Dictionary.com's Word of the Year is doing the absolute most

Dictionary.com named "maxxing" its 2026 Word of the Year, reflecting a culture obsessed with getting the most out of everything.Why it matters: The word's explosive popularity reflects society's relentless drive to optimize everything — from earnest self-improvement to giving everyday activities comical nicknames. There's a "maxxing" for just about everything.By the numbers: The use of "maxxing" across social media jumped nearly 700% in the first seven months of 2026, according to Dictionary Media Group's Director of Lexicography Steve Johnson.The variation "looksmaxxing" — or working to make yourself more attractive — increased more than 1,000%, appearing 12 times as often between January and September 2026 as in 2025.The backstory: While doing things to the max has ties to 1990s pop culture, maxxing really started taking off in the 2010s in the online manosphere, as men began to float the word "looksmaxxing."The word has roots in the incel, or involuntary celibate, community, largely made up of men who are unable to find a romantic or sexual partner despite wanting one. But the term has since taken on a life of its own.Johnson says the word became distinct from previous iteratio…

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