A Compilation of Word Lists for 2011 & 2012

The end of one year and beginning of the New Year always means that people will come up with different types of lists to try to capture an image of what happened. There are lists of popular gadgets, amazing scientific discoveries, best selling cars and, of course, words.

Every year, there are at least a dozen different major word lists and countless more minor words lists. So inspired, even made my own top words of 2011 for True to Words. Here is a compilation of some of the best word lists for 2011, as well as predictions for 2012.

Global Language Monitor's Top 10 Words of 2011
Employing a technology known as NarrativeTracker, the Global Language Monitor analyzes English language usage on social media, the Internet, the blogosphere and in the top 75,000 print and electronic global media sources in order to select the 10 most used terms of the year.

American Dialect Society's 2011 Words of the Year
In its 22nd annual words of the year vote, the American Dialect Society determined the most useful, creative, unnecessary, outrageous, euphemistic and other words for the 2011 year. This is a fun list!

Most overused LinkedIn profile words of 2011
The online professional network LinkedIn analyzed the resumes of its 135 million users to determine that the term "creative" is most overused term on profiles in the United States, Australia, Canada, Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Dang, creativity is one of my favorite words!

Most Annoying Words of 2011
Once again, the Marist Poll has revealed the word or phrase considered to be the most annoying in casual conversation. For the third consecutive year, “whatever” is the "winner" of this title for 2011.

Top Ten Most Politically Contentious Terms of 2011
The intro sentence says it all: "The year 2011 was tumultuous for politics. With both ends of the political spectrum deeply committed to their ideologies, the rhetoric and vitriol each used to attack the other side’s priorities have been more contentious and polarizing than ever."

Banished Words For 2012
In 1976, Lake Superior State University in Michigan released its first "List of Words Banished from the Queen's English for Misuse, Overuse and General Uselessness". Here is your list for 2012!

Top Words of 2012 Predictions
The Global Language Monitor not only analyzed the popular words of 2011, it made predictions for what the most-used words of this year might be. Are you prepared to peek into the future of language?