NFT is the abbreviation for non-fungible token. Collins defines it as “a unique digital certificate, saved in a blockchain, which is used to register ownership of an asset such as a work of art or a collector’s item.”

Most people didn’t know what an NFT was until this year, when sales skyrocketed, largely sparked by artist Beeple’s March auction of an NFT digital collage for nearly $ 70 million. Other highlights include Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey selling an NFT of his first tweet for $ 2.9 million and electronic musician Grimes selling $ 6 million for his digital art.

Experts from Collins, based in Glasgow, Scotland, said on Wednesday they chose the NFT because of its “meteorological increase in use”, up 11,000% in 2021.

“NFTs seem to be everywhere, from art sections to financial pages and in galleries and auction houses and on social media platforms,” said Alex Beecroft, Managing Director of Collins Learning. But it remains to be seen whether NFT will have a lasting influence, he added.

The editor of the Oxford English Dictionary, meanwhile, recently picked vax as the word of the year, as interest in vaccinations has grown over the past 12 months.