Trending Lingo of Gen Z Decoded

Trending Lingo of Gen Z Decoded

In a world dominated by technology, social media has had a very strong impact on Generation Z. The Gen Z or the post-millenial generation are redefining political movements, religion, popular culture and even the Covid-19 pandemic with their expressions which often seem confusing to older people. In this ever changing world, the language too has evolved and those not familiar with this now colloquial lingo may feel out of place. My City Links decodes the most-used Gen Z abbreviations and expressions that will help you overcome your FOMO.

A

AFC- Away From Computer

Indicates that you are not on the computer, without actually saying it

Adulting

The act of behaving maturely and responsibly

ASAP- As Soon As Possible

Indicates something at the earliest possible moment or promptly

B

BAE- Before Anyone Else

Prioritising someone over everyone else

BLM- Black Lives Matter

C

COVIDiot

A person who follows and spreads weird notions about the Covid-19 pandemic

D

DTR- Define The Relationship

A critical point in a relationship when one person wants clear answers from the other

Dapper

An adjective to describe a man for his neat and handsome appearance

E

Extra 

Doing more than what the situation calls for.

F

FamJam

A party or get-together of family and friends

FOMO- Fear Of Missing Out

Indicates the fear of not being a part of something interesting

G

Ghosting

To cut off all relations without any explanation

GOAT- Greatest Of All Times

Experiencing the absolute best of anything

H

Hypebeast

A person who cares too much about things that are popular rather than an individual

I

I LOVE YOU 3000!

A  line from Avengers:Endgame which is a child-genius response to Tony’s “I love you tons” comment (a ton is 2000 pounds)

J

JK- Just Kidding

Indicate that something you just said is a joke and is not meant to be taken seriously

K

Kewt

A slang of “cute”. It is used by people who like to spell things differently, in order to be playful

L

Lit

Describing something that is exciting or excellent

M

Maskhole

A slang used for a person who refuses to wear a facemask despite the pandemic

Maskne

Acne breakouts from wearing a face mask

N

Non-date-date

A couple hanging out together with unclear romantic feelings

New Normal

The new way of living and going about our lives, work and interactions with other people, post the coronavirus outbreak

O

On fleek

Perfect or extremely good, attractive or stylish

OTP- One True Pairing

Signifies a person’s favorite fictional romantic relationship

OOTD- Outfit Of The Day

Refers to what someone’s wearing on a particular day

P

Pawri

Netizens are doing ‘Pawri’ all over the Internet after a social media influencer from Pakistan, Dananeer Mobeen’s now-viral video showed her in front of a car, with her friends doing a mid-road pawri.

Q

Q4U- Question For You

A shortened version of the sentence “(I have a) Question For You”

R

Rashode mein kaun tha?

A scene from a Hindi tv serial popularised by Yashraj Mukhate by morphing and turning it into a hilarious mashup rap song

ROFL- Rolling On The Floor Laughing

A written abbreviation to show that something is very funny

S

Shweta mic on hai!

This trend started after a video of a girl named Shweta surfaced on the internet where she had forgotten to mute a Zoom call she was on, while attending a personal call on the side. She goes on to share secrets not realising that her mic is on while others try to stop her

Sorry Not Sorry

A sarcastic way of acknowledging that someone might not like whatever you’re saying or doing but you don’t really care

Slaying

Impressing someone so much that they lose control of their emotions

T

Tuadda Kutta

The Punjabi phrase used by Shahnaz Gill “Tuada Kutta Tommy Sada Kutta Kuttaa” is a term used to make a person realise that it holds its own interests and needs a notch higher than the rest

TMI- Too Much Information

A response to an inappropriate disclosure of personal information, or as a reaction to an overload of unwanted information

U

Unload

To pass on the responsibility to someone else

V

Vibin

Enjoying each other’s company and conversing easily

W

WFH- Work From Home

Describes work being done remotely, instead of office

Woke

Being aware of the truth behind things, especially alert to injustice in society

X

XOXO

A virtual symbol for hugs and kisses

Y

YOLO

The noble idea of living life to its fullest

Z

Zumped

Being dumped on a Zoom call

So next time you hear these expressions, we are sure you will not feel completely out of the loop on what the world is talking about.