Doomscrolling has a new hazard.

Oxford University Press announced “rage bait” is its 2025 word of the year .

The prestigious publisher defines “rage bait” as “online content deliberately designed to elicit anger or outrage by being frustrating, provocative, or offensive, typically posted in order to increase traffic to or engagement with a particular web page or social media content.”

The compound of the words “rage” and “bait” has seen a “three-fold increase” in usage over the last year, suggesting that “more people than ever are aware of the negative effects that online life can bring alongside all the positives,” the creators of the Oxford English Dictionary said.

The chosen contenders were intended to reflect the moods and conversations that have shaped this past year, and consi

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