An acronym that perfectly encapsulates the financial frustrations of the professional class has been named one of Collins Dictionary’s words of 2025. “Henry,” which stands for “high earner, not rich yet,” has become a mainstream term, reflecting a widespread feeling of economic stagnation even among high-income individuals.
The rise of “Henry,” as tracked by the 24-billion-word Collins Corpus, points to a key economic story of our time. It describes a person who earns a high salary but, after taxes, high housing costs, student debt, and childcare, has little left over to build substantial wealth. The term captures the gap between a high income and true financial security.
This potent economic term was one of several standout words on the 2025 list. The overall Word of the Year was “vibe coding,” a term for AI-assisted programming. This selection highlights the other dominant story of the year: the explosion of artificial intelligence and its integration into our work and creative lives.
The list also pointed to the people at the top of this new economy with “broligarchy,” a nickname for the “tech bro” elite. This contrasts sharply with the “Henrys” who, despite their high earnings, feel stuck in the middle.
Other notable words included “clanker” (an insult for AI), “biohacking” (health optimization), “aura farming” (curating a persona), “coolcation” (cold-climate travel), and “taskmasking” (faking productivity), all painting a picture of a society adapting to new economic and technological pressures.