Polarization: Merriam-Webster’s word of the year is 2024 in a nutshell

By Karina Tsui, CNN

(CNN) — A word that has been used incessantly to describe the fraught state of American politics and society is Merriam-Webster’s 2024 word of the year. That word is “polarization.”

Defined as a “division into two sharply distinct opposites,” “polarization” grew dramatically in search volume over the past year due to what the online dictionary site claims was the “desire of Americans to better understand the complex state of affairs.”

“Polarization” was widely used across the media, with MSNBC at one point declaring that “the 2024 US presidential has left our country more polarized than ever.” Forbes, meanwhile, warned that in workplaces, “cultural polarization is becoming a pressing challenge,” Merriam-Webster wrote in announcing the selection.

“The online dictionary tells us which words are being looked up, but also in what volume. And so we try to have a data driven list that explains what words sent people to the dictionary in the past year,” Peter Sokolowski, Merriam-Webster editor at large, told the Associated Press.

“This year was a year with an important election. The elections were clearly the story of the year,” he said. “And polarization is the term that has been used by everyone.”

Other contenders for word of the year included “totality,” following an April solar eclipse that drew astronomical excitement, and “fortnight,” the primarily British word that’s also a Taylor Swift song.

Merriam-Webster is one of the final few English-language dictionary platforms to release its annual word. Earlier in December, Oxford Dictionary announced that “brain rot” was its word of the year, while Cambridge Dictionary declared “manifest” its lead word for 2024.

Meanwhile, Dictionary.com’s word of the year was “demure,” which saw a “meteoric rise in usage” this year following the release of satirical make-up videos by transgender TikToker Jools Lebron.

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