London : Binge-watch – watching a large number of television programmes in succession – has been named the 2015 Word of the Year by Collins dictionary, after relentless consumption of shows such as ‘Game Of Thrones’ led to increase in its usage by a whopping 200 per cent last year, reports PTI.
Binge-watch reflects a marked change in viewing habits, due to subscription services like Netflix. Lexicographers noticed that its usage was up 200 per cent in 2014. “The rise in usage of ‘binge-watch’ is clearly linked to the biggest sea change in our viewing habits since the advent of the video recorder nearly 40 years ago,” Helen Newstead, Head of Language Content at Collins, said.
“It’s not uncommon for viewers to binge-watch a whole season of programmes such as House of Cards or Breaking Bad in just a couple of evenings – something that, in the past, would have taken months – then discuss their binge-watching on social media,” said Newstead.
Other words that have been listed by the Collins Dictionary as ‘words of the year’ include dadbod, ghosting, clean eating, contactless and corbynomics, ‘BBC News’ reported. While clean eating refers to a diet where one avoids processed foods and instead eats raw and unrefined produce, dadbod refers to an untoned and slightly plump male physique, especially one considered attractive.
Contactless refers to payments, smart cards, etc that utilise RFID (radio-frequency identity) technology and do not require a PIN or signature from the customer. Corbynomics means the economic policies advocated by the UK Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and ghosting means ending a relationship by ignoring all communication from the other person.
