‘Rizz’ wins Oxford’s word of the year for 2023

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — The Oxford word of the year for 2023 is “rizz.”  The Oxford University Press says it comes from the word “Charisma” and is defined as style, charm, attractiveness, and the ability to attract a romantic partner.

The iconic dictionary says the word received more than 32,000 votes for the top spot.  

According to the Oxford Languages website, “use of the word as recorded in our corpus has increased dramatically in 2023, with a peak in June 2023, when actor Tom Holland was asked in a widely reported interview about his “rizz,” to which he answered, ‘I have no rizz whatsoever, I have limited rizz.’”

Oxford goes on to say that “rizz” is from the middle part of the word “charisma,” which is an unusual word formation pattern. The dictionary says other examples include “fridge” for refrigerator, and “flu” for influenza.

According to Oxford, “rizz” can also be used as a verb, often in the phrase “rizz up,” which means “to attract, seduce, or chat up (a person).”

Other contenders for the 2023 word of the year were “prompt,” “situationship,” and “Swiftie.”

Oxford defines “prompt” as “an instruction given to an artificial intelligence program, algorithm, etc., which determines or influences the content it generates.”

“Situationship” is defined by Oxford as “a romantic or sexual relationship that is not considered to be formal or established.”

“Swiftie” may not need any definition, but is defined as “an enthusiastic fan of the singer Taylor Swift.”

Here is Oxford’s other shortlist:

beige flag, noun

• A character trait that indicates that a partner or potential partner is boring or lacks originality; (also) a trait or habit, esp. of a partner or potential partner, viewed as extremely characteristic, but not distinctly good or bad.

de-influencing, noun

• The practice of discouraging people from buying particular products, or of encouraging people to reduce their consumption of material goods, esp. via social media.

heat dome, noun

• A persistent high-pressure weather system over a particular geographic area, which traps a mass of hot air below it.

parasocial, adjective

• Designating a relationship characterized by the one-sided, unreciprocated sense of intimacy felt by a viewer, fan, or follower for a well-known or prominent figure (typically a media celebrity), in which the follower or fan comes to feel (falsely) that they know the celebrity as a friend.