Is teen slang all Greek to you? Here's help.

My teens say these words and usage of them is engaging in a "brain rot" conversation

Unable to decipher the utterances of your tween or teen? This post is for you.

Youth slang is nothing new for GenX. As a member of that generation, I can recall the glazed over looks from my parents when calling them “dude” and telling them not to “diss” something and to take a “chill pill".”

Arguably, the movies Valley Girl and Fast Times at Ridgemont High definitely had its impact on my generation’s slang.

Any respectable GenXer knew what was “gnarly,” “bodacious,” and if something was “hella” or “sweet.”

But GenZ’s slang is what one might call a totally different way of communicating, or “next level.” A lot of the terms GenZ (and some GenAlpha) use are based in memes. In fact, most tweens and teens verbal lives revolve around memes.

Moms with teen kids, especially teen boys, know the truth of this next statement. We saw this verbal evolution coming.

You started out as “ma-ma.” Over time you became mommy, then mom, and, for a painfully brief segment, you were called “bruh,” before going back to mom.

My own teens don’t use the slang terms discussed here. My eldest, who is 17, told me kids who speak this was are engaging in '“brain rot” conversation.

According to Know Your Meme, "Brain rot" or "brainrot" is an internet slang term used to describe jokes about an individual's mental decline from consuming mindless or low-quality content online.”

A few of the terms being used are are sometimes strung together or combined and some words or phrases are not that out there, such as “rizz” which is adapted from charisma, or GOAT, meaning Greatest Of All Time.

Having said that, parents out there may have experienced the surreal moment when their kid utters the phrase “skibidi toilet.” (Note to GenAlpha parents, there is an actual syndrome associated with this phrase.)

Skibidi toilet is a meme reference to a viral video about a toilets where a man’s head comes out of them singing. No, really. This is the content rotting your kid’s brain but they find it utterly hilarious.

The word “skibidi” has no real meaning; it’s a nothing word. But lately it can be used to say something is good or bad depending on the context it is used in.

After watching that, are you now totally horrified, Googling deprogrammers, and vowing to check your kid’s web history daily? Well, there’s more.

Be on the lookout for '“Ohio.” This one is confusing and the best analogy I can come up with here is it’s kind of like “Florida Man” with a James Bond villain flavor.

Know Your Meme explains it’s root is in “Ohio vs. The World,” which “refers to a series of memes which speculate on an unknown danger centered around the state of Ohio, and Ohio scheming to take over the world.”

Not all of the slang is awful.

Being a gamer, my personal favorite is NPC; non-player character. However, I also like “glow up,” which is a positive term for someone or something that has had a good transformation or makeover.

My personal favorite right now is “Sigma.” Yeah, that’s the 18th letter of the Greek alphabet. It’s also applied to males who are considered to be cool and are seen as strong and independent. It’s sort of also a slam on Alpha males as Sigma seems to be an upgrade.

Know Your Meme, defines sigma as “referring to a supposed classification for men who are successful and popular, but also silent and rebellious,” and are “considered "equal" to Alphas on the hierarchy but live outside of the hierarchy by choice.”

So, a Sigma is an Alpha but vastly more humble to the point of being admired.

Keanu. Is there nothing he can’t do?

More To The Story

I’ve only covered some of the bigger terms floating around today but I want to leave parents with some translation tools and resources.

Know Your Meme - Crucial as quite a lot of terms these days are given rise by memes.

Urban Dictionary - Useful for figuring out the origin of some terms, various iterations and usages.

Teen Slang (2024 Update) - This site has a very extensive list of terms and is updated fairly regularly.

2024 Teen Slang Meanings Every Parent Should Know (on Bark.com)

Are you laughing or crying at this point? Maybe both?
Well, here’s a laugh: