(Teen Lingo Alert) Do You Know What These Words Mean?

My teen: This is the best show I’ve watched, no cap!

My mind: What is ‘no cap’? Captions? Cap? Never mind, you should play it cool.

My mouth: Hahaha, it’s interesting that you liked it without the captions below.

My teen: *GIVES ME THE JUDGY LOOK OF DISBELIEF*  Oh God, no cap does not mean captions, Mom! You won’t understand. 

My mind: Ugh, I should have just played it cool. 

Is this all way too familiar for you? How many times have you wanted to ask your teen what something means, but then you remember that you want to be the ‘cool’ parent”? Worry no more! 

We have curated a list of popular lingo used by teens.

Now you can just ‘roll with it’! 

No Cap –It is slang for ‘no lies’ or ‘for real’. Cap means ‘lies’ or something you do not agree with. The cap emojis are often used to portray a contrast in opinion when texting. “I’m so tired I’m going to sleep till Monday. No cap”

G.O.A.T – This is an acronym for Greatest Of All Time. Originally used in a sporting context, GOAT is also used for someone who is exceptionally good at something. “Aditya is such a GOAT. Have you seen him play FIFA?” 

Bet – Bet is a response indicating an agreement. It is synonymous with ‘okay’ or ‘cool’. 

“Wanna grab some food?” “Bet.”

I’m dead/ ded – Used when something is really funny or embarrassing.

“OMG her dance has me ded”

Finsta/spam – This means a ‘fake Instagram’ account, which is essentially an account to post more casual content for close friends.

“Follow my finsta, guys!”

Hits different – When something is better than it normally is because of different circumstances.

“Road trips with food and music hit different”

IYKYK – This texting lingo is an acronym for ‘if you know you know’, implying that there’s an inside joke.

“Ananya likes chocolate, IYKYK”

OK, boomer – Used to call out an idea that is outdated or rigid to change. You don’t get us Gen Zs. This one is usually what parents tend to hear more than once

“Don’t wear shorts outside!” “Ok, boomer”

SMH – This frequently used texting lingo means ‘shaking my head’ which translates into ‘I don’t believe it’ or ‘that’s so dumb’.“

Did you watch the game last night? SMH it was a disaster” 

Snack – Used to describe an attractive person.

“He looks like a snack with that new haircut.”

Drip – This describes your sense of style.

“I like your drip.”

Sending me – Used when something is extremely funny.

“This movie is sending me!”

POS – This texting lingo is an acronym for ‘parents over shoulder’, which is used to warn the other person to not type or discuss anything explicit! 

Bounce – This word is used to say that ‘i’m leaving’.

“This movie is so boring, I’m bouncing”

Don’t trip/ tripping – Don’t trip means ‘don’t worry’ or ‘stress out’.

“The test is tomorrow, I’m tripping”

Sus – You probably guessed this one! This is a short form for ‘suspicious’.

“That person on the road looks kinda sus”

Woke – Being aware of and actively attentive to important facts and issues especially issues of racial and social justice.

“That guy is so woke.”

WYD – What you doing. This one we’re sure you get

Bruh – Another way of saying ‘bro’

OP – This is basically a gaming term that means overpowered/ awesome 

“This is the most OP hack in Minecraft”.

Bot – This is used to describe an amateur in gaming

“He’s such a bot, just see what he’s doing”.

You’re now ready to take on teen slang! Tell us how many of the above did you know already. If you have some more words you think we should add to our list talk to us in the comments below or write to us at [email protected]