In this photo illustration, word of the year 2025 'rage bait' is displayed on a mobile phone screen next to the 'Oxford Word of the Year 2025' image in Ankara, Turkiye on December 1, 2025. (Photo by Dilara Irem Sancar/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Oxford University Press has named "rage bait’’ as its word of the year for 2025.
Rage bait was selected over two other contending words, "aura farming’’ and "biohack" after public comment on a shortlist gathered by experts at Oxford University Press, which publishes the Oxford English Dictionary.
What does Rage bait mean?
Dig deeper:
Rage bait is defined as "online content deliberately designed to elicit anger or outrage by being frustrating, provocative, or offensive, typically posted in order to increase traffic to or engagement with a particular web page or social media content," according to an Oxford news release.
The word can be a singular word or expression and is a compound of the words rage, which means "a violent outburst of anger," and bait, meaning "an attractive morsel of food."
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The term was first used in an online posting in 2002 to label a specific type of driver reaction to being flashed at by another driver asking to pass them on the road, inferring the idea of deliberate agitation.
Oxford University Press explained in their release that rage bait evolved into internet terminology used to describe viral tweets to criticize entire networks of content that determine what is posted online, like platforms, creators, and trends.
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Oxford University Press has selected a word of the year annually since 2004, with past winners including "brain rot," "goblin mode," and "emoji."
The Source: Information for this story was provided by an Oxford University Press release and the Associated Press. This story was reported from Washington, D.C.