Wordle is 2022's most Googled term! Game beats 'election results,' Jeffrey Dahmer to win spot
'Wordle' is the most searched term in the United States in 2022. Pushing aside major news this year including the Ukraine War, inflation, the US abortion ruling, mid-term elections, death of Queen Elizabeth and Jeffrey Dahmer, it turns out most Americans were more into the viral word game.
The '2022 Year in Search - Themes and Insights' was released by Google on December 7, revealing the data on the most Googled terms in 2022
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Developed by Josh Wardle, this online word game has captured minds because it is suitable for players of all ages. In this addictive game, the player has six chances each day to guess a five-letter word. If you have no luck finding the words, because the game is quite tricky, people tend to Google the answers to crack the puzzle.
In the set of most frequently Googled terms, 'election results' of the midterm elections followed Wordle, as people in America wanted to find out about the outcome of the elections that will decide who will hold the US Senate and House of Representatives.
Betty White, Queen Elizabeth, and Bob Saget come under the top five searched words as these iconic figures' death were mourned by millions. With Will Smith's smacking Chris Rock on the Oscar stage and the Johnny Depp vs Amber Heard verdict surfacing as among the most dramatic news of the year, these topics become the most Googled for living people in 2022. according to the Daily Mail.
Though 'Encanto' was released in November 2021, the film is the most searched one in 2022 followed by 'Thor: Love and Thunder', 'Top Gun: Maverick' and 'The Batman.' The most searched show list was topped by 'Euphoria,' 'Stranger Things,' 'The Watcher,' and 'Inventing Anna' on Netflix just behind.
Under musicians and bands, Adam Levine and under the songs category, 'We don't talk about Bruno - Encanto' came up in the first position. Antonio Brown topped the athletes' list and the most searched definition was Rupee.
The list "reflects the arch of emotions experienced," and "amongst the extreme highs and lows, including national mourning and geo-political instability, it’s humbling to see that a game like Wordle supplied comfort.", said Matt Cooke, Head of Google News Lab, reports the Daily Mail.
According to CNN, Wordle was released in October 2021 and soon became popular, ruling the gaming industry. In February 2022, based on its wide acceptance and fast growth in the number of people playing the game, the New York Times (NYT) bought Wordle in February 2022 to upscale its gaming subscription business as well as to get new readers.
Later in July, the Times partnered with Hasbro (HAS) to convert Wordle into a board game so as to keep their audience engaged, making the game available both offline and online.