In a first, a 'number' declared word of the year 2025
Dictionary.com, internet's leading language reference and learning destination, has crowned 67, a Gen Alpha slang term, as the word of the year 2025
In probably for the first time, a number ‘67’ has been named the word of the year 2025.
Dictionary.com, internet's leading language reference and learning destination, has crowned 67, a Gen Alpha slang term, as the word of the year 2025, and it has justified its selection citing a number of reasons.
Also remember, the Dictionary.com’s word of the year “67” is not sixty-seven but “six-seven”.
Why 67?
67, often paired with a shrug-like hand gesture where palms face up and move alternately, has become a staple in Gen Alpha slang, turning up in TikToks, memes, and classrooms across various parts of the world.
Explaining the reason for its choice, Dictionary.com explained it is hard to define and literally “does not mean anything”. Yet, it is been yelled from school bus windows and auditorium bleachers, banned from classrooms, dropped into song lyrics and repeated endlessly—baffling many adults who aren't quite sure what it actually means.
“Some interpret it as "so-so" or "maybe this, maybe that," often paired with a shrug-like hand gesture where palms face up and move alternately. Others just blurt it out—online, in class or whenever they spot the number 67 in the wild. The result is classic brainrot slang: purposefully nonsensical, endlessly remixable and all about being in on the absurdity”, Dictionary.com said.
Origin of 67 slang
The precise origin of 67 remains unclear. Some trace it to Skrilla's 2024 drill song "Doot Doot (6 7)."
Others link it to NBA player LaMelo Ball, whose 6-foot-7-inch stature became a symbol of swagger and dominance.
“Viral clips on TikTok and Instagram paired "Doot Doot (6 7)" with basketball footage as early as October 2024, and the number soon evolved into a meme”, Dictionary.com said.
Furthermore, a viral video of "the 67 kid" shouting the phrase at a youth basketball game cemented its place in internet lore, while Overtime Elite player Taylen "TK" Kinney helped spread it to wider audiences.
“From there, the sports world embraced it: NBA and WNBA teams referenced it. NFL players used the gesture in touchdown celebrations. Even Shaquille O'Neal joined in - though he admitted he still doesn't quite understand what it means—join the club”, Dictionary.com said.
The term has since spawned spin-offs like six-sendy, a mashup of 67 and getting sendy, meaning to go all out. It shows how seamlessly today's slang blends digital humor, sports culture and generational creativity.
Steve Johnson, PhD, Director of Lexicography for the Dictionary Media Group at IXL Learning, explained further saying, "Few slang terms have captured the cultural mood of 2025 quite like 67".
"It's part inside joke, part social signal and part performance. When people say it, they're not just repeating a meme; they're shouting a feeling. It's one of the first Words of the Year that works as an interjection, a burst of energy that spreads and connects people long before anyone agrees on what it actually means", he added.
Other shortlisted words of 2025
Dictionary.com has also shortlisted few other words that created buzz in the year 2025. Some of them are:
- Agentic (adjective): (of artificial intelligence) capable of acting independently to accomplish a goal or task; acting like a human agent.
- Aura farming (noun): The deliberate cultivation of one's charisma, style or vibe, often for online attention or social clout.
- Gen Z stare (noun): A blank or unbothered facial expression associated with Gen Z, often interpreted as aloof or disengaged.
- Overtourism (noun): A situation in which too many tourists travel to a popular destination, causing the place to suffer negative environmental, economic and sociocultural impacts.
- Tariff (noun): The schedule or system of duties or customs imposed by a government on imports or exports.
- Tradwife (noun): A married woman who chooses to be a homemaker as a primary occupation and adheres to or embodies traditional femininity and female gender roles, often associated with conservative or alt-right political values.
Dictionary.com releases every year its shortlist of popular words. In 2024, it had declared ‘demure’ as the 2024 Word of the Year whereas in 2023, “eras” was its choice for the vibe of the year.
[Ahmed Abdullah Faizee is Trainee Writer at ummid.com.]
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