London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Sunday, Sep 28, 2025

Public vote to decide Oxford word of the year for first time

Public vote to decide Oxford word of the year for first time

The Oxford word of the year is to be decided by the public for the first time.

The options for 2022 are metaverse, #IStandWith and the phrase goblin mode.

They were chosen by a team of lexicographers from Oxford University Press - the publisher of the Oxford English Dictionary - who felt they were "each relevant to the year in a different way".

Language lovers have until 2 December to decide.

So, what do the three different terms mean?

*  The metaverse is a conceptual virtual world where people can live, work, shop, eat and make friends. Usage of the word has quadrupled in October 2022 in the age of virtual reality and working from home, compared to the same month last year, according to Oxford University Press. Here we break down the metaverse for you.

*  The hashtag #IStandWith "recognises the activism and division that has characterised this year" and is used by people expressing solidarity with a movement or cause, such as the war in Ukraine, the team said. The hashtag has 2.8m views on TikTok, they added.

*  Goblin mode is a slang phrase dating back to 2009, according to Oxford University Press. It is used to describe someone as being lazy, greedy and self-indulgent, and in doing so, rejecting social norms. The phrase was rediscovered at a time when people came out of lockdowns around the world and could relate more to its meaning, the team said. They added that it saw a rise in interest when actress and model Julia Fox was linked to a fake headline using the phrase about her break up with rapper Kanye West.

The opening of the vote to the public is a significant move, and organisers said although the world was opened back up this year and physically reunited after Covid, it feels "more divided than ever".

President of Oxford Languages Casper Grathwohl added: "Over the past year the world reopened, and it is in that spirit we're opening up the selection process for the Word of the Year to language lovers everywhere."

Other contenders this year were Platty Jubes - an internet term for the Queen's platinum jubilee - and quiet quitting - doing the minimum required for your job - but the choice was ultimately narrowed down to three. Here we explore the workplace trend that has been taking over TikTok.

Last year's winner was vax, which rose to popularity with the emergence of the coronavirus vaccine and saw a surge in use.

In 2020, Oxford Languages decided there were too many contenders and the award included a range of winners including lockdown, bushfires and Covid-19, as well as Black Lives Matter, WFH [working from home], keyworkers and furlough.


Permacrisis, a word describing the feeling of living through a period of war and political instability, was chosen by Collins Dictionary's as their word of the year for 2022.

The winner will be announced on 5 December.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
U.S. Defense Chief Orders Sudden Summit of Hundreds of Generals and Admirals
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
Trump Claims FBI Planted 274 Agents at Capitol Riot, Citing Unverified Reports
India: Internet Suspended in Bareilly Amid Communal Clashes Between Muslims and Hindus
Supreme Court Extends Freeze on Nearly $5 Billion in U.S. Foreign Aid at Trump’s Request
Archaeologists Recover Statues and Temples from 2,000-Year-Old Sunken City off Alexandria
China Deploys 2,000 Workers to Spain to Build Major EV Battery Factory, Raising European Dependence
Speed Takes Over: How Drive-Through Coffee Chains Are Rewriting U.S. Coffee Culture
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Ringo Starr Champions Enduring Beatles Legacy While Debuting Las Vegas Art Show
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
FBI Removes Agents Who Kneeled at 2020 Protest, Citing Breach of Professional Conduct
Trump Alleges ‘Triple Sabotage’ at United Nations After Escalator and Teleprompter Failures
Shock in France: 5 Years in Prison for Former President Nicolas Sarkozy
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
BNP Paribas Abandons Ban on 'Controversial Weapons' Financing Amid Europe’s Defence Push
Typhoon Ragasa Leaves Trail of Destruction Across East Asia Before Making Landfall in China
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Big Banks Rebuild in Hong Kong as Deal Volume Surges
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Arnault Denounces Proposed Wealth Tax as Threat to French Economy
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Denmark Investigates Drone Incursion, Does Not Rule Out Russian Involvement
Lilly CEO Warns UK Is ‘Worst Country in Europe’ for Drug Prices, Pulls Back Investment
Nigel Farage Emerges as Central Force in British Politics with Reform UK Surge
Disney Reinstates ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ after Six-Day Suspension over Charlie Kirk Comments
U.S. Prosecutors Move to Break Up Google’s Advertising Monopoly
Nvidia Pledges Up to $100 Billion Investment in OpenAI to Power Massive AI Data Center Build-Out
U.S. Signals ‘Large and Forceful’ Support for Argentina Amid Market Turmoil
Nvidia and Abu Dhabi’s TII Launch First AI-&-Robotics Lab in the Middle East
Vietnam Faces Up to $25 Billion Export Loss as U.S. Tariffs Bite
Europe Signals Stronger Support for Taiwan at Major Taipei Defence Show
Indonesia Court Upholds Military Law Amid Concerns Over Expanded Civilian Role
Larry Ellison, Michael Dell and Rupert Murdoch Join Trump-Backed Bid to Take Over TikTok
Trump and Musk Reunite Publicly for First Time Since Fallout at Kirk Memorial
Vietnam Closes 86 Million Untouched Bank Accounts Over Biometric ID Rules
Explosive Email Shows Sarah Ferguson Begged Forgiveness from Jeffrey Epstein After Taking His Money
Corrupt UK Politician Ed Davey Demands Elon Musk’s Arrest for Supporting Democracy
UK, Canada, and Australia Officially Recognise Palestine in Historic Shift
Alibaba Debuts Open-Source Deep Research Agent with Benchmarks Rivaling OpenAI
Marcos Faces Legacy-Defining Crisis as Flood Projects Scandal Sparks Massive Tide of Protests
China’s Micro-Drama Boom Turns Stalled Real Estate Projects into Lavish Film Sets
New Eye Drops Show Promise in Replacing Reading Glasses for Presbyopia
'Company Got 5,189 H-1B Visas, Then Laid Off 16,000 Americans': US Defends New $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee
Golf legend tells Omar she should be 'sent back to Somalia' after her Kirk comments
EU Set to Bar Big Tech from New Financial Data Access Scheme
China Bans Livestreaming and AI in Religion Amid Crackdown on Shaolin Temple Scandal
×