What it doesn't mean
Not at Merriam-Webster, which picks from lookup data. Authentic is centuries old and is looked up heavily every year. What changed in 2023 was a steady rise in lookups.
They overlap almost completely in everyday use. An older distinction said authentic means the contents are true and genuine means it really comes from the named author, but the OED notes that this line isn't generally recognised now.
What it really means
Authentic was not a new word in 2023. It won because people were less and less sure what was real.
Merriam-Webster chooses its Word of the Year from lookup data, and authentic is always busy: people look it up in large numbers every year. In 2023 the number rose steadily, without any one big spike. On 27 November 2023 Merriam-Webster named it Word of the Year. It highlighted two senses: "not false or imitation", and "true to one's own personality, spirit, or character".
The reasons were all over the news. It was a big year for artificial intelligence. Deepfakes, fake images and video that look real, kept making headlines, and deepfake itself was on Merriam-Webster's list of the year's notable words. Celebrities talked about being authentic, and social media made a performance of it. Merriam-Webster's editor at large, Peter Sokolowski, called it "a kind of crisis of authenticity". He said that when we question authenticity, we value it even more. He framed the year as a series of questions about trust: whether a student wrote the essay, whether a politician really said the words.
Those two senses split the year neatly. One is about objects and information: is this real? The other is about people: is this really you? Both were under pressure at once.
The history fits. The word came into English in the mid-14th century, from Greek authentikos, "original, genuine". That goes back to authentēs, "one acting on one's own authority", built on autos, "self". At its root, being authentic means being the true source of something, which is exactly what AI-made content and deepfakes call into question.
Where it comes from
via Old French and Medieval Latin from Greek authentikos, 'original, genuine, principal'
Greek: 'one acting on one's own authority', from autos, 'self'
In English from the mid-14th century, first meaning 'authoritative, duly authorised', a sense now obsolete. The sense 'real, entitled to be accepted as fact' is recorded from the same period.
- Mid-14th century
Authentic enters English meaning authoritative, and also real or factual.
- 18th century
Writers try to separate authentic (true in content) from genuine (by the stated author). The OED later notes the distinction is not generally recognised.
- 2023
Lookups of 'authentic' on Merriam-Webster.com rise steadily all year, driven by stories about AI, deepfakes, celebrities and social media.
- 27 November 2023
Merriam-Webster names authentic its 2023 Word of the Year.
In real life
- The restaurant claims to serve authentic Neapolitan pizza, and to be fair the oven did come from Naples.
- The auction house had the letter examined by three experts before declaring it authentic.
- After years of performing confidence at work, she wanted a job where she could be a bit more authentic, tired days included.
Questions
Q01What does authentic mean?
Real and not fake: not false or an imitation. Said of a person, it means being true to your own personality, spirit or character. Those are the two senses Merriam-Webster highlighted when it named the word.
Q02Why was authentic Merriam-Webster's Word of the Year 2023?
Lookups were up substantially on its already high yearly level, driven by stories about AI, deepfakes, social media and celebrities. Merriam-Webster's editor at large Peter Sokolowski described 2023 as 'a kind of crisis of authenticity'.
Q03Is authentic the same as genuine?
Nearly always, in ordinary use. An 18th-century attempt to separate them (authentic = true in content, genuine = by the stated author) never really stuck.
Q04What other words did Merriam-Webster consider in 2023?
Its list of words that stood out included deepfake, rizz, coronation and dystopian.
Sources
- 'Authentic' named Merriam-Webster's 2023 word of the year. CBC News / The Associated Press (27 November 2023).
- Merriam-Webster's word of the year for 2023 is 'authentic'. CBS News (27 November 2023).
- Word of the Year 2023: authentic. Merriam-Webster.
- authentic (adj.): Online Etymology Dictionary.