Polarisation? Extreme reactions disrupt 'word of the year' vote

The Van Dale dictionary company has abandoned this year’s “word of the year” competition because of the reactions to the shortlist on social media and has instead opted for polarisatie. The messaging around these words has turned into a very unpleasant discussion, far removed from the aims of the election.” Every year Van Dale nominates a short-list of 10 words for the public vote. This year’s shortlist included the words AI-washing, beknibbelflatie, burn-outbureaucratie, comfortwater, gen Z-stagiair, koeltekloof, pieperaanval, profnar, sjoemelscooter and transitiespijt. The dictionary group said it has opted for polarisatie because of the “extreme reactions to this year’s vote, which illustrates the spirit of the times”.