Oxford Dictionaries has determined the word that best describes 2018.
Steering away from possible candidates such as, "big-d*** energy" or the British derogatory term, "gammon," Oxford named the word "toxic" as the word of the year for 2018.
Defining the adjective as "poisonous," Oxford said that the word was an "intoxicating descriptor for the year's most talked about topics."
The word of the year is meant to be a reflection of "ethos, mood, or preoccupations of the passing year," and according to Oxford's data, there was a 45 percent increase in searches of "toxic" on the dictionary's website.
Oxford included a list of 10 words used in collaboration with "toxic," including environment, masculinity and culture.
The runner-up words were: gaslighting, incel, techlash, gammon, big d*** energy, cakeism, overtourism and orbiting.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Hannah Preston works remotely from the Los Angeles area. She studied Journalism & New Media at California Baptist University and interned ... Read more
To read how Newsweek uses AI as a newsroom tool, Click here.
