14 Nov 2012

Omnishambles is Oxford word of the year

6:38 am on 14 November 2012

The Oxford English Dictionary has announced its word of the year: omnishambles.

The word - meaning a situation which is shambolic from every possible angle - was coined in 2009 by the writers of The Thick of It, a BBC political satire.

The judges say it has crossed over into real life this year.

Other contenders for word or phrase of the year included mummy porn - a genre inspired by the 50 Shades series of books - and green-on-blue, a term used in Afghanistan to describe military attacks by forces previously regarded as neutral.