08-12-2022: Oxford Dictionaries said that “goblin mode” has been selected by an online vote as its word of the year. It defines the term as “a type of behavior which is unapologetically self-indulgent, lazy, slovenly, or greedy, typically in a way that rejects social norms or expectations.”

In 2021, the Oxford word of the year was “vax”. “Goblin mode” received 93 percent of the more than 340,000 votes cast, with “Metaverse” coming in second with 4 per cent. The hashtag “I Stand With secured” stood in third position. The voting for the Oxford Word of the Year took place between November 21 and December 2.

Meanwhile, Merriam-Webster, an American dictionary publisher, selected “gaslighting” as its word of the year for 2022. According to Merriam-Webster, there was a 1740 per cent rise in “gaslighting” website searches in 2022, and there was “high interest throughout the year.”