'Brexit' has been named the word of the year by Collins Dictionary having been deemed "politics' most important contribution to the language for 40 years."

According to Collins, the first recorded usage of the word arrived in 2013 but this year saw a 3,400% rise due to the EU referendum in June and the ensuing fallout.

Collins' head of language Helen Newstead likened the term's importance to the way in which the Watergate scandal saw the word -gate added as a suffix "to make any incident infinitely more compelling."

Following up Brexit's rear was 'Trumpism' which has been derived from the name of US presidential nominee Donald Trump.

The third entrant in Collins' list is 'hygge,' a Danish concept of creating cosy and convivial atmospheres that promote wellbeing.

Other words to feature include 'mic drop' - a theatrical gesture in which a person drops a hand-held microphone as the finale to a speech - 'snowflake generation' - the collective name for the young adults of the 2010s' - and 'JOMO' which is the joy of missing out

High court rules Brexit needs Parliamentary approval



Collins' ten words of the year can be found below with their full definitions:

dude food (ˈduːd ˌfuːd) noun: junk food such as hot dogs, burgers, etc considered particularly appealing to men

hygge (ˈhyɡə) noun: a concept, originating in Denmark, of creating cosy and convivial atmospheres that promote wellbeing

JOMO (ˈdʒəʊməʊ) noun acronym: joy of missing out: pleasure gained from enjoying one’s current activities without worrying that other people are having more fun

mic drop (ˈmaɪk ˌdrɒp) noun: a theatrical gesture in which a person drops (or imitates the action of dropping) a hand-held microphone to the ground as the finale to a speech or performance

sharenting (ˈʃɛərəntɪŋ) noun: the habitual use of social media to share news, images, etc of one’s children

snowflake generation (ˈsnəʊfleɪk dʒɛnəˌreɪʃən) noun: the young adults of the 2010s, viewed as being less resilient and more prone to taking offence than previous generations

throw shade (ˌθrəʊ ˈʃeɪd) verb: to make a public show of contempt for someone or something, often in a subtle or non-verbal manner

Trumpism (ˈtrʌmpɪzəm) noun: (1) the policies advocated by the US politician Donald Trump, especially those involving a rejection of the current political establishment and the vigorous pursuit of US national interests (2) a controversial or outrageous statement attributed to Donald Trump