Cambridge Dictionary picks Parasocial as Word of 2025 and we’re all part of it

It is really fun to go on a pseudo relationship with your favourite celebrities, pulling up the chair for you, opening the car door and so much more but then the bubble bursts and you find yourself single again. Well, that’s a parasocial relationship you were just in and you are not the only one doing it. It has become so popular that this year it literally won the title Word of 2025 in Cambridge Dictionary.

Parasocial: The internet’s favourite obsession just became word of 2025 in Cambridge Dictionary

Ever caught yourself fantasizing about your favourite celebrity pulling out your chair, opening your car door, or giving you that smoldering “only you” look? And then the bubble bursts, and you’re suddenly single again. Congratulations, you’ve just survived a parasocial relationship. Don’t worry, you’re not alone; in fact, these one-sided love affairs have become so common that “parasocial” snagged Cambridge Dictionary’s Word of 2025. 

In the age of social media, crushing on celebs or imagining you’re the mystery partner in their glamorous lives is basically a national sport.

Oh and how can we forget the chatbots who have become the best friends or even the romantic partner of some when the booze kicks in and singlehood says hello. 

Today it has become the world where most of us live (yes, even you). Don’t believe it? Well if you felt a strange emotional rumble when Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce announced their engagement, or spent a dramatic week soul-searching when a singer dropped heartbreak lyrics that felt aimed directly at you, then yes, you’ve absolutely been in one.

According to a press release by Cambridge Dictionary, in 2025, the chronically online (people who spend a lot of time online and their perception are shaped by the contents) took parasocial relationships to a whole new level, forming deep, unreciprocated bonds with YouTubers, celebrities and influencers they felt they truly knew, getting emotionally invested in every twist, turn, breakup, vlog and meltdown of their lives.

How did it become the word of 2025?

There’s been a sharp rise in online searches for the word, pushing it into trending territory, and ultimately making it words of the year.

Colin McIntosh of the Cambridge Dictionary said, “What was once a specialist academic term has become mainstream. The data reflects that, with the Cambridge Dictionary website seeing spikes in lookups for ‘parasocial’.” 

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