Word of the Year Ideas (+ free printable!)

Do you want to select a word of the year (or word of the month, week, or day), but aren’t quite sure of what to pick? This list of word of the year ideas can help!

Keep scrolling past the list of positive words to grab a free printable word of the year reflections journal page with a complete printout list of the word suggestions.

Text "how to pick a word of the year (with free printables!)" next to a preview of two printable pages. One is a journal page and the other is a list of positive word of the year ideas

Table of Contents

What is a word of the year?

A word of the year (or month, week, or day), is a word you pick to guide your year (or month, week, or day). People usually select a positive word or a word that reminds them of their intentions and desires.

A word of the year helps remind you of your goals and desires for the year. You can use it as a mantra, as part of your affirmations practice, or as inspiration for journaling. It can help guide your goals and intentions.

How to pick a word of the year

Your word of the year needs to feel “right,” which is why picking a word of the year can seem so daunting sometimes! Here are a few questions you can journal on as you select a word of the year:

What intention do am I setting for the new year?
Why do I want to manifest this intention this year?
What do I feel I need most this year?
How can I work together with Universe to achieve my intentions this year?
How will it feel to achieve my intentions and meet my goals?

These questions are included on a free printable journaling page available further down the page. Look for the row of purple arrows.

Answering these questions can help guide your selection. If, for example, what you desire most in the new year is a feeling of peace, select an appropriate guiding word. Words like peace, relax, allow, trust, and accept might be appropriate for you. Words like adventure, hustle, and excited might not be a good fit if you’re craving peace.

Keep your answers in mind as you read through the list of word of the year ideas below.

Here’s a quick look into my thought process when I selected my personal word of the year. For the year ahead, I have chosen “Aparigraha,” or non-attachment. I’m working on natural vision improvement (yes, that’s a thing), and know that non-attachment will help my progress.

Vision is the only sense we attempt to force on a regular basis instead of allowing the sensations to arrive at our body. Instead of trying to force and strive for more clear vision (which totally doesn’t work), I’m seeking to have fun and enjoy the experience while expressing gratitude for my eyes. The more I relax and let go of worry about the blur, the more clear my vision becomes. (Curious about natural vision improvement? Check out this post from the Weston A Price Foundation and, if you’e really curious, sign up for a free class with my vision instructor.)

Text "Need more self-care in your life? Get your free printable self-care journal! Click here to discover more."

How to use a word of the year

I personally like to write my word of the year at the start of my new planner to remind me of my positive intentions. Sometimes I also write it on a note on my fridge or at my desk. You might repeat it like a mantra or use it as your guide when making choices.

You can make a game out of looking for your word of the year as you move through each day. You might even be able to find pillows, posters, mugs, etc. that remind you of your word of the year!

An image of a coffee table in front of a sofa. The sofa has a throw pillow with "calm is a super power' on it. The table has a notebook and a tea tray with tea, towels, a candle, a crystal, and a small plant on it.

Word of the year list

As you go through this list, you will immediately find words that do not resonate with you. Cross them off, either mentally or physically on the free printable. Then, you can make a short list of 3-5 words (if you need to), before narrowing in on a single word of the year. You can always use your shortlisted words later as a word of the month, week, or day!

Make sure to keep scrolling down the page for your printable word of the year list PDF and journaling pages to help you uncover your word of the year.

Abundance
Accept
Accountability
Achieve
Active
Adaptable
Adventurous
Allow
Aparigraha
Appreciate
Assertive
Attentive
Authentic
Awaken
Balance

Be
Beautiful
Believe
Belong
Bliss
Bloom
Bold
Boundaries
Brave
Breathe
Bright
Brilliant
Build

Calm
Capable
Carefree
Caring
Celebrated
Challenge
Change
Cheerful
Cherished
Compassionate
Confident
Consistency
Cooperative

Courageous
Create
Decisive
Declutter
Dedicated
Dependable
Determined
Devoted
Disciplined
Dream

Easy-Going
Elevate
Embrace
Empathic
Empowered
Encourage
Energetic
Enjoy
Enlightened
Excited
Experience
Explore
Faith
Family
Fearless
Fitness
Flourish
Focus
Forgive
Forward
Freedom
Generous
Gentle

Give
Goals
Grateful
Grow
Happy
Harmony
Healthy
Honest
Hope
Humble
Humorous
Hustle
Imagine
Improve
Independent
Inspire
Integrity
Intentional Intuitive
Inventive
Journey

Joy
Just
Justified
Kind
Laugh
Learn
Lively
Loved
Loving
Loyal
Lucky
Magical
Mindful
Miracles
Motivated
New
Nurture

Open-Minded
Optimistic
Organized
Overcome
Passion
Patient
Peaceful
Persistent
Positive

Powerful
Practical
Proactive
Prosperous
Protect
Purpose
Quick
Rational
Ready
Realistic
Receptive
Refresh
Relate
Relax
Reliable
Relieved
Renew
Resilient
Resourceful
Respected
Rest

Revive
Rise
Romantic
Sacred
Safe
Satisfied
Secure
Seek
Shine
Skilled
Smart
Sociable
Soulful
Strong
Successful
Support
Surrender
Teach

Thoughtful
Thriving
Transform
Transparent
Travel
Triumphant
Trust
Truth
Understanding
Unique
Unlimited

Unstoppable
Uplift
Valuable
Versatile
Vibrant
Victorious
Vision
Vulnerable
Warm
Wealthy
Welcoming
Wellness
Willing
Wisdom
Wise
Witty
Wonder
Worthy
Zestful
Zing

Word of the year free printable

Ready to get clarity and select a word of the year? Download your free printable word of the year reflection journal plus a page with all the word of the year ideas!

Two free printables to help you find your word of the year. The front page is a journaling reflections sheet and the page behind is a list of 50+ positive word of the year ideas

Like all free printable journals here on The Artisan Life, these are available for personal use. This includes use with your personal classroom or an activity you are personally organizing. You are not licensed to redistribute, or sell, the files or printouts to others. Please just refer your friends and coworkers to this page so they can download their own copy for free.

If you agree to this license, you may click below:

five purple arrows pointing down on a white background

Text "click here to download your printable"

I hope you enjoy the free word of the year printables and that they help you achieve clarity! If you enjoy journaling, make are to check out these additional journal and planner printables here on The Artisan Life:

Journal Prompts and Planner Printables

These journal prompts remove the fear of the blank page and allow you to start journaling today! Make sure to grab your free printable journal pages in each post.