Language "Das crazy" is the youth word of the year 2025
"Das crazy" is the youth word of the year 2025. In a vote by the Langenscheidt publishing house, it landed in first place by a narrow margin - ahead of "goonen" and "checkst du". Only these three terms were in the final round.
18.10.2025, 14:53
SDA
The winning word was announced live in front of an audience at the Frankfurt Book Fair. According to the information provided, almost two million votes were cast in the anonymous online poll.
"Das crazy" is an all-purpose phrase for when you're at a loss for words or don't feel like giving the right answer. It is roughly comparable to "aha" or "okay". Example: "He just proposed to her in front of the whole class!" can be responded to with "das crazy".
German scholar Nils Uwe Bahlo had already given "das crazy" a good chance of winning: "I assume that it has great potential to win because it is actually en vogue among many young people," said Bahlo, who researches youth language at the University of Münster.
The term is an exciting example of how youth language is developing: while "crazy" has long been a youth word, this elliptical usage - i.e. "the crazy" without a verb - is relatively new.
Nikolas Hoenig, Head of Marketing at Pons Langenscheidt, added: "This year's choice once again shows the unbroken influence of the English language and the trend towards shortening." Thus, "das crazy" represents the zeitgeist - and that is precisely the aim of the election.
11 to 20-year-olds were allowed to vote
According to a spokeswoman for Langenscheidt Verlag, only the age group of 11 to 20-year-olds was considered in both the voting and the submission of the suggestions. Langenscheidt-Verlag has been publishing the "Youth Word of the Year" since 2008 - when "Gammelfleischparty" (over-30 party) won.
Last year's winner was the word "aura", which describes a person's special charisma and charisma. In 2023, "goofy" won the race. It describes a clumsy, silly person or behavior. Since 2020, only young people between the ages of 11 and 20 have been allowed to vote for the youth word of the year.
But how does youth language shape society - and is it really only younger people who use it? Adults also use youth language to some extent, "but it often comes across as pandering", said German scholar Bahlo. However, it is also clear that youth language influences the language of society in the medium term. "Our colloquial language today is the coagulated youth language of the last few decades," emphasized the researcher. This can be seen in words such as toll or krass, which were once pure youth language.
