Demure to Brat: Here are top 10 trending words of 2024 and their meanings

Modern language in this ‘era’, especially a global language like English, is the summation of all the modification, adaptation and new additions! Each year, the vocabulary of the language absorbs news words and redefines some old ones from a different and more relevant approach. 2024 isn’t an exception either. With the digital and social media taking over the world as a whole, there is a list of new words/phrases/expressions that found their way to the vast vocabulary of the language. Most of them are the gift of pop culture, and the collective experience of this generation, and hence carry the ‘rizz’ that way. Take a look at the list.
Brain Rot: Brain rot has been named Word of the Year 2024 by Oxford University Press after a two-week public vote, with over 37,000 participants casting their ballots. This phrase became popular to describe the feeling of scrolling endlessly on social media or consuming low-quality content. It is a term that refers to the supposed negative effects on mental health that may result from consuming low-quality or unchallenging online content. It can also refer to the content itself.
Brat: Collins Dictionary introduced a fresh definition for ‘brat’, naming it their Word of the Year. Its popularity took off thanks to up and rising pop star Charli XCX’s album. While it was first recorded in the 1500s, this term has become a cultural phenomenon, especially with the rise of “brat summer” as both an aesthetic and lifestyle. In modern pop culture, the word brat refers to someone who is confidently rebellious, unapologetically bold, and playfully defiant. This new definition celebrates individuality and a carefree attitude, often with a hint of sass and a love for fun.

Manifest: Manifest has been chosen as Word of the Year by the Cambridge Dictionary after it became one of the most searched terms of 2024, with nearly 130,000 lookups on its website. Traditionally meaning to display or show (a quality or feeling), “manifest” has taken on a new sense in popular culture, referring to the practice of imagining achieving something one desires, with the belief that this will help bring it to fruition.
Delulu: A colloquial contraction of ‘delusional’, used to describe someone who holds unrealistic beliefs or expectations, often in a humorous or light-hearted context. It mostly means someone is delusional or has unrealistic beliefs. It’s often used to describe people who act in an extreme or odd way, especially fans or dating partners. The phrase ‘delulu is the solulu’, where ‘solulu’ is an abbreviation of the term solution, gained massive popularity on social media platforms this year.

Polarisation: The 2024 US presidential election did more than decide a leader—it divided a nation, and hence, polarisation became the word of the year of Merriam-Webster’s; as it captures the intensity of this moment and the broader cultural divide it reflects. Polarisation is a property of transverse waves which specifies the geometrical orientation of the oscillations. In a transverse wave, the direction of the oscillation is perpendicular to the direction of motion of the wave. In today’s world, polarisation means the act of dividing something, especially something that contains different people or opinions, into two completely opposing groups.
Demure: Dictionary.com selected ‘demure’ as its Word of the Year, a term traditionally meaning modest or reserved. In 2024, demure soared in popularity, with its usage jumping nearly 1200% from January to August, thanks to TikToker Jools Lebron, and has been embraced by the LGBTQ+ community as a form of self-expression. Demure, traditionally, is used about a girl or young woman who is shy, quiet and polite. However, on TikTok and other social media platforms, being demure is a play on pick-me girls, or a girl who claims she “isn’t like the other girls,” and also appears to be poking fun at the “clean girl” aesthetic.

Era: Time and again, Taylor Swift continues to dominate every possible field with her sheer talent, uncanny cleverness, and genius charm! Beyond its traditional meaning of a distinct period in history, ‘era’ has been adopted in popular culture to signify a notable phase in an individual’s life or career. This usage was popularised by events like Taylor Swift’s ‘The Eras Tour’, which recently concluded after a run for over a year.

Situationship: A situationship is a romantic or sexual relationship that is undefined and noncommittal. People in a situationship are more than friends but less than committed romantic partners. This term reflects the complexities of modern relationships and has gained immense popularity on social media throughout the whole year.
Rizz: Short for ‘charisma’, this term refers to one’s ability to attract or seduce others, particularly in romantic contexts. The term was used colloquially long before it became popular after American YouTuber and Twitch streamer Kai Cenat made the term popular outside the African American community in mid-2021. It then went viral on TikTok. The Oxford University Press Word of the Year for 2023 continues to be widely used among younger demographics in 2024 as well.

Simp: Simp is a term describing someone who shows excessive sympathy and attention toward another person, typically to someone who does not reciprocate the same feelings, in pursuit of affection or a sexual relationship. The term has been widely discussed and debated on social media platforms.