Oxford Dictionary Word of the Year 2020 (and Previous Years)

I am an American and English is my first language. About 10+ years ago, I decided to become active online and engage with others in different communities. Consequently, I have interacted with people from around the world who speak English, however, it is not their native tongue. One of the things I enjoy is that each year, there is a “Word of the Year” published by Oxford Dictionaries. Actually, there are several lists which publish a Word of the Year. But I like the Oxford list. It's just a personal preference.

I thought this topic might interest this community, since there are English and non-English speaking members, so I went back to 2015 and compiled the Word of the Year chosen for 2015 through 2019.

What happened to 2020? An interesting thing happened regarding the 2020 Oxford Dictionaries Word of the Year. According to the lexicographers and this is a direct quote:

“As our Word of the Year process started and this data was opened up, it quickly became apparent that 2020 is not a year that could neatly be accommodated in one single “word of the year”, so we have decided to report more expansively on the phenomenal breadth of language change and development over the year in our Words of an Unprecedented Year report.”

INCREDIBLE!! 2020 was such an horrific year there was no way they could just describe it one word. They had to write a report.

What can I say? So many things have happened that I thought I would never SEE in my lifetime, and I often say to family and friends that 2020 is not likely to be a year that I will ever forget!

So I have to write this note in my journal.

• Dear Diary: 2020 is the first year ever that there was no one word of the year. They had to write a report!! At least you can download the report for free.

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Word of the Year From 2015 - 2019

For 2015: emojis

“Emojis (the plural can be either emoji or emojis) have been around since the late 1990s, but 2015 saw their use, and use of the word emoji, increase hugely.”

For 2016: post-truth

“Post-truth is an adjective defined as ‘relating to or denoting circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief’.”

For 2017: youthquake

“The noun, youthquake, is defined as ‘a significant cultural, political, or social change arising from the actions or influence of young people’.”

For 2018: toxic

“In 2018, toxic added many strings to its poisoned bow becoming an intoxicating descriptor for the year’s most talked about topics. It is the sheer scope of its application, as found by our research, that made toxic the stand-out choice for the Word of the Year title.”

For 2019: climate emergency

“Climate emergency is defined as ‘a situation in which urgent action is required to reduce or halt climate change and avoid potentially irreversible environmental damage resulting from it.’”

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Hope you found this content interesting and useful.

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