The Taylor effect! Dictionary.com names ‘Eras’ as 2023’s ‘vibe’ word of the year

‘Eras’ has been named as the ‘vibe’ word of the year by Dictionary.com, unsurprisingly sparked by the mammoth success of Taylor Swift‘s tour of the same name in 2023.

The word was christened as Dictionary’s inaugural Vibe of 2023 earlier this week, with organisers hailing its huge surge in global popularity as a result of Swift’s record breaking tour.

“Vibe was one of Dictionary.com’s top lookups of the year, which led us to consider what word could best represent 2023’s overall culture vibe,” Grant Barrett, head of lexicography at the website, told  Billboard.

“Like vibe, the word era has been undergoing a similarly slangy evolution, referring to our moods, aesthetics, and life stages—and in 2023, we saw a real surge in this use of eras across popular culture.”

The term, which emerged in the 17th century and is used to denote particularly significant periods of someone’s life, also grew on social media and in slang this year – owing to its usage in referring to someone’s personal life. The term “flop era”, for instance, has been commonly used to refer to a period when someone is going through personal hardship.

But it is Swift, ultimately, who is to thank for the word’s success in 2023. Since kicking off the career-spanning Eras Tour in March, Swift has broken a slew of records and the tour is estimated to make $5.7 billion. That sum, according to NME, is enough to send every person in the United States $20.

“Our choice is also, of course, inspired by the year’s most high-profile, record-setting, impossible-to-ignore cultural phenomenon,” Barrett added.

“Swift’s use of the word on the grandest of stages has helped to solidify it as a way of taking control of one’s own story.”

The word is showing no signs of going anywhere either. The Eras Tour will head to Europe next Spring and Summer, with Swift playing a huge string of dates across the continent – including eight shows at London’s Wembley Stadium.