Are you spending endless hours scrolling through Instagram reels and TikTok videos? If so, you might be experiencing what Oxford University Press has named its Word of the Year: brain rot.
This term highlights growing concerns about the impact of consuming excessive amounts of low-quality online content, particularly on social media.
The usage of brain rot skyrocketed by 230% between 2023 and 2024, reflecting society’s unease with digital distractions.
Psychologist and Oxford University Professor Andrew Przybylski describes its popularity as “a symptom of the time we’re living in.”
While brain rot has found renewed relevance in the digital age, its origins predate the internet by centuries.
The phrase first appeared in 1854 in Henry David Thoreau’s Walden, where he criticized society’s neglect of intellectual depth, famously asking: “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?”
Initially embraced by Gen Z and Gen Alpha online communities, the term has now entered mainstream discourse, used to describe the trivial, unchallenging content saturating social media platforms.
Despite its alarming name, Professor Przybylski clarifies that there’s no scientific evidence of brain rot as a literal condition.
Instead, he explains, “it describes our dissatisfaction with the online world. It’s a term we use to bundle our anxieties about social media.”
Casper Grathwohl, President of Oxford Languages, highlights how Words of the Year reflect cultural shifts.
He notes that last year’s winning word, rizz, emerged from online communities and showcased the internet’s role in shaping language.
This year, brain rot underscores a different reality: the perceived risks of a digital-first life and the ways we spend our free time.
As the debate around social media’s effects continues, brain rot captures our collective unease about a world increasingly dominated by screens and superficial content.
It’s a reminder to reflect on how we engage with technology—and to consider reclaiming our mental and intellectual energy.
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