‘Brat’ has been chosen as the Collins Dictionary word of the year

Collins Dictionary have chosen ‘brat’ as their word of the year, after the runaway popularity of Charli XCX‘s album of the same name.

The singer’s acclaimed sixth album Brat became the defining cultural moment of summer 2024 upon its release in June, with fans embracing the record’s lime green artwork as well as the record’s celebration of unrepentant hedonism.

READ MORE – Charli XCX: The Anatomy Of A (3-D) Female Pop Star

The term ‘Brat Summer’ was quickly coined and adopted across the globe, while Charli stoked the Brat fires throughout the summer too, declaring that “Kamala IS Brat” after Kamala Harris was chosen as Joe Biden’s successor as Democrat candidate in the 2024 Presidential Race. In turn, Harris’ social media teams quickly changed their logos to the lime green aesthetic, while one memorably awkwardly moment saw CNN trying to explain the ‘Brat’ phenomenon to viewers.

It’s of little surprise then that Collins has christened Brat as their word of the year. The dictionary previously define a “brat” as “someone, especially a child”, who “behaves badly or annoys you”, but an updated viewpoint explains that it now describes a person “characterised by a confident, independent, and hedonistic attitude”.

“More than a hugely successful album, ‘brat’ is a cultural phenomenon that has resonated with people globally, and ‘brat summer’ established itself as an aesthetic and a way of life,” said Collins.

The wide-ranging impact of music was also evident in “era” making the Collins list – made popular by Taylor Swift‘s history making Eras tour.

Last month saw Charli score her first ever number one album when she shared the collab-heavy remix record Brat and It’s Completely Different but Also Still Brat, which in turn led Brat to land the top spot too.

Later this month, Charli XCX will take the record on the road for her first ever UK arena tour.