The Word of the Year 2018

The Word of the Year 2018

Here is a list of what word was selected as the Word of the Year by a few different organizations, including two from other countries. The measure they used was often the number of hits the word had compared to the previous year. See what you think:

1. Merriam Webster selected justice.

2. The Oxford Dictionaries selected toxic. By the way, in 2015 they selected the face with tears of joy emoji for the Word of the Year.

3. Dictionary.com chose misinformation.

4. The Cambridge Dictionary picked the new word nomophobia. The word is meant to describe "the stress and anxiety caused by being separated from your mobile device."

5. The Society for the German language selected Heißzeit, which means "Hot Age" as opposed to Ice Age.

6. The Japanese Kanji Proficiency Society chose wazawai/sai, which means "disaster."

Now it is your turn. Which of the following six words would you pick for the Word of the Year:

A. Justice
B. Toxic
C. Misinformation
D. Nomophobia
E. Hot Age
F. Disaster

Now compare your choice with my own:

Of all the six selections I have referred to here, for me the best choice is "misinformation." The use of "fake news" to alter people's opinions has changed the world. And not for the better.