For writers, authors and content creators, words are the most important element of our business. Without words, we wouldn’t have any work to do or any stories to tell. The popularity of words, however, come and go like the winds of winter. Here one day, gone the next.
As you may have heard on the news, Merriam-Webster recently revealed its word of the year for 2025. If you had the word Slop in the office pool, you would win bragging rights.
Slop refers to the low quality digital content sometimes produced by artificial intelligence, which may include fake news that appear to be real, talking cats, ridiculous videos, and AI-generated books. Simply put, slop is a product of little or no value.
“AI slop has turned social media into an antisocial wasteland,” reported CNET, an online site covering technology.
In addition to slop, there are several runners-up, according to Merriam-Webster:
* Gerrymander – the act of dividing a state, school district, etc. into political units to give one party an advantage over others
* Touch grass – to have real-world experiences and participate in activities away from the online digital world
* Performative – something made or done for show, usually to bolster one’s own image or make an impression on others
* Tariff – a tax on goods
* Conclave – often refers to the assembly of cardinals to elect a new pope
Merriam-Webster selected their top words based on how many times they were looked up. You can learn more about their selections on their website. Other dictionaries and literary sources have shared their words of the year as well:
* Parasocial = From Cambridge Dictionary, parasocial refers to the one-sided relationships that people form with celebrities, influencers, AI chatbots and book characters.
* Rage bait = From Oxford University Press, rage bait is online content designed to elicit anger or outrage by intentionally being frustrating, provocative or offensive in the hopes of increasing traffic or engagement on social media.
* Vibe coding = According to the Collins Dictionary, vibe coding is software development that turns natural speaking language into computer code using artificial intelligence.
All of these terms got me thinking about my own selections. Which words or terms did I hear the most throughout the year, or made an impact on our day-to-day business? I came up with the following:
* Affordability = With so much concern about rising costs, especially of health care insurance and groceries, affordability became a term everyone mentioned.
* Good trouble = peaceful activism without violence or aggressive tactics in order to make a point or persuade positive action. A good example of good trouble is the 25-hour marathon speech Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey gave earlier this year to protest the U.S. president’s administration policies.
* AI fatigue = a condition brought on by hearing too much enthusiastic discussions and news updates about artificial intelligence.
* Performance politics = Politically-motivated activities seemingly staged for the purpose of influencing the opinions of selected groups of people while making other groups or individuals feel uncomfortable.
* Inclusion = providing access to products, services and amenities to all individuals, especially in underserved communities, to provide equitable opportunities and experiences.
Editor’s note: I generally avoid writing about politics in my posts and prefer to keep this blog focused on writing and creativity. However, most of the words of the year reflect what has occurred in our world the past year, so I couldn’t ignore them.
What about you? Do you have a word or phrase of the year? What words do you think will dominate the news headlines in 2026?
I am taking the next two weeks off to celebrate the holidays and plan my posts for 2026, though I may post again during New Year’s Week if I feel inspired. Look for more news, trends and inspiration in the coming year. Until then, thank you for reading and have a Merry Christmas.
The Regal Writer 