Throughout history, teens have always developed their own slang to communicate with one another. While it’s very common, it can be disconcerting to parents who suddenly feel like they don’t know what their children are talking about. Trying to figure out what teens are saying is increasingly challenging, as the explosion of social media, memes, and online communication has increased the speed of these trends. Once you think you’ve mastered a few phrases, you’re probably already out of touch again. In addition, the slang among middle schoolers is often different than among high schoolers.
Your best bet if you are trying to understand your teen is to frequently look up words or acronyms. There are websites, such as Bark, that are always monitoring the latest slang trends among youth. If you want to know the most recent terms, we have a list below… a list that will likely become obsolete within a year!
- Basic – Refers to someone who is viewed as boring or a conforming person.
- Beige flag – Describes a quality or characteristic of a significant other that is weird or off-putting, but not enough to reject them. (As opposed to a “red flag” – a quality considered a deal-breaker in a romantic relationship.)
- Bussin – Means something is extremely good, amazing, or fantastic!
- Bruh – Means “bro” and can be used to address anybody. It can be used as a general greeting, a response to an obvious comment, or a sign of exasperation, disappointment or disbelief.
- Caught in 4k – Means someone was caught in the act of doing something wrong or foolish and there is undeniable evidence to prove it.
- Cheugy – Describes someone or something that is basic, out of date, or trying too hard.
- Mewing – Refers to the act of making your jawline more defined by putting your tongue to the roof of your mouth. Teens often do it when they don’t want to answer a question, like, “Can’t talk, mewing.”
- Mid – Describes something that is average and not particularly special. It can be used as an insult meaning “low quality,” but in general it means not awful, but not great.
- No cap – Means that someone is not lying.
- NPC – The acronym stands for “non-player character,” which in video game culture, is a figure not controlled by a player, such as a background character or one that is pre-programmed to behave or speak in a repetitive or specific way. Teens say it to offend a real person who they feel is boring and/or not the star of the show.
- Preppy – Refers to an aesthetic that involves bright-colored clothes and popular and expensive name brands, such as Lululemon.
- Rizz – Derived from “charisma.” Typically used to describe someone who has “game” when it comes to romantic pursuits.
- Simp – Derogatory term to describe someone who is overly submissive to another person (usually a crush or significant other), desperate for affection, or who shows excessive attention to another person in hopes of receiving affection or a sexual relationship.
- Sus – Short for suspicious and represents a distrust of something.
- Tea – Means gossip, story, or news. Spill the tea means share the latest gossip.
- Thirsty – Insult describing someone as desperate for attention.
- Vanilla Girl – Refers to an aesthetic that is a minimalist, all-neutral look associated with a comfy and luxurious lifestyle.
Final Thoughts…
Although it’s important that parents stay up to date on slang so that they know what their children are up to, most teens don’t like parents trying to use their slang. You shouldn’t try to use slang to talk to your children even if you have a firm understanding of how their slang is used. Teens would rather their parents be ‘basic’ than ‘thirsty.’