My posts on this traditional new year’s topic build up on each other. The one from 2022 provides the most background information to the topic; 2023’s post lists four sources I focussed on last year.
Merriam Webster’s 2024 list reflects what concerned people in the US most last year. As 2024 was an election year, quite a few words for 2024 relate to that topic. But not only. Check the short-list and find out: what they refer to, what development they might reflect and if they are linked to a special event or person:
Polarization
Totality
Demure
Fortnight
Pander
Resonate
Allision
Weird
Cognitive
Democracy
My personal preference is the Merriam Webster list, as it does not contain as many newly coined words I personally never heard of, and of which many seem to derive from the world of social media that I have absolutely no desire to enter. As much as I love Collins Dictionary’s animations, the words there seem to be more of that kind. I wonder how many will stay to permanently enter any dictionary.
One of the words in Collins’ list is Oxford dictionaries Word of the Year and might indeed be quite reflective of what is going on cognitively in many of our minds.
The Cambridge Dictionary Word of the Year 2024 also worth checking