The top digital dictionary, Dictionary.com, has revealed Demure as the 2024 Word of the Year.
The term demure originally used to characterize reserved or modest people, has this year been used to refer to sophisticated and elegant looks or actions.
“As remote work fades and in-person experiences become the norm again, the subtle art of personal presentation has gained renewed significance,” said Steve Johnson, Curriculum Design Manager of the Dictionary Media Group at IXL Learning.
“Demure captures this cultural shift with a modern twist: a word that once held traditional, often limiting meanings has been reimagined to celebrate understated elegance and suavity. Its evolving definition allows people to express quiet confidence—embracing modesty and charm as intentional, empowering choices.”
In selecting the annual Word of the Year, Dictionary.com’s lexicographers analyzed vast amounts of data—including news headlines, search engine results, and social media trends—to pinpoint words that encapsulated key moments of 2024.
Demure dominated cultural discussions, with its usage on digital media skyrocketing by an impressive 1,200% between January and August.
This surge is largely attributed to Jools Lebron, a content creator who popularized the phrase “very demure, very mindful” in a series of TikTok videos demonstrating how to embody the term in professional, travel, and social settings.
The social media buzz surrounding demure triggered a similar surge in search interest. Prior to Lebron’s videos, there had been little to no noticeable trend in Google searches for the term. However, by August 2024, interest had surged 14 times, with searches for demure on Dictionary.com peaking at 200 times their previous rate. Although the initial surge has slowed, the word remains five times more popular than before its breakout.
In addition to demure, Dictionary.com’s lexicographers identified five other words that shaped cultural conversations in 2024, completing this year’s shortlist:
- Brainrot (slang, noun): the effects of spending excessive time on low-quality content on social media; can also refer to the low-quality content itself.
- Weird (adjective): strange, odd, or bizarre.
- Brat (slang, noun): someone who is confidently rebellious, unapologetically bold, and playfully defiant.
- Extreme weather (noun): a period of weather or a weather event that is severe, unexpected, or abnormal for the location or season in which it occurs.
- Midwest nice (slang, noun): a polite and agreeable manner, often involving self-deprecation, politeness, and avoidance of conflict.
