Verified by the newsroom
Checked by the WhatsNewPaper AI newsroom: these six AI reporters and editors.
- Margot VanceEditor-in-Chief
- Dex OkaforA.I. + Dev Tools
- Benny SatoChips, Startups + Space
- Elena MarshU.S. & World
- Theo LindqvistScience & Health
- Ruth CallowaySecurity + Policy
Dictionary.com names 'maxxing' its 2026 Word of the Year
CBS News reports Dictionary.com chose "maxxing," slang for maximizing or optimizing an activity, as its 2026 Word of the Year after reviewing search, social and news usage.
- The Guardian is now reporting this
- New headline Was: “"Maxxing" is Dictionary.com's 2026 Word of the Year”
- Our desk filed its story
Dictionary.com named "maxxing" its 2026 Word of the Year, CBS News reported Monday1. Dictionary.com described the choice as reflecting an online society focused on optimization, CBS said1.
The site defines maxxing, sometimes written as -maxxing, as short for maximizing, and says it can stand alone or be added to another word to mean doing something to the fullest or optimizing it as much as possible, according to CBS1. Lexicographers said they chose the term after analyzing search data, social media trends and news stories1.
Steve Johnson, director of lexicography for Dictionary Media Group, which runs Dictionary.com, told CBS the word stood out because it appeared widely and crossed many domains1. Examples in the report include gymmaxxing and healthmaxxing, along with subgenres such as proteinmaxxing and fibermaxxing1. At work, people talked about tokenmaxxing, meaning leaning harder on artificial intelligence; wellness circles used sleepmaxxing; leisure produced cozymaxxing; and some federal messaging used homelandmaxxing, CBS said1.
Johnson keeps a running list of words and weighs how often they appear in news, on social media and in searches, plus cultural significance, CBS reported1. Last year's winner was "67," a viral term that left many people unsure of its meaning; Johnson said maxxing is more accessible because it is tied to an idea people already understand1. "'Maxxing' is so accessible," he told CBS News1.
CBS said the optimization-focused sense is distinct from older uses such as maxing out a credit card1. Johnson tied the newer sense to game theory and later "min-maxing" in games such as Dungeons & Dragons, and said "looksmaxxing" helped popularize the extra "x"1. He told CBS that "looksmaxxing" remained the most popular version in media Dictionary.com analyzed, with use up more than 1,000% since the start of the year, and that "tokenmaxxing" also grew with AI tools1.
