‘Mogging’: Collins’ Word of the Year for 2026 has roots in the manosphere

Mogging, meaning to outshine or outperform someone or something, has been named Collins’ Word of the Year for 2026.

This slang word is used in a playful and ironic way when someone is upstaged. With a 210 per cent increase in usage in 2026, mogging has entered mainstream language this year, becoming widely used online and a part of everyday conversation among younger generations.

The lexicographers at Collins Dictionary monitor the 27-billion-word Collins Corpus, which draws from a range of media sources, including social media, to create the annual list of new and notable words that reflect our ever-evolving language and the preoccupations of those who use it.

They chose mogging as Word of the Year after observing a pronounced shift in usage, especially by Generations Z and Alpha, who have adopted the word as a form of playful teasing among friends.

According to the Guardian’s Lucy Knight: “Mogging’s origins are in the manosphere, where it began as a verb derived from the acronym ‘Amog’ (alpha male of the group). In misogynistic forums in the 2010s, to ‘mog’ came to mean to outdo someone in terms of sexual desirability.”

You may have found yourself “car mogged” this year as a result of “carspreading”: the tendency of manufacturers to build cars that are longer, wider and heavier. 2026 also brought frustration to those seeking to impress in the job market. Jobseekers were faced with “ghost jobs”, jobs that are advertised without any intention to appoint anyone.

The Collins word list highlights the latest lifestyle trends. Perhaps you’ve sampled “fricy” food or drinks, which are both fruity and spicy, as more people enjoy flavour combinations such as spicy margaritas and Thai papaya salad. Or perhaps you’ve had the latest haircut, the “bixie”, a hairstyle that is shorter than a bob but longer than a pixie cut. The latest gaming trends bring us “friendslop”, a type of low-budget, independently produced video game, played among friends.

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In the UK, Andy Burnham’s appointment as prime minister drove a surge in use of the word “Manchesterism”, a reference to his political philosophy that involves devolution of power to regions and seeks to combine economic growth with social progress. The 2026 World Cup was also much discussed, not least in the introduction of the “hydration break”, a pause in a sporting contest to allow the contestants to drink fluids.

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Climate concerns dominated headlines as multiple “firewaves”, defined as a series of urban wildfires in a short space of time, took place around the globe. Concerns about AI grew too, and “P(doom)”, an estimation of the probability that AI will bring about the collapse of human civilisation, also saw a marked increase in usage.