HEY! student writer Bernadette Toh shares a list of popular Gen Z slang words and how to use them, because, as she notes, using them wrongly can be embarrassing
Slay
This word has less to do with violence, and more to do with the idea of doing a good job or being great at something. It’s saying “you’re killing it”, but figuratively. While it originated from the 1970s, the term is now a staple of the Gen Z dictionary.
Ate (and left no crumbs)
Of course, it’d be so boring to have only one way of saying “good job” in Gen Z lingo. Often seen on TikTok, “ate” is another catch-all term to express praise and admiration, with words such as “gobbled”, “served” and “delivered” carrying the same meaning.
ijbol
Move along, it’s time for a new way of saying you laughed really hard. Gen Zs now abbreviate the phrase “I just burst out laughing”, ever since LOL and LMAO have become uncool among the new generation. In fact, there’s a general consensus among the Gen Zs that using LOL and LMAO is a sign of passive aggression.
Understood the assignment
You get an A when you understand your prof’s assignment and do it perfectly. That’s basically what this phrase means. Popularised by American rapper Tay Money’s 2021 song The Assignment, the phrase is used to commend someone who did something perfectly, such as dressing well and appropriately at an event or having a good comeback to someone else’s remark.
Lowkey
“Lowkey” refers to being subtle or keeping something on the downlow. It’s used when you want to express your feelings about something, but don’t feel too strongly about it or don’t want to appear overly eager. For instance, you might tell a friend you’re lowkey excited about Greta Gerwig’s Barbie movie or Taylor Swift’s upcoming concerts (which is wrong, because tell me who isn’t super excited about these?).
Goat
You might wonder how this animal made its way into Gen Z’s dictionary. Despite being pronounced the same way, “goat” here doesn’t actually refer to the horned mammal, but is an abbreviation of “greatest of all time”. For example, you can say Lionel Messi is the “goat”, or Kylian Mbappé’s hat trick is “goated”.
L
That’s it. Just a singular letter “L”. Short for the word “loser” or “loss”, and pronounced like the letter in the alphabet, “L” is most commonly used as an insult. Gen Zs sometimes also refer to having a bad day or having something unfortunate happen to them as “taking an L”.
Mid
Not everything is fantastic and not everything is awful, so Gen Zs introduced a word to refer to that: “mid”. Short for the word “middle”, “mid” refers to something that is average or mediocre. It’s not the worst, but it’s not the best either, so you can use it when your hall room has no aircon but is free of uninvited wildlife – very mid indeed.
Vibe/Vibing
“Vibe” refers to the overall mood of a situation, while “vibing” means to have a positive feeling about something or someone. When you cannot put a name to the atmosphere you experience, you just call it “vibes”. Simple, but effective.
It’s giving…
The phrase is most often used as a way to compare someone or something to another person or thing. An example would be “Your outfit is giving Bella Hadid”, which means your outfit is something Bella Hadid would wear or that gives you the vibe of the supermodel. Used alone, it can also suggest that something is well received.
Red flag, green flag, beige flag
Speaking of dating, Gen Zs now have an entire modern dating lingo. Red flags refer to deal breakers in relationships and are warning signs people find in their partner. Green flags, on the other hand, are positive traits and healthy behaviours. And then we have the beige flags, middle ground between the previous two. Beige flags can be described as those little quirks in someone that seem a little off, but aren’t terrible enough to give you pause.
Gas
Nope, this is not about petrol, nor is it about the states of matter in science. “Gas” is used to describe something or someone that is appealing (“That prof – she’s gas!”), whereas “gassing” is the act of hyping someone up. And if someone says they are “gassed”, don’t panic! That just means they’re excited and overwhelmed, in a good way.
Ick
Used to describe something gross or unpleasant, the meaning of the word “ick” now ranges from a pet peeve to something utterly disgusting. Gen Zs also use the phrase “give me the ick” to talk about traits or habits that turn them off from someone.
Simp
To “simp” for someone means to like them or have a crush on them. Originally a short term for simpleton, the word often has the implication that the person who is “simping” is overly affectionate and is used in mockery. The word has since evolved to take on positive connotations, after numerous people on TikTok shared that they would love to have a “simp” for a partner.
Rizz
Taking “rizz” right out of “cha-rizz-ma”, the word means to have charisma. A person who has “rizz” is able to attract and charm someone, perhaps a romantic interest. So I guess chivalry is dead – there’s only “rizz” left.
The best part about this lingo is that many of the slang words can be conjugated and take a different form. For example, you can say “this is slayful” or “that is slaying” or “you slayed”. There are so many more terms in Gen Z lingo, ever changing with the trends. A slang commonly used among Gen Zs today may become obsolete tomorrow. Let’s just hope “slay” never goes out of style.
HEY! STUDENT WRITER
Bernadette loves storytelling, from books to films to documentaries. In her free time, she hunts for the best teh peng in town.
This story was published in the Jul-Aug 2023 issue of HEY!. To read it and other stories from this issue in print, click here.
