The Oxford University Press Word of the Year has been announced, and Tom Holland basically singlehandedly made it happen.
Oxford announced the Gen Z slang term "rizz" as its Word of the Year 2023.
Explaining the word, they wrote: "2023 marked the era of personal — and professional — PR. And what does it take to command attention? A whole lot of charisma, or the shortened form, 'rizz.'
"Pertaining to someone’s ability to attract another person through style, charm, or attractiveness, this term is from the middle part of the word 'charisma.'"
Tom, who is just on the cusp of Gen Z (he's really a younger millennial), obviously didn't need a definition when BuzzFeed asked him earlier this year if he considered himself to have any rizz.
"I have no rizz whatsoever. I have limited rizz. My brother Paddy has ultimate rizz," he said in a video interview.
"I don't know, I need you to fall in love with me, really, for it to work, so long game — probably making a movie with each other.
"It definitely helps when the characters you're playing are falling in love with one another, you can sort of blur the lines a little bit. That's kind of where my rizz is at.
"And, you know, I'm locked up, so I'm happy and in love, so I've got no need for rizz."
Rizz has been a very popular word for the young'uns this past year (see: a gazillion TikTok hits), but Oxford reports it hit a peak in June after Tom gave his iconic answer to that question.
In case you somehow missed this piece of information, Tom has been dating his Spider-Man costar Zendaya for several years, with the two of them going properly public with their relationship in more recent months. Since then, they have been nothing short of adorable at every turn.
