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ISTANBUL
The Collins English Dictionary crowned “vibe coding” on Thursday as its word of the year for 2025.
It spotlights a growing trend in artificial intelligence that transforms ordinary speech into working computer code.
The term, introduced by AI pioneer Andrej Karpathy, describes a new generation of development tools that allow users to build apps or software simply by describing what they want -- with AI handling the coding process in the background.
Collins lexicographers noted a surge in usage since early 2025, calling it a symbol of how AI is reshaping human creativity and communication.
The shortlist this year, drawn from the 24-billion-word Collins Corpus, featured a wave of tech-influenced entries, according to a post published on the Collins Dictionary blog.
Among them are “clanker,” a mocking term for robots or AI systems; “biohacking,” and “broligarchy,” referring to elite groups of powerful tech executives.
Other lifestyle-inspired terms included “aura farming”; “Henry” (“high earner, not rich yet”) and “colocation,” a nod to climate-conscious travel choices.
“The selection of vibe coding as Collins’ word of the year perfectly captures how language is evolving alongside technology,” said Alex Beecroft, managing director at Collins. “It signals a major shift in software development, where AI is making coding more accessible.”
In 2024, Collins selected for its word of the year, “brat” -- a bold, carefree and self-assured attitude that resonated with a new generation. It chose “AI” in 2023 to reflect the growing influence of artificial intelligence on everyday life.
