According to Collins, the popularity of the word ‘mogging’ surged 210% this year, with Gen Z and Gen Alpha helping push it beyond social media into everyday conversations
Collins Dictionary has crowned “mogging” its Word of the Year for 2026, highlighting how younger generations are changing the way people communicate.
The word describes someone stealing the spotlight by looking better, performing better, or simply outshining others.
According to Collins, the word’s popularity surged 210% this year, with Gen Z and Gen Alpha helping push it beyond social media into everyday conversations.
According to the dictionary, “mogging” evolved from AMOG (an acronym for “Alpha Male of the Group”) and was popular in the 2010s. It has since gained renewed visibility through manosphere and looksmaxxing influencers.
The 2026 list also captures changing trends in technology, food and employment. “P(doom)” describes fears that AI could destroy human civilization, while “ghost jobs” refers to vacancies companies advertise without plans to hire.
Other additions include “firewaves” for clusters of urban wildfires, “carspreading” for oversized vehicles, “fricy” for fruity and spicy flavors, and “friendslop” for inexpensive video games friends enjoy together.
Collins identifies emerging expressions by analyzing a 27-billion-word database that includes social media and other sources.