Doomer, Rizz, and Other Gen Z and Alpha Slang You May Need Help Deciphering
It’s been a few years since Lifehacker took a look at Gen Z slang —long enough that Gen Alpha has had time to develop and spread some buzzwords and jargon of their own. Below is a collection of slang, in alphabetical order, taken from both Gen Z and Gen A, in case someone younger than you says something you don’t understand. As with all slang, if you need an online list to find out what a word means, you’re too old to say it out loud.
Ate/eat : Particularly well done, especially in regards to the clothing. i.e.: “You ate this outfit.” See also: “service”
Aura : Someone who is mysterious and cool is said to “have an aura”.
Bed rot : staying in bed all day. You may know it as “messing around.” See also: “Hurkle-Hurkle”.
Bop : The girl who sleeps everywhere. Also: great song.
Brain Rot : Describing the excessive use of stupid slang. See also: “Skibidi”
Bubba Truck : A lifted or otherwise modified pickup truck.
Chad : Attractive man; that is, “alpha male”
Chat : A reference to streamers speaking loudly to their chat windows. Saying “chat” in real life is an ironic joke.
Coomer : A man who masturbates too often.
Corn : “Corn” means “porn” in the Algo language. Used in online spaces where the word may result in your account being flagged or suspended.
Colleague Core : A comprehensive description of unfunny or uninteresting things that will appeal to older adults.
Delulu : Delirious
Doomer : A person who is overly negative and/or cynical.
Drip : a fashionable or stylish look.
Edgar : A variation of the Caesar cut favored by Hispanic men. Also refers to the type of person who wears a haircut.
Fanum Tax : Stealing food between friends. Named after streamer Fanum, who was known for “taxing” his friends by snacking on their food or stealing their fries.
Fent-fold : a description of the hunched posture of people nodding while under the influence of hard drugs.
Gamer’s Dent: A temporary dent left in a person’s hair or skin after wearing headphones for too long.
Geeker : Someone who uses a lot of drugs.
Glaze : To praise someone excessively, often insincerely or in the hope of getting something in return.
Green fn : An interjection that can be used when someone does something cool or impressive. Often used ironically.
Gooning : prolonged masturbation without orgasm, performed with the goal of entering an altered state of consciousness.
Gyatt or Gyatt : Once an interjection used when seeing someone sexy, such as “damn”, “gyatt” has come to mean “attractive prey”.
Hurkle-durkle: Based on an archaic Scottish word, “hurkle-durkle” means “to lie in bed after it is time to get up.” See also: bed rot.
“It’s over”: The situation is hopeless. The opposite of “we’re back like that.” See also: “Goomer”.
Jelqing : Using stretchers or weights in an attempt to increase penis size.
Jeet : Child. Ironically used on the Internet
JOMO : A play on FOMO (fear of missing out). JOMO is an acronym that means “the joy of missing out.”
“Learn Chinese”: sports slang aimed at unlucky players. They are in danger of being sent to China to play, so they should “learn Chinese.”
Looksmaxxing : Maximizing your physical attractiveness through grooming, working out, and dressing stylishly. See also: “-maxxing”.
-maxxing : A suffix used with any word to indicate an attempt to improve. Seeing your friends could be called “friendmaxing”, working out could be called “gymmaxing”, jokes could be called “shootmaxing”, etc.
Mewing : A facial exercise designed to strengthen the jawline.
Mirror sex : Using a mirror to watch yourself having sex.
Could: Be more attractive than someone else, usually intentionally or aggressively. Example: “I was teasing this girl, but he came in and completely beat me up.”
Neurodivergent : Another way of saying neurodivergent.
Opp : Short for “opposition”. The one who wants to get you. Enemy.
Regarded : “Regarded” means “retarded” in algorithmic parlance.
Rizz : As a noun, “rizz” means charisma. The verb rizz or rizz up means to attract someone with your charisma.
Presentation : in a particularly stylish outfit. See also: “ate”.
Serve the cunt : act powerfully and unapologetically feminine; kill
“Skibidi Toilet” : The title of “Skibidi Toilet”, a popular series of YouTube videos, has no specific meaning in itself other than to poke fun at the abuse of slang itself. See “brain rot”.
Sigma : A “sigma male” is a lone wolf, strong and competent, unlike traditional alpha male stereotypes.
Sweat : A person who tries too hard, usually used in reference to video games. The adjective form is “sweaty.”
Soyjack : A cartoon depiction of an emasculated man with an open mouth and an excited expression. Based on the “soy boy”, or weak man.
Spoopy : Creepy
Offender : Stolen/untitled vehicle.
Tradwife: Believes in traditional gender roles in marriage.
Unc : Short for “uncle”, used to describe people who are slightly older. Example: “The Class of 2024 has unc status with the Class of 2028.”
Twelve : Police.
Gemini : Best friend.
“So we’re back” : the opposite of “it’s over.”
Yapping : Describes a presentation style often seen in online broadcasts: talking a lot and/or quickly without saying anything of value.
Zoomer Perm: Curly on top and short on the sides, this haircut is popular among young people.