It is debatable whether all the yapping in 2024 caused brain rot, but certain that students think those words should be declared Word of the Year.
In a poll of 200 Rio Americano High School students, the words finished neck and neck for the title, with yapping pulling ahead in the end to edge brain rot by one vote. (Both were picked by a rounded 27% of survey respondents.)
Yapping, commonly defined as “talking excessively,” has taken on new meaning in the social media world to describe influencers that ramble about unimportant topics.
Whereas moments in politics and pop culture largely determined annual word choices in the past, in recent years social media terminology has dominated words of the year. Top contender brain rot—the degradation of one’s mental acuity from overconsuming low-value content—is perhaps the perfect encapsulation of that vocabulary trend.
There was less room for debate about what word should be banished for 2025. Skibidi was voted for banning by 54% of students. We’d say that skibidi is cringe. Period. But period (8%) and cringe (7%) were runners up for banishment in our poll inspired by the viral Lake Superior State University “Banished Words” list.
Skibidi comes from the short-form meme video series “Skibidi Toilet,” though the word itself has no meaning.
What students are saying about their words of the year
“I chose brain rot as the word of the year because this year has been more than weird, demure or brat. It’s been all of those things and more. Brain rot isn’t one thing, it covers the multifaceted language and culture of 2024. We’ve gone through dozens of trends, phases, vocabulary and experiences—which is what I think brain rot represents.” Paige Saumure (11)
“It (yapping) very much sums up the way a lot of people talk. Someone that keeps talking or is a “blabbermouth” is now yapping. It also reflects the way they speak, a kind of grotesque and embarrassing way.” Sam George (11)
“I picked the word brain rot because it’s a funny word that’s used to describe weird or abnormal things that we have put into our vocabulary from too many hours of screen time. I have brain rot!” Vivian Swatt (12)
Banishing the words students can’t stand hearing
“I want to banish cringe because it’s overused and has lost its meaning. People use it for everything, from minor awkward moments to things they simply dislike, and it feels lazy and unoriginal.” Shabnam (11)
“This word (skibidi) just feels really overused by people. When it’s said, there’s automatically some annoyance or disdain associated with it, and at this point, it’s just tiring to hear.” Katie Zhang (12)
“Everyone wants to be a game changer but no one wants to work hard (for) it.” Shamal Sultani (10)
The complete list of Rio’s Word of the Year contenders
Demure
Brain Rot
Manifest
Polarized
Brat
Weird
Dynamic pricing
Yap/yapping
Ethos
Sus
Huzz
Massive
Lebron
Closed
Disciplined
Chill guy
Skibidi
Parlay
Ethos
Slay
Bet
On god
Sigma
Skibidi Toilet
Low-taper fade
The complete list of words for banishment
Cringe
Game Changer
Era
Dropped (as in dropped an album or a song)
IYKYK (If you know you know)
Sorry not sorry
Skibidi
100%
Utilize (instead of use)
Period
Let him cook
Demure
Gyatt
Past selections by major dictionaries
2024
Oxford: Brain rot
Webster: Polarization
Dictionary.com: Demure
2023
Oxford: Rizz
Webster: Authentic
Dictionary.com: Hallucinate
2022
Oxford: Goblin mode
Webster: Gaslighting
Dictionary.com: Woman
2021
Oxford: Vax
Websters: Vaccine
Dictionary.com: Allyship
2020
Oxford: No single word chosen
Webster: Pandemic
Dictionary.com: Pandemic
