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Annual Respondents michigan A university survey of overused and misused words and phrases has revealed that “6-7” is “cooked” and should be stopped altogether heading into the new year.
These are the top 10 words on Lake Superior State University’s 50th annual “Banned Word List,” released Thursday. This tongue-in-cheek summary of overused slang started in 1976 as an idea for a New Year’s Eve party and has become affectionately known as “The Queen’s List of Misused, Overused and General Uselessness of the English Language”.
Approximately 1,400 submissions came from all 50 states and a number of countries outside the United States, including Uzbekistan, Brazil and JapanAccording to Lake Superior State.
Rounding out the top ten were “dignity,” “motivation,” “perfection,” “gifts/gifts,” “my flaws,” and “reaching out.” “My bad” and “reach out” also charted decades ago – in 1998 and 1994 respectively.
“This list definitely represents fashion and local trends among the younger generation,” said David Travis, president of Lake Superior State University. “Social media provides a greater opportunity for words to be misinterpreted or misused. We primarily use terms that are shared via text message, or through posts without body language or tone of voice context. These words can easily be misinterpreted.”
In 2025, few words confuse parents, teachers and others over the age of 40 more than “6-7.” Dictionary.com even chose it as its word of the year in 2025, while other dictionaries chose words like “slop” and “rage bait.”
But what does “6-7” actually mean? It breaks out throughout the summer, especially during Generation Zand was considered by many to be nonsensical—an inside joke driven by social media.
“Don’t worry, because we’re all still trying to figure out its exact meaning,” the dictionary’s editors wrote.
Each number can be said out loud “six, seven”. They can even be combined to form the number 67; in college basketball, when a team’s point total reaches this mark, some fans erupt.
“6-7” is at the top of the eviction list, making it a good companion. In 2019, the centuries-old Latin phrase “quid pro quo” was the most banned phrase. In 2017, “fake news” received the most votes.
Alana Bobbitt, a 19-year-old sophomore at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, is unapologetic about using “6-7.”
“I find joy in it,” Bobbitt said. “It’s kind of silly, even though I don’t understand what it means, but it’s fun to use.”
Jalen Brezzell said a small group of his friends use “6-7” and show up a few times a week. But he won’t say it.
“Never. I really don’t understand the joke,” said Breazeale, a 19-year-old sophomore at the University of Michigan-Dearborn. “I don’t see what’s so funny about that.”
But even as a joke, banning it might be a stretch, he said, adding that he did use other words and phrases on the list.
“I use the word ‘cooked’ all the time,” Breazeale said. “I just think it’s become popular on the internet in the past year. It’s saying, ‘Give it up, it’s over.'”
Some phrases really endure, Travis said.
“I don’t think they’re going to disappear like ‘eventually,'” he said. “I used ‘My Bad’ today. I feel comfortable using it. I started using it when I was younger. A lot of us older people still use it.”
Travis said that while some terms on the list “will be around forever,” others will be fleeting.
“I think ‘6-7’ will be gone next year,” he said.