The word of the year 2025 in Ukraine was the word "negotiations". It was the word that aroused the greatest interest among citizens and most often appeared in search queries and language observations. This was announced by the compilers of the dictionary of modern Ukrainian language and slang "Myslovo", which annually identifies key words and expressions that reflect the mood of society.
The word "negotiations" was also used alongside the word "negotiations", but much less frequently. The biggest surge in interest in this term was recorded in May 2025, when the first direct negotiations between Kyiv and Moscow took place.
Experts note that the informational impetus for this was the statement of US President Donald Trump, who promised to end the war in Ukraine within 24 hours. It was against the backdrop of these statements and diplomatic contacts that the word "negotiations" became dominant in the public space.
In addition to the main word of the year, the Myslovo dictionary also highlighted a number of other concepts that shaped the language picture of 2025. Among them are "Midas" as the name of the anti-corruption operation of the NABU and SAPO, "cardboards" as a generalized designation of mass protests against anti-corruption institutions, "kill zone" as a front-line term for the affected area, as well as "infiltration" - a tactic of penetration by small infantry groups, which was actively used by Russian troops.
The list also includes the acronym NRK — ground-based robotic complexes used for the evacuation of the wounded and in combat operations, as well as the words "justice," "exhaustion," and "lie," which reflect the public demand for honesty, a just peace, and the realities of a war of attrition.
Separately, the compilers noted the meme phrase of boxer Oleksandr Usyk "don't push the horses", which at the same time became an occasion for linguistic discussions.
The anti-expression of 2025 was the phrase "I'll come for everyone," which was publicly voiced by Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko. Myslovo explained that this formulation caused a strong negative reaction, as it is associated with repressive practices and symbolizes a crisis of trust in the law enforcement system.
In parallel, Google Ukraine published a list of the most popular queries of Ukrainians in 2025. It included "lights outage schedule", "The Bachelor 2025", "Squid Game 2", "Labubu", "Usyk Dubois", "Wednesday Season 2", "Grove", "Gangsterland", "Eurovision 2025" and "NABU".
