Global interest in the nuptials of Wills and Kate saw the phrase beat Hollywood hellraiser Charlie Sheen's self-descriptive 'winner' to the top spot in the annual survey. Other words and phrases to make it in to the top 10 included 'Arab Spring', 'X-Factor', 'Oprah'. 'Fukashima,' 9/11 and Obama-vision. However, the killing of Osama bin Laden did not make the final cut in the survey conducted by the Taxas-based Global Language Monitor.
Paul Payack, president and chief word analyst of the Global Language Monitor, said: "This apparently is shaping up to be the Year of Kate Middleton. "She has come to dominate the small screen through her engagement, her fashion choices and most of all her Royal Wedding.
"Aside from the princess, this is the first time that 'news' has dominated the Top TeleWords of any given year. "There are those who maintain that the pace of events is accelerating - and it does appear that social media is playing an ever-expanding role in that process."
Global Language Monitor used special 'narrative tracking technology' to come up with the results.
The awards are announced annually at the beginning of the autumn television season in the US, traditionally marked by the Emmy Awards. This is the eighth annual analysis by the Global Language Monitor.
The Top 10 'Telewords' of 2011:
1. Royal Wedding
2. Winner (Charlie Sheen)
3. Arab Spring
4. X-factor
5. Oprah
6. Fukashima
7. 9/11
8. Obama-vision
9. Chicago-style politics
10. Zombies