Among the thousands of words to be added to the Cambridge dictionary in 2025 are social media terms such as the slang words “skibidi” and “tradwife”, writes the BBC.
“Skibidi” is a term with no specific meaning, created by the creator of a popular animated series on the YouTube platform, while “tradwife” is short for “traditional wife”, and refers to a married woman and mother who posts content related to cooking and cleaning on social networks.
More than 6,000 new words have been added to the Cambridge dictionary, including those related to technology giants and remote working. Colin McIntosh, head of the lexicon program, said that the Internet culture is changing the English language, and the effect is fascinating to watch and capture in the dictionary.
“Skibidi” is described in the dictionary as “a word that can have different meanings, such as “cool” or “bad”, and can also be used without a specific meaning, as a joke.” An example of this is the question “What the skibidi are you doing??”
In addition to new words and phrases,
the dictionary also includes abbreviations of existing words and terms.
For example, the word “delulu”, which is a play on the word “delusional” and refers to a person who is obsessed with delusions and false ideas.
As a tribute to the popular remote work since the pandemic, the dictionary includes the word combination “mouse giggler”, which refers to a device or software that moves the cursor to create the impression that the person is working.
New compounds, such as “broligarchy”, have also found a place in the dictionary. A word combining “bro” and “oligarchy” to refer to a small group of men, especially those associated with or owned by technology companies, who are particularly wealthy and powerful, and who have or seek to gain political influence. The term was used to describe the attendance of Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk, and Mark Zuckerberg at the inauguration of US President Donald Trump in January 2025.
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