English dictionary, thesaurus, translations & etymology

Slang Dictionary — Modern Slang, Decoded

What does that word actually mean? Our slang dictionary explains modern slang clearly — Gen Z, internet, British and street slang — with real definitions, examples and where each term came from.

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Gen Z Slangrizz, delulu, slay Internet Slangbrainrot, based, mid British Slangpeng, bare, peak AAVEbussin, finna, cap

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Latest slang terms

A clinical description of a patient whose consciousness and responsiveness are blunted, more depressed than lethargic but not fully comatose.

A placeable Dota ward that grants flying vision over a big radius for a few minutes. It doesn't reveal invis — it just lets you see what's happening so you don't get jumped.

Used to describe cruelty or callousness, and (as 'onye obi akpọ') to label a person as wicked or heartless.

A system of African-derived folk magic, spells and healing practised in Jamaica.

Oakland, CA. The nickname stuck thanks to Bay Area rap and the late-80s group Oaktown's 3.5.7, and it's been the city's hip-hop alias ever since — used by everyone from Too $hort to Keak da Sneak.

A stretch of Parkway Gardens on Chicago's South Side — one of the most documented blocks in rap history. Home turf for Lil Durk and the late King Von, who turned it into the backdrop for half a decade of drill music. The 'O' is for Odee.

Bedside shorthand for a patient who's deeply out of it — flat on their back, jaw slack, mouth hanging open in a perfect O. It's the look that tells the on-call team this one's circling the drain. Pair it with the Q-sign (tongue lolls out the side) and the prognosis gets worse. Dark humour, but every hospital in the English-speaking world uses it.

Any ungodly hour between midnight and dawn when you're being made to do something. Deliberately vague — could be 0300, could be 0445. The point is it's dark, you're tired, and someone with stripes wants you upright.

o sign to q sign

Shorthand for a deteriorating trajectory: a patient progressing from the O sign (mouth open) to the Q sign (tongue lolling) and onward to death.

A compliment on beauty or fine appearance, literally comparing someone to a perfectly ripened fruit.

The common initialism for New York Comic Con, the major East Coast pop-culture convention run by ReedPop.

To eat all of something, to devour it completely.

An irritating little person; a contemptible or worthless individual.

The strictest Rastafarian order, and the ceremonial drumming and gatherings ('binghi') associated with it; historically 'death to oppressors'.

The sound a cat makes in Japanese, adopted as a cute verbal tic — catgirl characters (and playful fans) tack 'nya' onto their sentences.

Literally 'my man/male,' used as a term of endearment for a boyfriend, or casually between close male friends the way 'my guy' works in English.

A straightforwardly descriptive nickname — 'nwanyi' (woman) plus 'ọcha' (white/light) — used in markets and streets to refer to a fair-skinned or white woman, often simply because it's a quick, obvious way to identify her, not necessarily as an insult.

A vivid, slightly dark way of describing a close friend — the kind of friend who'd stick with you even in death, or handle your affairs after you're gone.

Literally 'mother's child' (nwa + nne), meaning sibling — but used casually to mean a close friend or 'mate' you consider like family, regardless of blood relation.

A loaded, sulky 'never mind' that actually means you're upset and want them to ask what's wrong.

'Night Vision Goggles' — head-mounted image-intensifying optics that let personnel see in near-total darkness, central to modern night operations.

Po-boy shorthand. 'Dressed' = lettuce, tomato, pickle, mayo. 'Nuttinonit' = just the meat on the bread. One slurred word, said fast, the way you'd actually order it at Parkway or Domilise's.

A skill move in which a player pushes the ball between a defender's legs and runs around to retrieve it, one of the most humiliating ways to be beaten in a one-on-one.

To lose control and lash out, whether from stress, mental strain, or rage. Related to being called a J-cat.