Archive · 25 Nov 2025
Oxford Releases 2025 Word Of The Year Shortlist
Oxford University has picked three words for their 2025 Word of the Year contest.
The words are Aura Farming, Biohack, and Rage Bait.
People can vote for their favorite word online until November 27, 2025.
The winning word will be announced on December 1, 2025.
Aura Farming is about making yourself look cool or impressive.
Biohack is about trying to improve your body or mind with different methods.
Rage Bait is content made to make people angry online.
The contest has been running since 2007 and often shows big changes in culture or technology.
Oxford University Press has released a shortlist of three words for the 2025 Word of the Year: Aura Farming, Biohack, and Rage Bait.
Voting is open from November 24 to November 27, 2025, and the winning word will be announced on December 1, 2025.
Aura Farming refers to cultivating an impressive or charismatic public image, gaining popularity after a viral video of an 11-year-old motivational dancer.
Biohack involves optimizing physical or mental performance through diet, exercise, lifestyle changes, or technology, gaining prominence due to efforts by the rich and powerful.
Rage Bait is online content designed to provoke anger or outrage, with a threefold increase in usage over the last year.
- Who
- Oxford University Press
- What
- Released the 2025 Word of the Year shortlist and opened voting
- When
- November 24, 2025 to November 27, 2025
- Where
- Online at corp.oup.com
- Why
- To capture the mood or preoccupations of the year based on data from their dictionaries, public usage, and global trends
- Voting Period
- November 24 to November 27, 2025
- Announcement Date
- December 1, 2025
- Shortlisted Words
- Aura Farming, Biohack, Rage Bait
- Voting Platform
- corp.oup.com
- Previous Winners
- Brait Rot (2024), rizz (2023), Goblin Mode (2022), vax (2021)