We've had "brat," "demure," "brain rot," and "manifest," as words of the year chosen by dictionaries, but because we can surely agree that we don't all agree, Merriam-Webster is now out with its 2024 word of the year: "polarization." Chosen based on the dictionary's website search traffic, the word officially defined as "division into two sharply distinct opposites" just "happens to be one idea that both sides of the political spectrum agree on," the dictionary says in a statement, per the Guardian.
Polarization might bring to mind US politics, and particularly the US election, but "it's not just politics that have divided the US," the Guardian reports, pointing to the celebrity feud between Kendrick Lamar and Drake and the "controversy over the gymnast Jordan Chiles's bronze medal at the Olympics." "Even lighthearted memes—like those making fun of Australian breakdancer Rachael 'Raygun' Gunn's performance—or the proliferation of look-alike contests, or who counts as a nepo baby proved polarizing" this year, per the AP. According to Merriam-Webster editor-at-large Peter Sokolowski, polarization "means that we are tending toward the extremes rather than toward the center."
"Search volume on Merriam-Webster.com throughout the year reflected the desire of Americans to better understand the complex state of affairs in our country and around the world," the dictionary says, noting democracy was another popular word. Other contenders for word of the year included "demure," thanks to TikToker Jools Lebron; "fortnight," thanks to Taylor Swift; "totality," tied to April's total solar eclipse; "allision," defined as "the act or an instance of a ship striking a stationary object," tied to March's Baltimore bridge collapse; and "pander" and "weird," largely related to politicians' actions and comments during the election. (More word of the year stories.)
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