Unveiling Merriam-Webster's 2023 Word of the Year

In a year marked by the relentless pursuit of truth amidst an inundation of information, Merriam-Webster's announcement of 'authentic' as the word of the year comes as a fitting reflection of our times. The online dictionary revealed a substantial surge in searches for this term, attributing it to the ongoing conversations and narratives revolving around AI, celebrity culture, identity, and the impact of social media.

According to Merriam-Webster, 'authentic' encompasses multifaceted meanings, from denoting something "not false or imitation" to being "true to one's own personality, spirit, or character." In essence, it's a synonym for real and actual, a quality highly sought after in various aspects of life, notably intertwined with expressions of personal identity, like culinary preferences.

Celebrities such as singers Lainey Wilson, Sam Smith, and Taylor Swift have prominently advocated for their "authentic voice" and "authentic self," propelling the term further into public discourse. Even tech mogul Elon Musk joined this chorus, emphasizing the need for authenticity on social media. However, the irony surfaced when Musk, in his capacity as the head of Twitter, now X, altered the dynamics of authenticity by introducing a purchasable blue check sign, sparking debate.


The pervasive rise of artificial intelligence has contributed to a blurring of lines between reality and fabrication, prompting a collective urgency among celebrities, brands, and social media influencers to validate their authenticity. Concurrently, another term, 'deepfake,' garnered significant attention, defined as a convincingly manipulated image or recording designed to misrepresent an individual's actions or words. This phenomenon spiked in searches during Musk's legal tussle, where allegations of deepfake content were involved in public statements, a situation that exemplifies the complexities emerging in today's media landscape.

Previously, 'gaslighting' took center stage as Merriam-Webster's word of the year in 2022, emblematic of an era characterized by rampant misinformation. Alongside 'authentic,' words like 'coronation,' 'dystopian,' 'indict,' and 'doppelgänger' drove considerable traffic to the online dictionary, reflecting the prevailing concerns and interests of the year.

In an unexpected twist, the term 'rizz' surged in popularity, catapulting to the "top of lookups" when added to the dictionary in September. For those unfamiliar, 'rizz' embodies a noun denoting 'romantic appeal or charm,' used to describe someone's allure, and as a verb, conveys the act of charming or seducing, serving as a testament to the evolving landscape of internet-driven slang.