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Gauteng, if you had to guess what residents are Googling the definition of in 2026, would “grace” have made your shortlist?
Somewhere between the E-toll gantries and the daily commute madness, Joburgers and Pretorians are pausing to ask: what does grace mean?
New research analysing Google search data has revealed the most-searched word definitions in South Africa and its different provinces.
The research was conducted by word-unscrambling experts at Word Unscrambler who analysed Google Trends search data for the term “definition” from 1 January to 15 July 2026.
They used Google Trends and Ahrefs to determine search volumes.
Hi, is Grace here?
While North West is busy looking up “gaslighting” and Limpopo can’t stop Googling “narcissist”, Gauteng is out here searching for grace, clocking in at 21,000 monthly searches.
Nationally, the picture is telling. Narcissist topped the country-wide list with 38,200 monthly searches, narrowly ahead of gaslighting at 36,300 and love at 34,500.
Close behind sit anxiety and metaphor, proof that between decoding toxic exes and passing English Home Language, South Africans have a lot on their plates.
But Gauteng’s pick feels a little different. Grace isn’t diagnosing someone else’s bad behaviour or untangling a messy situationship. It’s softer. More inward-looking.
It’s the kind of word you search when you’re trying to give yourself, or someone else, a bit of a break. And in a province that moves at the pace Gauteng does, we could all use a little grace.
So, what do our online word searches say about us?
A spokesperson for Unscramblerer.com noted that South Africa’s most-searched definitions in 2026 are dominated by abstract concepts rather than objects.
“From gaslighting and narcissist to integrity and democracy, people are searching for words that help them navigate relationships, emotions and the wider world.
“Our research shows that emotional wellbeing, values, society and personal growth are the categories that stand out the most,” added the spokesperson.
The findings were grouped into emotional wellbeing words, values-based and societal words, and personal growth and educational words. Resilience, discernment, spiritual, science, metaphor, agile, grace and eligible fall into that last category.
It’s this bucket that seems to be Gauteng’s sweet spot.
Northern Cape and Free State on a spiritual quest
It's worth noting the province isn’t alone in leaning toward personal growth vocabulary.
The Northern Cape and Free State both landed on “spiritual” as their top pick, suggesting a broader appetite in parts of the country for words that speak to inner life rather than external drama.
Compare that to the Western Cape’s “integrity” or KwaZulu-Natal’s “agile”, and each region’s search habits start to form a strange little emotional map of the nation.
Let’s see how the rest of the provinces stacked up:
- KwaZulu-Natal: Agile
- North West: Gaslighting
- Limpopo: Narcissist
- Eastern Cape: Resilience
- Free State and Northern Cape: Spiritual
- Mpumalanga: Nonchalant
- Western Cape: Integrity
What’s driving Gauteng specifically toward grace? Hard to say definitively. But it could stem from our relentless hustle culture, long commutes, high-pressure jobs, and a cost of living that keeps climbing.
Or it might be pushing people toward a word that offers permission to slow down and be kind to themselves. Either that, or we want to sound smarter at dinner parties.
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