And the Merriam-Webster’s Word of the Year 2022 goes to ‘Gaslighting’

People suffering from long Covid took up the term “medical gaslighting” to describe the medical establishment’s inappropriate dismissal of their symptoms. The word can also be used to describe individuals across contexts, from romantic partners to politicians.

The dictionary offers two definitions for the term. The first describes it as “psychological manipulation of a person usually over an extended period of time that causes the victim to question the validity of their own thoughts, perception of reality, or memories and typically leads to confusion, loss of confidence and self-esteem, uncertainty of one’s emotional or mental stability, and a dependency on the perpetrator.”

Searches for the term saw a staggering 1,740 percent increase in searches in its online dictionary in 2022. The word stayed in Merriam-Webster’s top 50 list of most-searched words for all of 2022.

The term “gaslighting” comes from a 1938 play titled Gas Light, which was adapted into the 1940 film Gas Light, followed by the better-known 1944 film Gaslight, starring Charles Boyer and Ingrid Bergman. In each work, a male protagonist convinces his wife she’s imagining things that are actually happening—including the dimming of the house’s gas lights—with the result of making her believe she’s gone insane. (Spoiler alert: She’s not.)

FORBES Health was an article about gaslighting worth reading: “If someone is intentionally distorting reality to make you feel like what you’re seeing or feeling isn’t real, you could be a victim of gaslighting. Gaslighting can come from a romantic partner, a boss, a family member, a doctor or anyone else in a position of power. If you’re being gaslit, there are clear steps you can take to deal with your abuser and get help.”

After “gaslighting,” Merriam-Webster’s top-ten picks include “oligarch,” “omicron,” “codify,” “LGBTQIA,” “sentient,” “raid,” “queen consort” and “loamy,” which spiked when it became one of the answers to Quordle, a spin-off of the popular game Wordle.

Sources:
Smithsonian Magazine
Merriam-Webster

Additional reading:
Forbes Health