2016 Word of the Year: Behind the Scenes

Editor Peter Sokolowski talks about 'surreal' and the rest of our Word of the Year 2016 selections

How did we choose surreal as our Word of the Year for 2016? Peter Sokolowski explains the data behind our decisions, and what that tells us about what people were thinking this year.

Don't miss our in-depth look at surreal and our gallery of top trending words from 2016.

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2016 Word of the Year: Behind the Scenes

Editor Peter Sokolowski talks about 'surreal' and the rest of our Word of the Year 2016 selections

Up next

2016 Word of the Year: Behind the Scenes

Webster's Dictionary of 1864

i.e. vs. e.g.

The History of 'Cynic'

Is It 'Attorney Generals' Or 'Attorneys General'?

Old-School Grammar

Is It 'day today' or 'day-to-day'?

Games & Quizzes