Every year, Dictionary.com picks a word "that embodies a major theme resonating deeply in the cultural consciousness over the prior 12 months."
Citing an increase in searches following England's Brexit vote and another following a speech by President Barack Obama in which he used the term to describe US President-elect's Donald Trump's proposed policies on immigration, the site selected "xenophobia" as the 2016 word of the year.
A relatively new word that entered the English vocabulary in the late 1800s, xenophobia is defined on the website as "fear or hatred of foreigners, people from different cultures or strangers."
"The largest spike in our data for the term xenophobia this year occurred on June 24 [a day after the United Kingdom voted to leave the European Union] with a 938% increase in lookups—that’s hundreds of users looking up the term each hour," announced the website in an official statement.
The second highest surge in searches occurred on June 29, when "President Obama gave a speech in which he expressed concern over the use of the term 'populism' to describe Donald Trump's political rhetoric." Specifically, the President discussed his proclivity towards using the terms "nativism or xenophobia" over "populism" when discussing the now President-elect's policies.
Clearly reflective of the country's collective consciousness and the year's cultural atmosphere, Dictionary.com's word of the year may become an interesting way for future generations to evaluate 2016 in hindsight. Knowing that, let's, as Americans, strive to make next year's most searched term one that reflects society's most positive, loving and inclusive aspects. We have one full year to get there.