a cultural phenomenon.
Its neon green cover became a style trend as people embraced 'brat summer', with Collins newly defining it as "characterised by a confident, independent and hedonistic attitude".
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Another word on the list also refers to a female pop superstar, with the word 'era' used to describe "a period of one's life or career that is of a distinctive character".
Swift embarked on a hugely successful stadium tour dubbed The Eras Tour in which she divided the setlist into songs, imagery and motifs from all of her studio albums - with the exception of her self-titled debut - in a show seen by over 10 million people across the globe.
The TikTok trend 'rawdogging' has also been included in the list.
While the word originally referred to engaging in unprotected sex, it has been adapted to mean "the act of undertaking an activity without preparation, support, or equipment".
Examples include people 'rawdogging' long-haul flights, meaning they consume no food or water, don't use the toilet and don't read, watch a film or listen to music - simply stare at the headrest in front of them.
Only one election-related word made the list despite close to half of the world's population voting in one this year, with 'supermajority' making the list thanks to its usage before and following the UK general election.
The Conservative Party, facing certain defeat, cautioned against handing Sir Keir Starmer and the Labour Party a large majority in the House of Commons.
Constitutionally the phrase is meaningless in the United Kingdom, as all votes at Westminster are carried by a simple majority unlike, for example, in the United States where some votes require a two-thirds majority to pass.
The list is dominated by words adopted by generations Z and alpha, including yapping - talking at length - looksmaxxing - attempting to maximise the attractiveness of one's physical appearance - and delulu - slang for deluded.
Cynics might say this is all a symptom of 'brainrot' - an inability to think clearly due to excessive consumption of low-quality online content.
Examples of such trends are 'Fanum tax', taking food from a friend, or 'Skibidi toilet', an online web series in which an army of singing toilets with human heads battle for supremacy against humanoid beings with cameras, speakers, and televisions in place of their heads.
Alex Beecroft, MD Collins, said: “While ‘supermajority’ does the heavy lifting in a year of political upheaval in the UK and around the world, the big disrupters in language have come from different sources. With many of this year’s notable words being popularised by generations Z and Alpha, we can confidently say this is the most ‘brat’ Word of the Year list ever!”
Collins Dictionary definitions
anti-tourism [ˌæntɪˈtʊərɪzəm] noun opposition to or action against large-scale tourism
brainrot [ˈbreɪnˌrɒt] noun an inability to think clearly caused by excessive consumption of low-quality online content
brat [bræt] adjective characterized by a confident, independent, and hedonistic attitude
delulu [dɪˈluːluː] adjective utterly mistaken or unrealistic in one’s ideas or expectations
era [ˈɪərə] noun a period of one’s life or career that is of a distinctive character
looksmaxxing [ˈlʊksˌmæksɪŋ] noun attempting to maximize the attractiveness of one’s physical appearance
rawdogging [ˈrɔːˌdɒɡɪŋ] noun the act of undertaking an activity without preparation, support, or equipment
romantasy [rəʊˈmæntəsɪ] noun a literary genre that combines romantic fiction with fantasy
supermajority [ˈsuːpəməˌdʒɒrɪtɪ] noun a large majority in a legislative assembly that enables a government to pass laws without effective scrutiny
yapping [ˈjæpɪŋ] noun talking at length, especially about inconsequential matters
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