“Rage bait,” a term used to describe online content crafted to provoke anger and drive engagement, has been selected as the Oxford Word of the Year for 2025, Oxford University Press (OUP) announced on Monday. The expression topped the shortlist ahead of “aura farming” and “biohack.”
OUP said the winning term was chosen through a mix of public voting, sentiment analysis and a detailed review of the organisation’s lexical data. According to its language monitoring systems, usage of the phrase “rage bait” has tripled over the past year, reflecting its growing cultural relevance.
Casper Grathwohl, president of OUP’s languages division, noted that the rising visibility of such terms highlights how digital platforms continue to shape human behaviour. “It feels like a natural step in the ongoing conversation about life in a technology-driven world and the extremes of online culture,” he said, as reported by AFP.
Shortlist and Meanings
The winning word edged out two other digitally influenced contenders:
- Aura farming – cultivating an attractive or charismatic public image by behaving in a way that subtly conveys confidence or mystique.
- Biohack – attempting to optimise physical or mental performance through lifestyle changes, diet, exercise, supplements or technology.
How the Word Was Chosen
More than 30,000 people from across the world participated in a three-day vote to choose the winner. OUP then validated the public response using evidence from its 30-billion-word global language database, which tracks how words are used throughout the year.
This marks the fourth year that public voting has contributed to selecting Oxford’s Word of the Year. The first public vote in 2022 crowned “goblin mode,” a term describing unapologetically lazy or self-indulgent behaviour. Since then, public input has influenced but not solely determined the final choice.
Recent winners include “rizz” in 2023, defined as charm or attractiveness, and “brain rot” in 2024. Earlier selections made exclusively by OUP lexicographers include “vax” (2021), “climate emergency” (2019) and “selfie” (2013).
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