22 Gen Z Sayings & Slang (with Meanings)

Published on 26 July 2024

Okay, so I missed the Gen Z category by 4 years. But I might as well have missed it by 40 years, because culturally, I feel like I’m 10 lightyears away!

With their 90s outfits and their way of speaking, I honestly feel like that old aunty, needlessly angry about things we don’t understand.

(I’m sure this is how our ancestors feel about the way us speak millennials, too!)

So, in an effort not to go grey(er) before my time, I’m investing in understanding wtf these youngins are sayings and sharing my findings with you!

I’m focusing on the tougher, more confusing Gen Z sayings and slang, so be prepared to scratch your head a little.

Table of Contents

22 Gen Z sayings and slang to improve your understanding but deteriorate your English

Wanna know what I think about Gen Z sayings and slang?

I think it may just be the death of the English language as we know it.

1. Cheugy

Perhaps appropriately, we start with cheugy. Something that is outdated and un-trendy. Like me. A millennial making a blog post about Gen Z sayings.

2. Guap

Big Sean tells me it means money. Lots and lots of money.

3. Brat/ Brat Summer

Came across this when Kamala Harris got called “brat” by a singer. It means something along the lines of embracing authenticity and confidence in oneself.

4. Let them Cook

To allow someone the opportunity to carry on with what they’re doing.

5. IYKYK

Short for “if you know, you know.” Commonly used in reference to an inside joke or something only a specific community might understand.

6. Drag

If you drag someone, you’re making fun of them. This can be equated to roasting someone.

7. Catch these Hands

Threatening to start a fight. “You gon’ catch these hands!”

8. Slaps

Something is excellent or amazing.

9. Periodt

Extra emphasis at the end of a sentence. Pronounced fabulously exactly as it is spelled.

10. Finesse

To trick or manipulate someone/ something in order to get what you want.

11. Simp

Someone who does way too much for the person they have a crush on/ are dating. (From sympathetic, I think?). Basically, a very nice person who probably gets hurt.

12. Cap

I get confused by this one a lot. Cap means to lie. So “no cap” it means you are being honest.

13. Finna

No idea how this started, but this phrase also confuses me. Finna means “I’m going to” or “I intend to”. Yeesh.

14. Stan

No, it’s not short for “Stanley” or standing by something. It’s actually a combination of “stalker” and “fan.” If you stan someone, it means you’re obsessed with something. (But not in a bad way?)

15. Snatched

If someone is looking snatched, they look really good, particularly their hair or outfit.

16. W or L

To most, they’re just letters in the alphabet, but to Gen Zers, W means “win” and L means “loss”. Example, “Take the W, bro.”

17. TFW

Stands for “that feeling when.” Like “TFW you get off work early on a Friday”. If you thought it was something along the lines of “The F*ck —” you wouldn’t be alone.

18. Snack

This unsuspecting word has been transformed from a little bite to eat to mean a sexy or attractive person. “He’s a snack!”

19. Camp

Something that is ironically trendy. One might consider the young folks who are wearing horrible 90s clothes to be of the camp aesthetic.

20. Bop

A really good song or album. I guess like how we used to say “That’s a jam!”, its now become “That’s a bop!”. I’m pretty sure this word is borrowed from the 50s.

21. Sending Me

When you find something particularly funny. Like, “That Reel is still sending me.”

22. Sus

Short for “suspicious,” sus it typically means something is not as expected, or shady.

Keep Going in the Comments!

I know I’ve missed out many slang terms and sayings and that’s probably because I’m too cheugy to even come across them!

Drop your favourite slang in the comments.

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