Gen Z slang: 60 words and what they actually mean
Gen Z slang is the way people born roughly between 1997 and 2012 talk and text. A lot of it is short, a lot of it is typed rather than said, and a good chunk of it started somewhere else before it went everywhere.
Below are 60 Gen Z slang words, grouped by what they’re used for. Each one has a plain meaning and an example of how it actually sounds in a sentence, because a definition on its own rarely tells you how a word is used.
Saying you’re honest, or agreeing
These words do a simple job: they tell the other person you mean it, or that you’re in.
| Word | What it means | How it sounds |
|---|---|---|
| fr | for real | ”fr that was the best pizza I’ve had all year” |
| no cap | no lie, I’m serious | ”no cap, I finished the whole book in one night” |
| ngl | not gonna lie | ”ngl the ending made me cry a bit” |
| ong | I promise (“on God”) | “ong I didn’t touch your charger” |
| istg | I swear to God | ”istg if the bus is late again” |
| bet | okay, deal | ”meet at six?” “bet” |
| say less | you don’t need to explain, I’m in | ”free food after practice” “say less” |
| real | I agree, that’s true | ”mondays should be illegal” “real” |
| periodt | and that’s final | ”she’s the best in the class, periodt” |
| facts | that’s true | ”that teacher gives the hardest tests” “facts” |
When something is good
| Word | What it means | How it sounds |
|---|---|---|
| slay | did something really well | ”you slayed that presentation” |
| ate | did it perfectly | ”her outfit? ate” |
| fire | really good | ”this song is fire” |
| goated | the best, the greatest | ”he’s goated at chess” |
| W | a win | ”no homework this weekend is a huge W” |
| bussin | really tasty | ”the tacos were bussin” |
| hits different | feels better than usual | ”cold water hits different after a run” |
| iconic | memorable, legendary | ”that goal was iconic” |
| valid | fair, acceptable, good | ”leaving early because you’re tired is valid” |
| clutch | came through right when it mattered | ”that last-second save was clutch” |
When something is bad, boring or a mess
| Word | What it means | How it sounds |
|---|---|---|
| mid | average, nothing special | ”the sequel was mid” |
| L | a loss | ”missing the bus is an L” |
| cooked | in big trouble, or worn out | ”I didn’t study, I’m cooked” |
| cringe | embarrassing to watch | ”my old videos are so cringe” |
| basic | predictable, following the crowd | ”pumpkin everything in October is a bit basic” |
| dead | so funny it “killed” me | ”that meme? I’m dead” |
| sus | suspicious, something’s off | ”he said he’s not hungry but his plate is empty, sus” |
| red flag | a warning sign | ”never texting back is a red flag” |
| ick | a sudden turn-off | ”chewing loudly gives me the ick” |
| flop | a failure | ”the party was a flop” |
How someone feels
| Word | What it means | How it sounds |
|---|---|---|
| lowkey | kind of, a little, quietly | ”I’m lowkey nervous about tomorrow” |
| highkey | very, openly | ”I highkey want that jacket” |
| salty | annoyed or bitter | ”he’s still salty about losing” |
| pressed | bothered, upset | ”why are you so pressed about it?“ |
| delulu | believing something unrealistic, often as a joke | ”I’m delulu enough to think I’ll wake up early” |
| vibing | relaxed, enjoying the moment | ”just vibing with my music” |
| shook | shocked | ”I was shook when she won” |
| big mood | very relatable | ”wanting a nap at 2pm is a big mood” |
| down bad | really wanting something (often a crush) | “he’s down bad for her” |
| main character energy | acting like the star of the story | ”walking in the rain with headphones is main character energy” |
Talking about people
| Word | What it means | How it sounds |
|---|---|---|
| rizz | charm, especially when flirting | ”he has zero rizz” |
| bestie | best friend, or a friendly nickname | ”okay bestie, calm down” |
| npc | someone acting on autopilot | ”I’m such an npc before coffee” |
| stan | a big fan (or to be one) | “I stan this band” |
| simp | someone who does too much for a person they like | ”stop simping, he never texts back” |
| the GOAT | the greatest of all time | ”grandma’s cookies are the GOAT” |
| a menace | someone who causes (usually fun) chaos | ”my little brother is a menace” |
| unc | someone acting old | ”you went to bed at nine? okay unc” |
| pick me | someone trying hard to be chosen or noticed | ”she’s being a pick me again” |
| opp | an opponent, someone against you | ”the other team are the opps today” |
Online and text talk
| Word | What it means | How it sounds |
|---|---|---|
| pov | ”point of view”, the setup for a scene | ”pov: you forgot it’s picture day” |
| iykyk | if you know, you know | ”that one lunch table, iykyk” |
| rent free | stuck in your head | ”that song lives in my head rent free” |
| understood the assignment | did exactly what was needed, and then some | ”the costume understood the assignment” |
| side quest | a small detour from the plan | ”getting ice cream became a side quest” |
| touch grass | go outside, you’ve been online too long | ”you’ve played for nine hours, touch grass” |
| ratio | a reply that gets more likes than the post | ”his bad take got ratioed” |
| it’s giving | it looks like, it has the energy of | ”this outfit is giving movie star” |
| vibe check | checking the mood of a person or place | ”quick vibe check: is everyone okay?“ |
| chronically online | spends too much time on the internet | ”only someone chronically online would know that meme” |
Where Gen Z slang comes from
A lot of words people call “Gen Z slang” are much older. Bet, salty, lowkey and finna were in use long before Gen Z was born. Many of them come from African American English and Black internet culture, and some came through gaming (W, L, npc, clutch) and fan culture (stan). Gen Z didn’t invent most of them. It made them spread, fast, through short videos and group chats.
Gen Z or Gen Alpha?
The line is blurry. Gen Alpha (born from about 2010) uses most of the words above too, and has a newer layer of its own: six seven, skibidi, sigma, aura points. Those newer words also burn out much faster. We looked at the search numbers, and some of them lost over 90% of their searches in a year. That’s in our guide to Gen Alpha slang.
For the short ones people type (smh, istg, wdym), see texting acronyms.
Can you actually read it?
Knowing a list is one thing. Reading a whole sentence of it is another. Yapology hides a phrase written in slang, like “ngl this homework is lowkey mid”, and you guess it one letter at a time. When you solve it, it turns into plain English. There’s a new one every day.
Or try the Gen Z slang quiz: fifteen phrases, and the answers are one tap away.