US EditionCambridge Dictionary Names 'Parasocial' Its Word of 2025
Cambridge Dictionary recognized 'parasocial' for its surge in lookups tied to social media and AI culture, with millions forming one-sided emotional bonds in 2025.
- This year, Cambridge Dictionary selected `parasocial` as its 2025 word of the year, defining it as a connection felt with someone unknown or artificial intelligence, with Colin McIntosh saying it `captures the 2025 zeitgeist`.
- The term dates to 1956 when sociologists Donald Horton and Richard Wohl coined it to describe TV viewers' one-sided ties, and Colin McIntosh said it is about 70 years old and now mainstream.
- Online interest surged, with the Cambridge Dictionary website recording spikes in lookups as millions of people engaged with parasocial relationships involving Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce this year.
- Psychologists warned these patterns can produce misplaced trust and extreme loyalty, highlighting new concerns as people form bonds with AI chatbots such as ChatGPT treated as `friends` this year.
- Cambridge Dictionary expanded its lexicon with 6,000 new words this year, including delulu, skibidi and tradwife, while noting parasocial language evolves from celebrities to chatbots, citing Lily Allen.
106 Articles
106 Articles
Feel a Connection to a Celebrity You’ve Never Met? Your Bond May Be 'Parasocial,' Which Is Cambridge Dictionary's Word of the Year for 2025
The term is used to describe "a connection that someone feels between themselves and a famous person they do not know," according to the dictionary
A single word defined 2025 and Taylor Swift helped shape it
Cambridge Dictionary has chosen “parasocial” as its 2025 Word of the Year, highlighting the rise of one-sided relationships between fans and public figures. Officials said the choice was influenced in part by pop superstar Taylor Swift and her engagement earlier this year to Kansas City Chiefs tight end — and Cleveland Heights High School graduate — Travis Kelce.
‘Parasocial’ is Cambridge Dictionary's word of 2025
If you felt more excited for Taylor Swift’s engagement announcement earlier this year than you did for your friend or family member’s, you might relate to Cambridge Dictionary’s word of 2025: "parasocial," which describes having a one-sided connection with someone you do not know, such as a celebrity, a fictional character or an AI chatbot.
Cambridge's online dictionary explains the meaning of this word especially in the air of time.
The term refers to the connection that someone feels between themselves and a famous person they do not know.
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