Merriam-Webster Announces Its Word of the Year

deadname: “the name that a transgender person was given at birth and no longer uses upon transitioning.” Lookups followed an onslaught of legislation aimed at curtailing LGBTQ+ rights around the country.

deepfake: “an image or recording that has been convincingly altered and manipulated to misrepresent someone as doing or saying something that was not actually done or said.” Interest spiked after Elon Musk’s lawyers in a Tesla lawsuit said he is often the subject of deepfake videos, and again after the likeness of Ryan Reynolds appeared in a fake, AI-generated Tesla ad.

doppelgänger: a “double,” an “alter ego” or a “ghostly counterpart.” Recent interest in the word, which originally referred to spirit doubles in German folklore, may be related to the release of Naomi Klein’s latest book, Doppelganger: A Trip Into the Mirror World, released this year. She uses her own experience of often being confused with feminist author and conspiracy theorist Naomi Wolf as a springboard into a broader narrative on the crazy times we’re all living in.

dystopian: “of, relating to, or being an imagined world or society in which people lead dehumanized, fearful lives”. Climate chaos brought on interest in the word, according to the Merriam-Webster announcement, as did books, movies and TV fare intended to entertain.

EGOT: “the accomplishment of winning an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony Award in one’s lifetime,” as actress Viola Davis, 58, did in February when she received a Grammy.

implode: “to burst inward.” The June 18th implosion of the Titan submersible while on a commercial expedition to explore the Titanic wreckage sent lookups soaring for this word, Sokolowski said.

indict: “to charge with a crime by the finding or presentment of a jury (such as a grand jury) in due form of law” and “to charge with a fault or offense.” Former President Donald Trump has been indicted on felony charges in four criminal cases — in New York, Florida, Georgia and Washington, D.C. — and is fighting a lawsuit that threatens his real estate empire.

kibbutz: “a communal farm or settlement in Israel.” The online dictionary saw a spike in lookups after Hamas militants attacked several kibbutzim near the Gaza Strip on Oct. 7.

rizz: “romantic appeal or charm”. Merriam-Webster added the slang word to its online dictionary in September, and it’s been among the top lookups since, Sokolowski said.

x: It’s “the 24th letter of the English alphabet” and so much more, according to Merriam-Webster, which also cited the letter’s unusual flexibility: “For example, it stands for ‘an unknown quantity,’ it’s a symbol for the act of multiplication, and it is used as a substitute for ‘by’ in measurements, as in ‘The room was 10′x15.′ ” Lookups for “X” on merriam-webster.com spiked 885 percent on July 23, the date that Twitter announced it was rebranding itself as X.