'Brain rot' gets most votes as Oxford Word of the Year

The phrase "brain rot" has been named the Oxford Word of the Year for 2024, following weeks of public voting and vibrant discussion.

More than 37,000 participants cast their votes to select the winner from a shortlist of six words compiled by Oxford University Press the publisher of the Oxford English Dictionary.

Defined as "the supposed deterioration of a person's mental or intellectual state, especially viewed as the result of overconsumption of material — particularly online content — considered to be trivial or unchallenging", the term has resonated widely in a digital age increasingly shaped by social media. The phrase also refers to content perceived to cause such deterioration.