Last month, Collins Dictionary announced that ¡±NFT,¡± which stands for ¡°non-fungible token¡± (·Ç´úÌæÐԥȩ`¥¯¥ó, hidaitaisei t¨­kun), was the winner of its .

Collins defines an NFT as a unique digital certificate that can be used to record ownership of an asset, like an artwork or collectible. While that doesn¡¯t explain how a work of digital art could be sold for over $60 million at an auction, the buzz the sales generated led to it also being nominated for this year¡¯s ÐÂÕZ?Á÷ÐÐÕZ´óÙp (Shingo, Ry¨±k¨­go Taish¨­, New Words and Buzzwords Awards).

Other tech-related words that made the top 10 include ¡°crypto,¡± a shortened version of ¡°cryptocurrency¡± (°µºÅͨ؛, ²¹²Ô²µ¨­³Ù²õ¨±°ì²¹), and ¡±metaverse¡± (¥á¥¿¥Ð©`¥¹, ³¾±ð³Ù²¹²ú¨¡²õ³Ü). Of course, that last one may be popular because of everyone asking, ¡±What is the metaverse?¡±

With the pandemic still ongoing, it¡¯s no surprise that pandemic-related terms would be on the list. They included ¡°hybrid working¡± (¥Ï¥¤¥Ö¥ê¥Ã¥É¥ï©`¥­¥ó¥°, haiburiddo w¨¡kingu), a style of work that mixes ³öÉç (shussha, going to work) and ÔÚÕ¬ÇÚ„Õ (zaitaku kinmu, working from home); and ¡°pingdemic¡± (¥Ô¥ó¥Ç¥ß¥Ã¥¯, pindemikku), a term used to describe absences from work due to a ¥Ô¥ó (pin, ping) on a phone app that warns users they may have been in close contact with someone who has contracted COVID-19.

Another notable term that made the list was ¡±climate anxiety¡± (šÝºò²»°²Ö¢, °ì¾±°ì¨­´Ú³Ü²¹²Ô²õ³ó¨­), which is used to describe the concern more and more people are having when it comes to šÝºò‰ä„Ó (°ì¾±°ì¨­³ó±ð²Ô»å¨­, climate change).

Rounding out the top words were: ¡±double-vaxxed¡± (2»Ø¥ï¥¯¥Á¥óœg, nikai wakuchin-zumi), ¡±neopronoun¡± (дúÃûÔ~, shindaimeishi), ¡±cheugy¡± (¥Á¥å©`¥®©`, ³¦³ó¨±²µ¨©) and ¡±Regencycore¡± (¥ê©`¥¸¥§¥ó¥·©`¥³¥¢, °ù¨©Âá±ð²Ô²õ³ó¨©°ì´Ç²¹).