90 Most Used English Words of the Last 9 Decades

To celebrate its 90th anniversary, the British Council has released a list of 90 English words that have had a global impact. These words were discovered and discussed by etymologist Susie Dent and compiled by Dr. Barbara McGillivray, a leading expert in computational linguistics and digital humanities.

The list of 90 words was selected through a combination of computational methods and expert compilation, highlighting social, cultural, technological, political and environmental developments from 1934 to 2024. Key themes reflected in the list of 90 words include:

• The growth of global English
• The impact of science and technology on language
• The intersection of entertainment and language
• Equality, diversity and inclusion
• The Impact of COVID-19 on English
• The language we speak, the language we teach

List of 90 detailed words as follows: See here

Some of the standout words in the list of 90 words include:

Woke: A new meaning that emerged in 2014, woke originally described a heightened awareness of social and racial injustices. It began as a positive term, marking an individual’s awareness of issues such as race and discrimination. However, with the rise of political polarization, “woke” has taken on negative connotations and is now often used to describe views that are considered too radical.

Edgelord: First used in 2013, edgelord refers to someone who creates a provocative persona to provoke a reaction, usually online. The term was popularized by Stephen Colbert and reflects internet culture’s fondness for shocking content to attract attention. It’s now part of online slang, capturing the digital age’s fascination with controversy and extremism.

Karaoke: First appearing in English in 1977, karaoke means “empty orchestra” in Japanese. It started as a hobby. music In Japan, karaoke quickly spread internationally and became a global phenomenon. The word karaoke was first introduced in English by the Japan Times, describing this emerging trend in Japanese society, which later became popular in the West.

Virus: From a Latin root meaning “poison” or “slime,” virus was originally used in medicine to describe disease-causing agents. By the 1950s, it was commonly used to refer to infections rather than bacteria. The term was later applied to computer technology to refer to malware. This evolution reflects the word’s shift from a medical term to a digital one.

artificial intelligence: First used in 1955, artificial intelligence reflects early ambitions for machine intelligence, inspired by the work of Alan Turing. Originally a product of research in the 1950s, AI has grown to influence global technology and everyday life. Its development is in part an extension of Turing’s pioneering work in the previous decade.

Deepfakes: The term deepfake was first coined in a Reddit post in 2017, referring to images or video are manipulated to fool viewers into thinking they are real. Originating from advances in artificial intelligence, the term quickly became one of the first widely recognized AI-related words, gaining widespread attention even before the recent AI craze. As AI tools become more advanced, deepfakes highlight pressing concerns about misinformation and the ethics of digital media, becoming a byword in discussions about media manipulation and authenticity in the digital age.

Rizz: First used in 2023, rizz refers to charm or attractiveness, especially in dating, and is derived from the word charisma. The term was popularized in 2022 through gaming and internet culture, largely thanks to YouTuber and streamer Kai Cenat. Rizz follows a common lexical pattern, like “flu” from “influenza” and “fridge” from “refrigerator.” The word’s rise, fueled by TikTok and social media, highlights how internet culture shapes today’s youth language.

These 90 influential English words have reshaped our language over the past nine decades, says etymologist Susie Dent, highlighting the changes in world, the connection between countries, regions, cultures is increasing. In any case, we will see the flexibility of English in meeting our needs in daily life.

Dr. Barbara McGillivray, a leading expert in computational linguistics and digital humanities, was surprised when she compiled these 90 words because she noticed that their meanings have changed significantly over time, as technology has reshaped the language of communication.