Brexit named word of the year ahead of 'Trumpism', 'hygge' and 'sharenting'

‘Brexit’ has taken the title of word of the year, according to dictionary publisher Collins, which said there has been an 'unprecedented surge’ in its use.

Brexit, now common parlance for Britain’s exit from the European Union, has increased in usage by more than 3,400% this year as it became the country’s hottest topic both before and after the referendum in June.

Collins said the first recorded usage of Brexit was in 2013, but its enormous increase in use was “unheard of”.

It topped the table for the ‘word of the year’, beating some of 2016’s most bandied-about terms including ‘Trumpism’, in reference to US presidential candidate Donald Trump, and Danish concept ‘hygge’.

Helen Newstead, Collins’s head of language content, said: “‘Brexit’ is arguably politics’s most important contribution to the English language in over 40 years, since the Watergate scandal gave commentators and comedians the suffix ‘-gate’ to make any incident or scandal infinitely more compelling.”

Other contenders for Collins’s word of the year included in included references like ‘snowflake generation’, referring to the “young adults of the 2010s’ and ‘sharenting’ – using social media to share news or pictures of your children.

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“Most of this year’s words are used by or relate to the generation born towards the end of the last century,” added Newstead.

“They are the drivers of ‘dude food’, quickest to ‘throw shade’ or ‘mic drop’. They may be referred to by some as the ‘snowflake generation’, but they are the most likely to rail against ‘Brexit’ and ‘Trumpism’. Their contribution to the constant evolution of the English language should not be overlooked.”

Collins’s words of the year

Brexit – the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union

hygge – a concept, originating in Denmark, of creating cosy and convivial atmospheres that promote wellbeing

mic drop – a theatrical gesture in which a person drops (or imitates the action of dropping) a hand-held microphone to the ground as the finale to a speech or performance

Trumpism – (1) the policies advocated by the US politician Donald Trump, especially those involving a rejection of the current political establishment and the vigorous pursuit of US national interests (2) a controversial or outrageous statement attributed to Donald Trump

throw shade – to make a public show of contempt for someone or something, often in a subtle or non-verbal manner

sharenting – the habitual use of social media to share news, images, etc of one’s children

snowflake generation – the young adults of the 2010s, viewed as being less resilient and more prone to taking offence than previous generations

dude food – junk food such as hot dogs, burgers, etc considered particularly appealing to men

Uberization – the adoption of a business model in which services are offered on demand through direct contact between a customer and supplier, usually via mobile technology

JOMO – joy of missing out: pleasure gained from enjoying one’s current activities without worrying that other people are having more fun