Language innovation on social media: a case study of rizz on TikTok
The English language is in a constant state of evolution, particularly with the influence of online platforms. Each year, new words and expressions emerge, highlighted by the Oxford Dictionary’s Word of the Year (WOTY) announcement. In 2023, rizz, a term popularised on TikTok, which means the...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Penerbit Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia
2025
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| Online Access: | http://journalarticle.ukm.my/25958/ http://journalarticle.ukm.my/25958/1/Gema_25_1_7.pdf |
| _version_ | 1848816492060082176 |
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| author | Noraishah Gulnazir, Siti Zaidah Zainuddin, |
| author_facet | Noraishah Gulnazir, Siti Zaidah Zainuddin, |
| author_sort | Noraishah Gulnazir, |
| building | UKM Institutional Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | The English language is in a constant state of evolution, particularly with the influence of online
platforms. Each year, new words and expressions emerge, highlighted by the Oxford Dictionary’s
Word of the Year (WOTY) announcement. In 2023, rizz, a term popularised on TikTok, which
means the ability to woo someone, was named WOTY. Given the rapid rise of rizz from being a
novel word to gaining widespread recognition, this study examines the invention and proliferation
of this word using a mixed-method approach. With the aid of Diffusion of Innovations theory, 100
TikTok videos were analysed for their content and the English Trends corpus analysis was utilised,
along with the tool Google Trends to understand the spread of this lexical item. The results show
that rizz began to be used in 2022, and its usage has slowly declined since it was named WOTY.
It was also found that creativity and virality are some of the pertinent aspects of word dissemination
on TikTok. Aside from that, American English continues to dominate a newer platform like
TikTok, as it has with previous applications. This dominance is evident in the widespread use of
American slang and expressions which often become global trends. The study emphasizes the
concept of language mobility on social media by showing how new lexical items are created online
and reach a global audience, potentially becoming dictionary entries. The invention of novel
lexical items is expected to continue in the future as it demonstrates the ongoing change and
variation of the English language in a fast-paced world. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-15T01:06:44Z |
| format | Article |
| id | oai:generic.eprints.org:25958 |
| institution | Universiti Kebangasaan Malaysia |
| institution_category | Local University |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-15T01:06:44Z |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| publisher | Penerbit Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | oai:generic.eprints.org:259582025-10-02T02:03:15Z http://journalarticle.ukm.my/25958/ Language innovation on social media: a case study of rizz on TikTok Noraishah Gulnazir, Siti Zaidah Zainuddin, The English language is in a constant state of evolution, particularly with the influence of online platforms. Each year, new words and expressions emerge, highlighted by the Oxford Dictionary’s Word of the Year (WOTY) announcement. In 2023, rizz, a term popularised on TikTok, which means the ability to woo someone, was named WOTY. Given the rapid rise of rizz from being a novel word to gaining widespread recognition, this study examines the invention and proliferation of this word using a mixed-method approach. With the aid of Diffusion of Innovations theory, 100 TikTok videos were analysed for their content and the English Trends corpus analysis was utilised, along with the tool Google Trends to understand the spread of this lexical item. The results show that rizz began to be used in 2022, and its usage has slowly declined since it was named WOTY. It was also found that creativity and virality are some of the pertinent aspects of word dissemination on TikTok. Aside from that, American English continues to dominate a newer platform like TikTok, as it has with previous applications. This dominance is evident in the widespread use of American slang and expressions which often become global trends. The study emphasizes the concept of language mobility on social media by showing how new lexical items are created online and reach a global audience, potentially becoming dictionary entries. The invention of novel lexical items is expected to continue in the future as it demonstrates the ongoing change and variation of the English language in a fast-paced world. Penerbit Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia 2025 Article PeerReviewed application/pdf en http://journalarticle.ukm.my/25958/1/Gema_25_1_7.pdf Noraishah Gulnazir, and Siti Zaidah Zainuddin, (2025) Language innovation on social media: a case study of rizz on TikTok. GEMA: Online Journal of Language Studies, 25 (1). pp. 119-136. ISSN 1675-8021 https://ejournal.ukm.my/gema/issue/view/1803 |
| spellingShingle | Noraishah Gulnazir, Siti Zaidah Zainuddin, Language innovation on social media: a case study of rizz on TikTok |
| title | Language innovation on social media: a case study of rizz on TikTok |
| title_full | Language innovation on social media: a case study of rizz on TikTok |
| title_fullStr | Language innovation on social media: a case study of rizz on TikTok |
| title_full_unstemmed | Language innovation on social media: a case study of rizz on TikTok |
| title_short | Language innovation on social media: a case study of rizz on TikTok |
| title_sort | language innovation on social media: a case study of rizz on tiktok |
| url | http://journalarticle.ukm.my/25958/ http://journalarticle.ukm.my/25958/ http://journalarticle.ukm.my/25958/1/Gema_25_1_7.pdf |