End-of-year lists have become predictable means to remind readers about high points in publishing, journalism and cinema from the prior 12 months. But far more illuminating of the zeitgeist is the Word of the Year.

To encapsulate 2024, two winners emerged. While one will be immediately understandable to most people, and the second far more obscure, both serve as potent barometers. Drum roll, please.

"Brain rot" is the Oxford University Press word of 2024. The august publisher unveiled its chosen term after tabulating votes from 37,000 people, who weighed in on a shortlist that included "romantasy" and "slop."

Though "brain rot" was coined in 1854 by Henry David Thoreau, the lexicographers at Oxford say it best reflects the mood of 2024, noting that the term's use increased by 230% between 2023 and 2024.

That will be no surprise to parents and teachers alarmed by the addictive power of social media, and the fact that nearly half of all kids age 13 to 17 report being online "almost constantly," according to the Pew Research Center.

But if the Word of the Year reflects general themes, it also serves as a hard look in the mirror. Unlike the tech barons enabling our current brain rot (and now groveling at the feet of a reelected President Donald Trump), editors at The Economist pulled no punches in their Word of the Year: "kakistocracy."

It means "a government run by the worst, least qualified, or most unscrupulous citizens." Kakistocracy is obscure, yes, but it came roaring to the fore of Google searches in November, after Trump's election and his subsequent nomination of accused sex offender Matt Gaetz to be the country's top law enforcement officer; anti-vaxxer Robert F. Kennedy Jr., as secretary of health; and Fox television host Pete Hegseth as secretary of defense, despite sporting numerous tattoos that suggest an affinity with white supremacy.

That's a long way from just one year ago, when Oxford chose "rizz" (slang for "charisma") and The Economist picked "ChatGPT."