Collins Dictionary makes NFT its word of the year

Collins Dictionary makes NFT its word of the year

It was chosen as the word of the year as it is ''unique technicolour collision of art, technology and commerce.''

Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) have beaten cheugy to become Collins Dictionary's word of the year. It said the word has seen a ''meteoric rise'' in use over the last year.

NFT is defined as a ''unique digital certificate, registered in a blockchain, that is used to record ownership of an asset such as an artwork or a collectible,'' by the Collins Dictionary.

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It was chosen as the word of the year as it is ''unique technicolour collision of art, technology and commerce.''

Unlike most digital items which can be endlessly reproduced, each NFT has a unique digital signature, meaning it is one of a kind.

According to Collins Learning managing director Alex Beecroft, ''It’s unusual for an abbreviation to experience such a meteoric rise in usage, but the data we have from the Collins Corpus reflects the remarkable ascendancy of the NFT in 2021.''

''NFTs seem to be everywhere, from the arts sections to the financial pages and in galleries and auction houses and across social media platforms.''

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''Whether the NFT will have a lasting influence is yet to be determined, but its sudden presence in conversations around the world makes it very clearly our word of the year,'' he added.

Collins Dictionary had also shortlisted tech terms such as cryptocurrency and metaverse in its 10 words of the year list.

NFTs are usually bought with cryptocurrencies or in dollars and the blockchain keeps a record of transactions.

A collage by digital artist Beeple, which sold for 50 million euros is the world's most valuable NFT.

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