"Youthquake" Has Been Named 'Word Of The Year' And People Can't Stop Laughing

15 December 2017, 12:03

By Nicky Idika

"The first time I heard the word 'youthquake' was when I read that it's the Oxford Dictionary's Word of the Year."

Oxford Dictionary has announced its "word of the year" and, we're not going to lie, it's a bit of a head-scratcher. The word of the year is "youthquake" and if you've never heard this term before, you're definitely not alone.

In their announcement, Oxford Dictionaries defined "youthquake" as "a significant cultural, political, or social change arising from the actions or influence of young people".

Their announcement went on to cite an electoral trashing of the UK Conservative party in this year's general election.

Despite this example, people just couldn't shake the fact that pretty much no one really used the word "Youthquake" this year.

Some people thought Oxford dictionary might have been trying a biiiit too hard.

For comparison, Merriam-Webster's word of the year is "feminism", a word people have definitely heard of. Dictionary.com went with "complicit" as their choice and Cambridge dictionary have chosen "populism".

There's definitely a theme of political and social awareness here but we think Oxford dictionaries were a bit wild with this one.