Difficulty: Summiteer (Level 2)
“Kindness” was voted the 2024 Children’s Word of the Year in Britain.
More than 3,000 kids across the UK aged six to 14 were asked for their word of the year. “Kindness”, “artificial intelligence” and “conflict” were among the most common suggestions, according to publisher Oxford University Press (OUP).
These three words, along with three shortlisted slang words, were chosen from a survey of 1,200 kids. They were then put to a vote by 2,000 children.
According to the research, 61 per cent of children chose “kindness” as the Children’s Word of the Year. Some of the children associated the word with mental health.
One child said, “It’s always important to be kind as a lot of people struggle with their mental health.”
Another said kindness is important “as you don’t know who is suffering”.
Andrea Quincey, director of early years and primary publishing at OUP, said: “This choice suggests something more personal: an awareness of mental health issues and of the hidden challenges others may be facing.”
She added that the results show that empathy, tolerance and the language we use matter. Furthermore, kindness is not only a solution to so many problems but is something everyone can do to make a difference.
“Queen” was named the Children’s Word of the Year for 2022, following the death of Elizabeth II. In 2023, the pick was “climate change”.
