Not just for summer: ‘Brat’ is Collins Dictionary’s word of the year

Charli XCX attends the WSJ. Magazine Innovators Awards at the Museum of Modern Art on Tuesday, Oct. 29, 2024, in New York. Image: Evan Agostini/Invision/AP

LONDON — Collins Dictionary has declared “brat” – the album title that became a summer-living ideal – its 2024 word of the year.

The word, used by singer Charli XCX as the title of her sixth studio album, has been defined as “characterized by a confident, independent, and hedonistic attitude.”

Collins lexicographers said on Friday that the phrase “brat summer,” became “one of the most talked about words of 2024.”

“More than a hugely successful album, ‘brat’ is a cultural phenomenon that has resonated with people globally, and ‘brat summer’ established itself as an aesthetic and a way of life,” the dictionary said.

Collins experts monitor their 20-billion-word database to create the annual list of new and notable words that reflect the ever-evolving English language.

Other new and notable words for 2024 include “era,” in the sense of “a period of one’s life or career that is of a distinctive character.” It’s inspired by Taylor Swift’s world-conquering Eras tour.

Other notable neologisms among the dictionary’s word-of-the-year finalists include the growing movement against mass tourism, “anti-tourism”; “delulu,” meaning utterly mistaken or unrealistic in one’s ideas or expectations; and “rawdogging,” taking a long-haul flight with no devices or distractions.

“With many of this year’s notable words being popularized by generations Z and Alpha, we can confidently say this is the most ‘brat’ Word of the Year list ever,” said Collins managing director Alex Beecroft.

Collin’s 2023 word of the year was “AI,” short for artificial intelligence.