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Dictionary.com’s word of the year is a sad reminder 2016 has been awful

Better learn what it means.

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Jaya Saxena

IRL

Posted on Nov 29, 2016   Updated on May 25, 2021, 12:00 pm CDT

President-elect Donald Trump has promised to “make America great again” by threatening to build a wall along the Mexican border, add Muslims to a registry, and now revoke citizenship from anyone who burns the American flag. All of which brings us to Dictionary.com’s word of the year: “xenophobia.”

If you didn’t know, xenophobia is the “fear or hatred of foreigners, people from different cultures, or strangers.” That fear is greatly tethered to racism and white supremacy. 

“Xenophobia and other words tied to global news and political rhetoric reflected the worldwide interest in the unfortunate rise of fear of otherness in 2016, making it the clear choice for Word of the Year,” said Dictionary.com CEO Liz McMillan in a statement.

Remember last year when everyone was all mad that Oxford Dictionary’s word of the year was an emoji? Lol, memories.

H/T Huffington Post

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*First Published: Nov 29, 2016, 3:00 pm CST

Jaya Saxena

Jaya Saxena is a lifestyle writer and editor whose work focuses primarily on women's issues and web culture. Her writing has appeared in GQ, ELLE, the Toast, the New Yorker, Tthe Hairpin, BuzzFeed, Racked, Eater, Catapult, and others. She is the co-author of 'Dad Magazine,' the author of 'The Book Of Lost Recipes,' and the co-author of 'Basic Witches.'

Jaya Saxena