The venerable Oxford English Dictionary (OED) is perhaps the most comprehensive attempt humans have ever made to nail down the wonderfully wriggly English language and, over 140 years after the first volume was published, is still battling against the tides. In recent times, one of the tricks publisher Oxford University Press (OUP) has used to maintain interest is to make its "word or phrase of the year" a very internet-aware prize: in 2013 the winner was "selfie", in 2015 it went to the "emoji tears of joy", and in 2022 the gong went to "goblin mode."
These days the process involves a public vote (based on a shortlist produced by the OED), which informs the final decision made by its stern-faced lexicographers. "Rage bait" beat out "aura farming" and "biohack" to scoop the title.
