“Rage bait” has been selected as Oxford’s word of the year because apparently we’re all mad online

If you’ve ever clicked a video just to scream “What am I watching?” at 7:52 am, congratulations girl, you’ve been rage-baited. And now the Oxford University Press has basically confirmed what we already knew: the internet’s favourite emotion is apparently anger, and we’re all out here feeding the beast, one annoyed tap at a time.

Phrases like aura farming (astrology for influencers) and biohack (using routines, supplements and gadgets for productivity) were also contenders for the Oxford Word of the Year 2025. However, the defining mood of our digital lives isn’t curiosity, chaos, or stress management. It’s rage.

So what exactly is rage bait?

Think of it as someone constantly tapping your shoulder and whispering, “Bet you won’t react.” Rage bait is content-engineered with precision and a dash of evil genius to get people mad. Think: the influencer pretending to ruin a perfectly good cheesecake with ketchup, or the beauty guru bragging about “my minimalist routine” featuring 27 products. Or a Karen throwing a fit just because she can. It’s not meant to inspire thought. Or joy. Or learning. It’s the next level of pot-stirring, meant to trigger, spark outrage, and make you stop scrolling long enough for the algorithm to go, “Yup, give them more chaos.”

Oxford defines rage bait as “online content deliberately designed to elicit anger or outrage by being frustrating, provocative, or offensive.” Cosmo defines it as: “Stuff that makes you text your best friend, ‘Have you seen this nonsense?’” Both are correct. And if you’ve ever opened literally any comment section in the world on any social media platform… you’ve seen it. You’ve reacted to it. You’ve probably screenshotted it. And yes, you definitely contributed to its engagement. No shame: we all have hobbies.

So why did Oxford pick this one? 

It’s quick, cheap, and guaranteed to go viral

Anyone can create rage bait. No editing skills? Fine. No story? Even better. Just upload: “Women shouldn’t drink coffee.” Bam. Instant attention. Rage bait spreads not because it’s true, but because it’s annoying enough that we need everyone to know just how annoyed we all are. The unfortunate truth is that we’re all exhausted and over-stimulated and also weirdly entertained by chaos. There’s something delicious about sending a ridiculous video to your group chat and bonding over it together. It’s low-stakes emotional drama for people who don’t want real drama.

Who creates rage bait? (Spoiler: everyone)

Let’s talk guilty parties. Content creators who want fast fame. Trolls who bring the comment wars. Corporations with questionable marketing ethics. Regular people with innocent opinions that someone decides to misread. Why build a brand slowly when you can post a random statement that will get instant views, instant engagement, instant chaos? So, why do we fall for it every single time? Maybe because we’re human, because the internet is loud, because we love drama as long as it isn’t ours. But mostly because we’re wired to respond to negativity faster than positivity. It’s psychological: fight or flight meets scroll or comment.

It might sound harmless, but it’s a bit worrying. Think of it as an endless loop: you get mad, you engage, you feed the algorithm, you get mad again with more rage bait. Sounds like your brain will exhaust itself into feeling toasted. But the good news is that awareness is power. With Oxford choosing this word, the spotlight is shining bright on what needs to change.

Rage bait being word of the year isn’t just a linguistic choice. It’s a cultural one. It’s a neon sign that says: Hey, maybe we should all log off and touch grass sometimes. 

Lead photo: Netflix media  

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