Now, roll your eyes. I shrug. Or maybe just juggling your hands in the air.
Dictionary.com’s word of the year isn’t even a word at all. It’s the buzzword “6-7” that kids and teens keep repeating to great laughter, and that parents and teachers never understand.
The term – if you can call it that – exploded in popularity over the summer. It’s like a gibberish inside joke caused by social media.
Dictionary.com says its annual selection is a time capsule of languages that reflect social trends and events. However, the site also acknowledged that there was some confusion about 6-7.
“Don’t worry, we’re all still trying to figure out exactly what that means,” the site said in an announcement this week.
How was “6-7” born?
It all seems to go back to rapper Skrilla’s 2024 song “Doot Doot (6-7).”
The song started appearing in TikTok videos of basketball players, including 6-foot-7-inch NBA player LaMelo Ball.
Then a video of the boy now known as “The 6-7 Kid” shouting that ubiquitous phrase while another kid next to him juggled his hands went viral this year.
That’s all you need.
So what does “6-7” mean?
No one knows the real answer.
And in some cases, it depends on who is on the receiving end of the “6-7”.
Even how to write “6-7” is debatable. Is it “6 7” or “6 7”?
According to Dictionary.com, this phrase, when combined with a hand-juggling gesture, can mean “so-and-so” or “maybe this, maybe that.”
Merriam-Webster calls it “a meaningless expression used especially by tweens and young adults.”
Some people use it simply to annoy adults when asked questions.
“It’s pointless, ubiquitous, and nonsensical. In other words, it has all the hallmarks of brain rot,” Dictionary.com said. “Yet it remains meaningful to the people who use it because of the connections it fosters.”
How did the rest of the world react?
Parents and teachers have created their own videos to try to explain the feeling.
Some people offer tips to help children avoid repeating the same things throughout the day. Some people suggest going with that because it looks uncool. You can even make “6-7” Halloween costumes.
The teacher forbade it. Influencers and child psychologists have been trying to figure it out.
It’s even spread to the NFL as a way to celebrate big plays.
Why is it the word of the year?
Dictionary.com says they are looking for words that influence our conversations and communication online.
This site was selected by scrutinizing search engines, headlines, and social media trends. Online searches for “6-7” increased dramatically over the summer and have continued to grow, increasing sixfold since June.
The site says, “Word of the year is more than just a commonly used word; it reveals the stories we tell about ourselves and how we’ve changed over the past year.”
