When we see an expression such as this (grammatically a compound noun) we tend to nod our heads and mutter,
‘Ah, yes, this explains what’s happening to the world around me!’
In 2023 one American newspaper (the Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Patriot-News) expressed the fear that teens constantly scrolling on social media may contract ‘brain rot.’
The lexicographers at the Merriam-Webster Dictionary say, ‘the term gained mainstream attention in 2023 and 2024 in connection to several trends involving repetitive, nonsensical use of internet content… this content—(is) often absurdist, ironic, and intentionally poor in quality…’
And ‘brain rot’ is ‘an unhealthy state of being addicted to and addled by it.’
But although it is trendy, it’s not new.
The Oxford English Dictionary records ‘brain rot’ from 1854. In that year it was used by the American essayist Henry David Thoreau in his book Walden where he complains that while governments were attempting to find a cure for potato-rot no one was looking for a cure for the much more widespread and fatal ‘brain rot.’
The Oxford defines this as: ‘a perceived loss of intelligence or critical thinking skills, especially (in later use) as attributed to the overconsumption of unchallenging or inane content or material. Now also: content or material that is perceived to have this effect.’
When I travel on the Sydney Metro I sit in my train carriage and look around me—everyone else is glued to the little screens on their mobile phones, while I am reading a book.
I hope I’m not sounding elitist when I add that you can’t catch ‘brain rot’ from books—but you can catch it from watching endless cute kitten videos on Tik Tok.
‘Brain rot’ is not yet officially classified as a recognisable medical condition.
But there are some psychologists and psychiatrists who use the term ‘brain rot’ as a casual (colloquial) way of labelling ‘Problematic Interactive Media Use.’
This, it seems, produces symptoms of cognitive impairment resulting from overconsumption of social media.
You have been warned—now you should warn your kids!
The latest episode of the podcast 'Words with Kel Richards' has now dropped (with the dateline May 7 2026). You can listen to by scrolling further down this page -- or by going to wherever you usually get your podcasts.
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BOOKS:
* My latest book is called Pray Like This. To look at prayer I do what I do in these Ozword columns: I go through the most famous prayer in the world (The Lord’s Prayer, also known as the Our Father) and unpack it word by word—each chapter being a short word-study on a key word in that prayer. There is a total of 21 words studies in all. To find out more, here’s a link to the publisher’s website (where you can buy a copy if you wish): Pray Like This – matthiasmedia.com.au
* My book is Sherlock Holmes: 5-Minute Mysteries -- containing 50 new stories I have written about the great detective. You can find it on Amazon. Just go to Amazon and type in Sherlock Holmes: 5-Minute Mysteries in the search panel. Or use this link: h Amazon.com.au : Sherlock Holmes 5-Minute Mysteries Kel Richards
* My book "Defending the Gospel" is now in a second, fully revised, edition. You can find it here: Defending the Gospel – matthiasmedia.com.au
* If you're looking for my recent book "Flash Jim" you'll find it here -- Flash Jim, The astonis
hing story of the convict fraudster who wrote Australia's first dictionary by Kel Richards | 9781460759769 | Booktopia
* You can find all Kel's books currently in print here -- Booktopia Search Results for 'kel richards'. We sell books, hardback, paperback, audio, CDs.
* And also here -- Amazon.com.au : Kel Richards
* And you'll find more here -- Search: 4 results found for "Kel Richards" – matthiasmedia.com.au
* Many of Kel's out of print books can be found at ABE Books -- Kel Richards - AbeBooks explaining words explain the term
BY THE WAY...
If you'd like to see my A-Z list of Aussie slang, you'll find it here in the Australian Geographic website -- A-Z list of Aussie slang. Here’s the link: The A-Z of Aussie slang - Australian Geographic
The liveliest part of this website is usually the Q and A page -- be sure to check it out from time to time.
