In the waning weeks of 2018 there will be countless year-end reflections on the many events that unfolded – from the inspiring to the infuriating.
And if there were a way to describe 2018 in a word, in a term that would file all the disparate pieces into one neat folder, Oxford Dictionaries has the answer.
Oxford University Press, the publisher of Oxford Dictionaries, announced “The Oxford Word of the Year 2018 is… toxic.”
“The Oxford Word of the Year is a word or expression that is judged to reflect the ethos, mood, or preoccupations of the passing year, and have lasting potential as a term of cultural significance,” the Oxford Dictionaries website explained.
“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,” Oxford continued.
From ‘toxic air’ to ‘toxic politics’, the sheer scope of its application in 2018 made ‘toxic’ the stand-out choice for our Word of the Year. Find out more about the choice at our Word of the Year hub: https://t.co/J1gxJBroOH #OxfordWOTY pic.twitter.com/97othfjZnN
— Oxford Dictionaries (@OxfordWords) November 15, 2018
The word, which was used in a variety of literal and figurative ways, saw an increase of 45 percent more searches on oxforddicitionaries.com in this year, the publisher noted.
The top two most-used words in association with “toxic” were “Chemical” and “masculinity” with others including relationship and culture.
Oxford Dictionaries explained:
Our corpus data shows that, after ‘chemical’, ‘masculinity’ is the most-used word in conjunction with toxic this year. With the #MeToo movement putting a cross-industry spotlight on toxic masculinity, and watershed political events like the Brett Kavanaugh Senate judiciary committee hearing sparking international debate, the term toxic masculinity has well and truly taken root in the public consciousness and got people talking in 2018.
“Toxic masculinity’ has been the second most-talked about ‘toxic’ topic in 2018,” the publisher revealed, citing the #MeToo movement as part of the cause.
‘Toxic masculinity’ has been the second most-talked about ‘toxic’ topic in 2018 – thanks in part to the #MeToo movement, which put a cross-industry spotlight on such ‘poisonous’ attitudes, spurring discussions around how to inspire change #OxfordWOTY https://t.co/PT68otf8zp
— Oxford Dictionaries (@OxfordWords) November 15, 2018
Other “toxic” phrases also gained momentum such as toxic substance, toxic gas, and toxic waste.
And thanks to a central role in Florida’s Senate #Midterms2018 race, ‘toxic algae’ garnered so much commentary that ‘algae’ featured as the ninth-most frequently seen ‘toxic’ collocate for 2018 #OxfordWOTY https://t.co/FxDpKs5YQp
— Oxford Dictionaries (@OxfordWords) November 15, 2018
In its original, literal use to refer to poisonous substances, ‘toxic air’ has been a prime public health concern in 2018, with attention reaching a high after @WHO published its report into the quality of air breathed by children worldwide #OxfordWOTY https://t.co/Kzjgbl04jx
— Oxford Dictionaries (@OxfordWords) November 15, 2018
Similarly metaphorical, ‘culture’ was the 7th most-used word in association with ‘toxic’ this year, according to our data, with high-profile events like the @Google mass walkouts, as reported by @ConversationUK here, contributing to this uptick #OxfordWOTY https://t.co/gc2ho8C9I4
— Oxford Dictionaries (@OxfordWords) November 15, 2018
Last year’s Word of the Year, “youthquake,” was certainly lighter than 2018’s winner, which Oxford Dictionaries credited pop singer Britney Spears with helping to take off.
Interestingly, our research into ‘toxic’ found that pop icon @britneyspears played a part in spreading this metaphorical use of the word; the lyrics of her 2003 song ‘Toxic’ draw an extended metaphor of a lover as a dangerous yet addictive drug. #OxfordWOTY pic.twitter.com/4Zw9dkOp52
— Oxford Dictionaries (@OxfordWords) November 15, 2018
And while “toxic” secured the first place spot of reflecting the “ethos, mood, or preoccupations” of 2018, it was not the only one to get the publisher’s attention this year.
Though ‘toxic’ took the #OxfordWOTY title, it’s by no means the only word that caught our attention this year. Find out about the words that made our shortlist at the Word of the Year hub: https://t.co/ulAkRigNlR pic.twitter.com/itJENyr0JK
— Oxford Dictionaries (@OxfordWords) November 15, 2018
Twitter users reacted to the sobering news.
The negativity…Let’s shoot for healthy next year
— Kelly (@KellyJGar) November 15, 2018
Seems appropriate tbh
— the filthiest nihilist (@elliemaytweet) November 15, 2018
That about sums up 2018!
— Angie (@Angie51peace) November 15, 2018
Damn, my money was on ‘triggered’. pic.twitter.com/ltWlR4weaW
— PW (@paulwill617) November 15, 2018
Can’t help but feel that there has been a huge increase in the popularity of negative words.
— Ian Bartholomew (@Ian_Bartholomew) November 15, 2018
I kid you not, @BritneySpears was ahead of her time.#WordOfTheYear pic.twitter.com/QSASo89Ypb
— τЂiś•iś•śЂäЂid ®شاھد (@this_is_shahid) November 15, 2018
DONATE TO BIZPAC REVIEW
Please help us! If you are fed up with letting radical big tech execs, phony fact-checkers, tyrannical liberals and a lying mainstream media have unprecedented power over your news please consider making a donation to BPR to help us fight them. Now is the time. Truth has never been more critical!
Frieda@bizpacreview.com
Originally from New York, Powers graduated from New York University and eventually made her way to sunny South Florida where she has been writing for the BizPacReview team since 2015.
Comment
We have no tolerance for comments containing violence, racism, profanity, vulgarity, doxing, or discourteous behavior. If a comment is spam, instead of replying to it please click the ∨ icon below and to the right of that comment. Thank you for partnering with us to maintain fruitful conversation.
