Mehrzweckeier, Macker and 6-7: The German Youth Word of the Year 2026

Every year, German publisher Langenscheidt unveils the contenders for the German Youth Word of the Year (Jugendwort des Jahres). The teens have abandoned “Mehrzweckeier” for “Macker” and “Süper”.

German Youth Word of the Year 2026

Nothing makes you feel old like not understanding anything coming out of teenagers’ mouths. Luckily, Langenscheidt’s Youth Word of the Year annually decodes young people speak for the over 25s. The German publisher has released its shortlist of the 10 contenders to be Youth Word of the Year 2026, suggested and voted on by teens themselves.

Unsurprisingly, the enigmatic “6-7”, said as “six seven”, is among the contenders. The term originated from the song Doot Doot 67, was propelled to fame by basketball memes on TikTok and is now an excellent tool to frustrate adults due to its meaninglessness.

Among the German language contenders are the all-time classic “digga” and “Du bist gut genug” (“You are good enough”). The latter refers to a song by German group KitschKrieg, which took the internet by storm and inspired teens across the world to replace the German lyrics with phonetically similar nonsense lyrics in their own language.

Three further German-language terms made the shortlist: Gute Käse, Macker and Schere. The first, literally “good cheese”, is simply a substitute for “very good” or “solid”. A “Macker” can be your boyfriend, your crush, or simply a guy. “Schere”, literally “scissors”, which was also a runner-up in 2024, originated in the gaming world to communicate an admission of guilt or a confession.

English-language terms which made it to the shortlist include “crashout” (to lose all hope or mentally check out), “peak” (simply the crème de la crème) and “ragebait” (intentionally provocative online content). One Turkish-language term has also made it into this year’s shortlist, “süper”, simply the Turkish word for “super”. 

Reddit campaign pushed “Mehrzweckeier” for top word

Langenscheidt’s shortlist is based on terms submitted by youngsters, who now have until August 28 to select their top three contenders, before the final Youth Word of the Year 2026 is announced on October 10. 

Despite being submitted multiple times and a Reddit campaign encouraging other youngsters to vote for it, “Mehrzweckeier” is noticeably absent from the shortlist. The term, literally “multipurpose eggs”, is a reference to the phrase “Merz leck Eier”, literally “Merz lick eggs”, but colloquially “Merz lick balls”. 

“Merz leck Eier” refers to a placard at a youth anti-conscription demonstration in early March. Police confiscated the placard from an 18-year-old, who was briefly arrested and investigated for “defamation and slander against public figures".

The slogan quickly went viral and can now be seen on stickers and t-shirts all over Germany, but “Mehrzweckeier” has not seen the same level of success, at least not as a contender for Youth Word of the Year 2026.