Do you often catch yourself spending hours scrolling mindlessly through Instagram reels and TikTok? If so, you might be suffering from' brain rot', which Oxford University Press has named its word of the year.
According to Oxford, brain rot can be described as "supposed deterioration of a person’s mental or intellectual state, especially viewed as a result of overconsumption of material (now particularly online content) considered to be trivial or unchallenging. Also: something characterized as likely to lead to such deterioration."
On Monday, Oxford announced it as their 2024 word after more than 37,000 votes from the public, worldwide public discussion and analysis of its language data.
“‘Brain rot’ speaks to one of the perceived dangers of virtual life, and how we are using our free time,” Casper Grathwohl, president of Oxford Languages, said.
“It feels like a rightful next chapter in the cultural conversation about humanity and technology. It’s not surprising that so many voters embraced the term.”
After over 37,000 votes, extensive public discussion, and in-depth analysis of language data, Oxford University Press says its experts observed a surge in the use of ‘brain rot’ this year, reflecting growing concerns about the effects of consuming excessive low-quality online content, particularly on social media. Its usage increased by an impressive 230% between 2023 and 2024.
Though the term was first recorded in 1854 in Henry David Thoreau’s Walden, it has taken on a renewed significance in today’s digital age.
Brain rot beat five other phrases or words on the dictionary publisher's shortlist, including demure, dynamic pricing, lore, romantasy, and slop.
This year marked Oxford’s 20th anniversary for putting out an annual word. Its first word of the year was 'chav' in 2004, which Oxford says has since declined in usage, and last year gave the title to the word 'rizz' — a shortened form of the word charisma.
