“Vibe Coding” Named Word of the Year, Reflecting AI’s Creative and Accessible Potential

In a nod to the creative power of artificial intelligence, “vibe coding” has been selected as the Collins Dictionary Word of the Year for 2025. The term, which describes a method of software development that turns natural language into code, highlights a major shift toward making technology more accessible to a broader audience.
The practice of “vibe coding” allows individuals without traditional programming skills to build applications and tools. By simply describing their goal or “vibe” to an AI, they can bypass the complex syntax of computer languages. This term was coined in February by Andrej Karpathy, a key engineer at OpenAI, who celebrated the idea of creators being able to “forget that the code even exists.”
Lexicographers at Collins chose the word after tracking its explosive growth in their 24-billion-word corpus. Its selection, as managing director Alex Beecroft noted, “signals a major shift in software development.” He celebrated it as a “seamless integration of human creativity and machine intelligence,” which is changing how we interact with computers.
This positive portrayal of AI’s capabilities stands in contrast to other terms on the 2025 list. “Clanker,” a derogatory word for AI derived from Star Wars, was also a prominent entry, reflecting widespread public distrust of chatbots and automated systems.
The list also painted a picture of modern work and wealth with terms like “Henry” (high earner, not rich yet), “broligarchy” (the tech elite), “taskmasking” (faking productivity), and “micro-retirement” (a career break). Social media also contributed “aura farming” (curating a cool persona).