Dictionary.com released its choice for Word of the Year 2024, and the winner was ‘Demure’, a term that gained popularity in August thanks to TikTok influencer Jools Lebron. The word, originally associated with a discreet and reserved attitude, took on a new twist in the digital universe when Lebron began using it in expressions such as ‘very demure, very conscious’, merging the concepts of ‘cute’ and ‘considerate’. In the context of his content, ‘Demure’ not only applied to restraint in behaviour, but was transformed into a flexible concept, adaptable to a variety of everyday situations, from driving to putting on make-up.
This phenomenon quickly spread to social media, leading to a dramatic 1200% increase in usage of the term between January and September 2024, and a remarkable 200-fold increase in Dictionary.com searches. The term’s popularity surpassed other words also competing for the title, such as Brainrot, Brat, Extreme Weather, Midwest Nice and Weird, which were on the short list of finalists.
For Dictionary.com, the choice of ‘Demure’ was almost a no-brainer. The term, which initially referred to shyness and modesty, found a new meaning in the digital age: it is now interpreted as ‘quiet confidence’, a more expansive and flexible concept. ‘Lebron reimagined the word, giving it a new life that resonated deeply with users of social platforms,’ the company said. In 2023, the online dictionary had selected ‘hallucinate’ as its word of the year, while Merriam-Webster opted for ‘authentic’.
Undoubtedly, Demure has become a reflection of a 2024 where traditional definitions are giving way to the evolution of language in the age of social media.
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