verb
rickroll
RIK-rohl
Rickroll (verb) means to trick someone into clicking a link that leads to the music video for Rick Astley's song "Never Gonna Give You Up" instead of the content they were expecting. Example: “I thought he'd sent me the match highlights, but I'd been rickrolled again.”
verb
1
internet slang To trick someone into clicking a link that leads to the music video for Rick Astley's song "Never Gonna Give You Up" instead of the content they were expecting.
"I thought he'd sent me the match highlights, but I'd been rickrolled again."
"Someone rickrolled the entire company Slack channel."
noun
1
An instance of this trick.
"The link turned out to be a rickroll."
How to use rickroll
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishTricking someone into watching an old Rick Astley video by disguising the link.
When to use it
Internet slang; widely understood but informal.
Easily confused with
Common pairings
get rickrolled
rickroll someone
a classic rickroll
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Etymology
A blend of the first name of the singer Rick Astley and roll, formed on the model of the earlier bait-and-switch link joke known as the duckroll.
Synonyms
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Frequently asked questions
What song is a rickroll?
"Never Gonna Give You Up", the 1987 single by the English singer Rick Astley. The joke is the mismatch between the promised link and that particular video.
Is rickrolling still a thing?
Yes, though it has long since stopped being surprising. It survives as an affectionate, almost ceremonial joke, and turns up in adverts, university lectures, sports broadcasts and even official government accounts.
How do you spell it — rickroll, Rickroll or Rick Roll?
All three appear. Lower-case "rickroll" as one word is the most common written form online, though the capitalised "Rickroll" is used when writers want to keep the link to Rick Astley's name visible.
What is the meaning of rickroll?
"rickroll" (verb) means to trick someone into clicking a link that leads to the music video for Rick Astley's song "Never Gonna Give You Up" instead of the content they were expecting.
