After a public vote with over 37,000 participants, “brain rot” was chosen as the Oxford Word of the Year for 2024. To capture the moods and discussions that have shaped the previous year, Oxford’s linguists came up with a selection of six words.
Following two weeks of public voting and extensive discussion, the experts convened to evaluate the public’s feedback, the outcomes of the voting, and Oxford’s linguistic statistics before announcing “brain rot” as the 2024 Word of the Year.
The term “brain rot” refers to “The supposed deterioration of a person’s mental or intellectual state, especially viewed as the result of overconsumption of material (now particularly online content) considered to be trivial or unchallenging. Also: something characterised as likely to lead to such deterioration.” Additionally, something that is characterized as having the potential to cause such degeneration.
Oxford University Press had this to say: “Our experts noticed that ‘brain rot’ gained new prominence this year as a term used to capture concerns about the impact of consuming excessive amounts of low-quality online content, especially on social media. The term increased in usage frequency by 230% between 2023 and 2024.”
In 1854, Henry David Thoreau used the term “brain rot” for the first time in his book ‘Walden’, which details his experiences leading a simple existence in the natural environment.
Thoreau concludes by criticizing society’s propensity to prioritize simple concepts over complicated ones, or those that can be interpreted in a variety of ways, and he views this as a sign of a general deterioration in the mental and intellectual effort: “While England endeavours to cure the potato rot, will not any endeavour to cure the brain-rot – which prevails so much more widely and fatally?”
In the digital age, the phrase has gained new meaning, particularly in the last 12 months. In light of societal worries about the detrimental effects of excessive online material consumption, the term “brain rot,” which first gained popularity on social media platforms—specifically on TikTok among Gen Z and Gen Alpha communities—is now being used more widely, even in mainstream news.
Low-quality, low-value content found on social media and the internet, as well as the ensuing detrimental effects that ingesting this kind of content is thought to have on an individual or society, are referred to as “brain rot” in 2024. Additionally, it has been applied more frequently, especially to online culture.
It is frequently used by online communities in a lighthearted or self-deprecating way, and it is closely linked to specific kinds of content, such as user-generated “only in Ohio” memes that refer to strange occurrences in the state and creator Alexey Gerasimov’s viral Skibidi Toilet video series, which features humanoid toilets. Emerging “brain rot language”—such as “skibidi,” which means something absurd, and “Ohio,” which means something awkward or strange—has been spawned by this video and is indicative of a growing trend of terms that start in viral internet culture before moving offline into the “real world.”
A larger, more somber discussion concerning the possible harm that excessive consumption of this content may do to mental health, especially in children and young people, is also gaining traction. A US mental health center even posted guidelines on its website accessed by BrandSpur digital news platform earlier this year on how to identify and prevent “brain rot.”
Casper Grathwohl, President of Oxford Languages, discussed the 2024 winner and this year’s selection procedure. He revealed: “It’s been insightful and deeply moving to see language lovers all over the world participate and help us select the Oxford Word of the Year 2024.
“Looking back at the Oxford Word of the Year over the past two decades, you can see society’s growing preoccupation with how our virtual lives are evolving, the way internet culture is permeating so much of who we are and what we talk about. Last year’s winning word, ‘rizz’, was an interesting example of how language is increasingly formed, shaped, and shared within online communities.
“Brain rot’ speaks to one of the perceived dangers of virtual life, and how we are using our free time. It feels like a rightful next chapter in the cultural conversation about humanity and technology. It’s not surprising that so many voters embraced the term, endorsing it as our choice this year. I find it fascinating that the term ‘brain rot’ has been adopted by Gen Z and Gen Alpha, those communities largely responsible for the use and creation of the digital content the term refers to.
“These communities have amplified the expression through social media channels; the very place said to cause ‘brain rot.’ It demonstrates a somewhat cheeky self-awareness in the younger generations about the harmful impact of social media that they’ve inherited,” he added.
