Have you ever encountered moments when you do not understand a specific word that your child is saying all the time? Children these days have their own set of urban vocabulary and lingos to communicate among each other. As parents, we need to educate ourselves to keep up with the trend and relate better with our children. Here are 20 lingos to turn you into a hippy parent!
1. Oof
What it means:
No, it is not an acronym for “Out Of Office”. Instead, it is commonly used to indicate a negative expression such as “ouch” or as a response when a person does not know how to react to a situation.
How to use it:
Nicole: “Hey Rica, the supermarket is having a sale for all the baby products!”
Felicia: “Oof. I just bought a pack of diapers and two cans of milk last week.”
How it came about:
The sound effect originated from a popular game, Roblox, in 2005. Most widely known as the “Roblox Death Sound”, it gained mass attention in 2016 again after it was used in memes.
2. Shook
What it means:
“Shook” is an expression to show that you are overwhelming surprised, shocked or in disbelief.
How to use it:
“My daughter has been enjoying eating carrots, unlike before. I’m shook”
How it came about:
Originally used to describe being afraid of someone in the 90s, this term made a come back in 2016 with a whole new meaning and it’s here to stay (at least for now).
3. Ghosting
What it means:
When someone disappears and avoids any form of communication. By communication, we mean ALL forms. From texts to phone calls and even social media. The slang is often
associated with dating but today, the term can also be used to describe someone’s desire to recklessly abandon responsibility from a person, project or even life.
How to use it:
Nicole: “My date has not replied me for more than a week.”
Felicia: “Oof. I think he Is he ghosting you.”
OR
Nicole: “I am so overwhelmed with university that I am considering booking plane tickets to fly and ghost from life.”
How it came about:
Ghosting first appeared online in 2006 and similarly, it was defined as the “act of disappearing without notice”. Ten years later, the slang gained popularity online and has been commonly used since then.
4. Uwu
What it means:
Uwu (pronounced as Ooh-Woo) is a connotation for an overwhelming feeling of happiness, euphoria or cuteness.
How to use it:
“Uwu, I can’t wait for my holiday to Korea next month.”
How it came about:
The three-letter word was initially an emoticon. The two U’s represents the eyes and the "w" represents a cute, smiling mouth (UwU). However most recently, there’s been an increasing trend of people using it as a word to express happiness.
https://www.pexels.com/photo/adorable-baby-boy-child-421884/
5. Gucci
What it means:
You might be thinking that Gucci is the name of a luxury Italian fashion brand. Well, you are not wrong. In today’s context, Gucci also means that something is good, great or even fashionable.
How to use it:
Nicole: “How are you doing Rica?”
Felicia: “Uwu, everything’s gucci!”
How it came about:
It was reckoned that the meaning derived from the luxury fashion brand itself, Gucci, as the famous Italian brand is closely associated with the rich and fashionable. In fact, Gucci has been used as an adjective to describe anything fashionable since the late 1990s. Harper’s Bazaar September 1999 issue featured Lenny Kravitz describing his stylish liquid-blue bedroom as “very Gucci.”
6. Extra
What it means:
If someone calls you extra is, it means that you are being over dramatic. Extra is used to
describe someone who is trying too hard or is exaggerating for unnecessary reason. Think Salt Bae meme or Regina George’s mum.
How to use it:
“Her contour and highlight is gucci but that makeup is just way too extra for high school.”
How it came about:
The Urban Dictionary was the first to define extra as a dramatic behaviour in 2003 and it has since remained popular among the millennials till today.
7. FOMO
What it means:
FOMO stands for “Fear Of Missing Out”. It is derived from social anxiety or a sense of insecurity for not being able to attend events or from the feeling that others are living better lives or having more fun. To overcome a serious case of FOMO, try out gratitude journaling to have a good sense and a constant reminder of all the positive things in your life.
How to use it:
Nicole: “Did you see the photos of our annual freshman orientation camp on Instagram?”
Felicia: “Oof, I couldn’t attend the camp so i’ve got serious FOMO.”
How it came about
Although there are many versions of where the acronym originated from, social media has accelerated its popularity. A double edged sword, social media has created a platform for online users to portray their best self and compare their lives with others. What seems to be ‘normal’ becomes skewed as users are comparing their best, ‘picture-perfect’ experiences and hence, people tend to feel FOMO.
8. Lit
What it means:
Forget “cool” or “awesome” because if something is freaking amazing or exciting, it’s lit.
How to use it:
Felicia: “So how was the party last night?”
Nicole: “It was lit! Uwu.”
How it came about:
While lit was a slang for “intoxicated”, Rap genre has heavily influenced the new meaning of lit and today, millennials use it to describe anything amazing or exciting.
9. Fam
What it means
Although short for family, fam does not literally refer to your family or relatives. Instead, it refers to the a person in your life whom you are particularly close with, especially ones that you trust enough to consider as family.
How to use it
“It’s lit, fam!”
How it came about
While the exact origin is unknown, it definitely is the new alternative to “squad”.
10. Yas
What it means:
An alternative for YES. Yas can be used when something is just way more exciting than to say a simple yes too.
How to use it:
Nicole: “Did you manage to get the BTO?”
Felicia: “YAAAS!!! I was shook!”
How it came about:
It was a form of encouragement for support and inclusion, whenever drag queens performed. Yas then started trending after a video of a Lady Gaga fan shouting “Yaaas Gaga, you look so beautiful” went viral.
11. Finna
What it means:
A short form for “I am fixing to” or “I am going to” hence, it replaces the slang “gonna”.
How to use it:
“I’m finna start on my diet tomorrow”
How it came about:
Way before the internet, “I am fixing to” was commonly spoken in the 1950s. Over 50 years later, it made a comeback in the 21st century as “Finna”. Different word but the same meaning.
12. Adulting
What it means:
A very popular word among millenials online and offline, adulting is the transition to adulthood where one is expected to be responsible and accountable.
How to use it:
“First day of intern was scary but gucci. I feel like i’m adulting.”
How it came about:
Although the origins are not known of when or how it started, the slang is widely used by millenials and is often injected with a sense of humour. It refers to any action that resembles what an adult would do. From getting your first job to doing your taxes and even buying your first home.
13. Flex
What it means
In simple terms, flex means humble bragging. It is often used with the phrase “weird flex but ok” as well, which is a sarcastic respose to someone who is boasting about something baffling.
How to use it
Nicole : “I mean, I'm not flexing but I eat a whole burger in one bite.”
Felicia: “Weird flex but, Ok.”
How it came about
The slang is widely used in rap and hip hop but like most slangs, it became popular among the millennials through Twitter.
14. Mood
What it means:
Similar but more versatile than “same”, mood implies that something relatable or sums up your life. Often, if something is a social post is relatable, the slang is used as “Big Mood”.
How to use it:
Nicole: “Have you seen her post on instagram?”
Felicia: “Big Mood.”
How it came about:
A contemporary twist to the slang “I’m feeling it”, people started to use “Big Mood” to indicate a stronger emotion. It started trending in twitter after a GIF of a smirking cheerleader was captioned as “Big Mood”
15. GOAT
What it means:
An acronym for Greatest Of All Time, it is frequently used by sports fans to describe admiration for sports star players or celebrities.
How to use it:
“LeBron James is G.O.A.T of all basketball players. 🐐”
How it came about:
It all started with Muhammad Ali, a professional boxer who is nicknamed as “The Greatest” or G.O.A.T. Today it is commonly used to express admiration for anything in social media.
16. GG
What it means:
Going? Gotta Go? Get Going? Well, in today’s generation, GG stands for Good Game instead. It is used to describe circumstances that unfavourably happened.
How to use it:
Nicole: “When is the report due?”
Felicia: “In 15 mins time. Have you submitted it?”
Nicole: “ GG I haven’t started.”
How it came about:
Although commonly used as a polite remark after an online game, in Singapore, it is used to express negative situations
17. Low Key
What it means:
Similar to a secret or a guilty pleasure, when people use low key in a sentence, it means that they want to keep it hush as they are talking about something that they do not want people to really know about.
How to use it:
“I am lowkey addicted to Salted Egg everything. Oof.”
How it came about:
Lowkey has replaced the word down low. But regardless of how it started it, the slang is
commonly used in the hip hop world and Drake, celebrity rapper, has widely used the term in both his songs and tweets.
18. Shade
What it means
Shade is an expression to throw a subtle disrespect to someone.
How to use it:
“Her make up is so thick, shade”
How it came about:
The term throwing shade was originally used by Latino gay communities and it meant that you have said something shady to someone.
19. Tea
Definition:
Tea is a noun that describes gossip or juicy information. It is usually used in the phrase “Spill the tea”, which means to share the news.
How to use it:
Nicole: “Did you know that Monica is having twins again?”
Felicia: “I’m shook! Spill the tea!”
How it came about:
The slang evolved from the the tradition in southern USA where ladies gather for tea and gossip.
20. Upz
What it means:
Upz is used specifically by Singaporean millennials to describe someone popular or to praise someone who is doing well.
How to use it:
Nicole: “I lowkey got selected to represent Singapore for the swimming Olympics!”
Felicia: “Woah you’re so upz!”
How it came about:
Derived from the word popular, it is commonly used among the young adults.
How many did you know? :)