ByDANIELLE GREYMAN-KENNARD
Updated:

The Cambridge Dictionary added 6,212 new words and phrases over the past 12 months, including a number of popular Gen Z and Gen Alpha phrases, the dictionary announced in mid-August.

Skibidi, delulu, tradwife and broligarchy were added following their popularity online and in popular culture. Much of their popularity has been linked to celebrity and influencer use, the dictionary shared.

Skibidi “has different meanings such as cool or bad, or can be used with no real meaning as a joke,” according to Cambridge Dictionary.

In October of last year, Kim Kardashian posted a video on social media showing a necklace her daughter had given her as a birthday present, engraved with the phrase ‘Skibidi Toilet.’ The word’s popularity then soared with Generation Alpha.

Kim Kardashian leaves the courthouse after testifying in the trial of 10 people accused of stealing millions of dollars worth of jewellery from her, who was held at gunpoint in her apartment during Paris fashion week in 2016, a trial known as the ''Rue Tronchet'' affair, in Paris, France, May 13, 2025
Kim Kardashian leaves the courthouse after testifying in the trial of 10 people accused of stealing millions of dollars worth of jewellery from her, who was held at gunpoint in her apartment during Paris fashion week in 2016, a trial known as the ''Rue Tronchet'' affair, in Paris, France, May 13, 2025 (credit: REUTERS/PIROSCHKA VAN DE WOUW)

Hannah Neeleman, known for the social media account @ballerinafarm, reportedly popularized the term ‘Tradwife.’ The controversial term defines a woman in a traditional gender role.

'Delulu' propelled into daily dialect

The popularity of the term ‘delulu’ or ‘delulu with no solulu’ was propelled into daily dialect, with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese once using the term, meaning “believing things that are not real or true, usually because you choose to,” in a parliamentary speech in March.

Broligarchy also joined the dictionary in 2025, combining the words bro and oligarchy. The term refers to a “small group of men, especially men owning or involved in a technology business, who are extremely rich and powerful, and who have or want political influence.”

“It’s not every day you get to see words like skibidi and delulu make their way into the Cambridge Dictionary. We only add words where we think they'll have staying power. Internet culture is changing the English language and the effect is fascinating to observe and capture in the Dictionary,” Colin McIntosh, Lexical Programme Manager at Cambridge Dictionary said.