India, Nov. 19 -- After Collins Dictionary selected 'vibe coding' as its word of the year and Dictionary.com chose '6-7,' Cambridge Dictionary has announced its own 2025 word of the year: 'parasocial.'The term parasocial describes a modern, one-sided relationship where someone feels close to a public figure or personality they've never actually met. This often happens through screens-TV, social media, YouTube, podcasts-where fans invest time, emotion, and attention, forming bonds that feel real despite being entirely one-sided.by sociologists Donald Horton and R Richard Wohl in 1956, it has surged back into relevance as digital life blurs the boundaries between audience and personality. This year, 'parasocial' went fully mainstream, hitting a popularity score of 100 on Google Trends. Interest spiked after YouTuber IShowSpeed publicly blocked an obsessive fan, calling him his "number one parasocial," pushing thousands to look up the term and sealing its place in the cultural conversation. New entrants to the Cambridge Dictionary, meanwhile, included 'skibidi', 'delulu' and 'tradwife'.HTC...