Forget 'hallucinate' and 'rizz.' What should the word of the year actually be?
No, you didn't "hallucinate."
That is the Word of the Year, according to Dictionary.com, amid a year of increasing artificial intelligence interference in our day-to-day lives. The announcement follows Oxford's own determination that its own Word of the Year is "rizz," short for "charisma." Merriam-Webster, meanwhile, went with "authentic."
The organizations don't make their decision in a vacuum. Dictionary.com and Merriam-Webster consulted search data, as Oxford asked language experts.
But that got USA TODAY thinking. If the choice were up to us, what would our Word of the Year be? Let us be your trusted guide in this swirling sea of discourse. Here's what our staff suggested, from the silly to the serious and everything in between:
- Era. Not just because of T-Swift's tour but also because everyone was in their ____ era this year, seemingly.
- ChatGPT. Large language models, like ChatGPT are transforming memos, homework, poetry and virtually all forms of research and communication.
- Pandemic skip. If you're 30 and feeling 27, you're not alone. "Pandemic skip" is a theory that people may feel three years younger due the COVID-19 pandemic's perceived distortion of time and it's been gaining traction on TikTok.
- Girlboss. It's keeping in line with the success of female-created ventures such as the "Barbie" movie and the Renaissance and Eras tours.
- Vibe. Singular. It’s an entire phrase. A person can be a vibe, a place can be a vibe – it’s different than the way it used to be "good vibes" or "bad vibes."
- Peace. The word feels like a fit in multiple ways. Whether finding an internal peace or making peace with things beyond our control — even the obvious peace in the Middle East. We all hope for peace in one way or another.
- Giving. Mostly in the form "it's giving" (though it's always great to give thanks, gifts or charity). It's a simple way to denote a mood, vibe or style. The best part of the phrase? The creative, often funny, things something can give. (For example, it's giving Willy Wonka.)
- Delulu. Short for "delusional," you can't escape it on TikTok. You're "delulu," for example, if you convince yourself your date isn't texting you back because he's too busy thinking about you to respond.
'Bet':This annual list of slang terms could have some parents saying 'Yeet'