Gen-Z Slang Explained: 100 Terms and Acronyms You Need to Know

Have you ever found yourself in a conversation with a Gen-Z friend, coworker, or perhaps your child’s friend, feeling utterly confused? They toss out terms like “oomfs” or “sksksk,” and you nod along, pretending to understand, while inwardly panicking. Fear not though, this guide is here to help. 

Gen-Z slang is a rather interesting, evolving language, and once you grasp it, it’s fun to use. I’ve come up with a list of 100 slang terms and acronyms that will equip you to speak the “Gen-Z language”… confidently. We will also see how you can use these terms to talk like a Gen-Z.

Gen-Z Terms and Acronyms 

1. OOMFS – One Of My Followers/Friends. Example: “oomfs are hyping my fit check, ily.”
2. BFFR – Be F***ing For Real. Calls out unrealistic or wild takes. Example: “You think that song’s mid? bffr.”
3. GRWM – Get Ready With Me. Example: “grwm for the party, join my live.”
4. OOTD – Outfit Of The Day. Example: “My ootd is giving main character.”
5. SMN – So Much Nope. Strong rejection of something Example: “That somg? smn, I’m good.”
6. ILYSM – I Love You So Much. Example: “ilysm for the retweet, bestie.”
7. LFG – Let’s F***ing Go. Hyped up for something or excited or cheering someone. Example: “LFG the new video just dropped!!!”
8. TFYM/FYM – What the F*** Do You Mean? This is used for calling out confusion or disbelief. It can also be used when you’re mad at someone or something. Example: “tyfm it’s cancelled?”
9. HML – Hit My Line. Inviting a call or DM. Example: “Bored, HML.”
10. NFS – No Funny Sh*t. Serious tone or boundary-setting. Example: “NFS, stop spamming my DMs.”
11. POV – Point Of View. Framing a scenario or skit. Example: “POV: You’re lying.”
12. IRDK – I Really Don’t Know. Example: “Irdk what’s wrong with her.”
13. LMK – Let Me Know. Example: “Lmk when you’re ready”
14. TBQH/TBH – To Be Quite Honest/To Be Honest. Stronger honesty marker. Example: “This movie is overrated tbh.”
15. HBU – How (A)bout You? Example: “I’m good, hbu?”
16. NFR – Not For Real. Clarifying a joke. Example: “I’d ghost them, NFR.”
17. TBF – To Be Fair. Example: “They did their best tbf.”
18. WYLL – What You Look Like? Asking for a photo. Example: “New fit, wyll?”
19. TYSM – Thank You So Much. Example: “tysm for the flowers.”
20. WAG – Wild A** Guess. Random estimate. Example: “You told me she got 50 likes? WAG.”
21. FRFR – For Real, For Real. It’s used for emphasis on your statement. Example: “I love this phone frfr.”
22. KYS – Ki** Yourself. It is used between close friends and group chats to express disapproval or anger and it’s not meant to be taken literally.
23. Angy – Angry, but in a cute way. Example: “The cat is angy.”
24. Car – A cat. Example: “The car is angy.”
25. PFP – Profile Picture. Avatar or icon. Example: “New pfp, who dis?”
26. WBY – What (A)bout You? Same as HBU. Example: “I’m chilling, wby?”
27. IDGAF – I Don’t Give a F***. Used when you don’t care about something. Example: “She says she’s gonna dump me? Idgaf.”
28. FML – F*** My Life. Dramatic complaint. Example: “Spilled coffee on my shirt, FML.”
29. IMH – In My Head. Obsessive thought. Example: “This meme’s IMH all day.”
30. MBN – Must Be Nice. Envy or sarcasm. Example: “You’re on vacation? MBN.”
31. OFC – Of Course. Obvious agreement. Example: “Ofc, I’m coming.”
32. Bet – Indicates agreement or confirmation. Example: “Want to grab pizza?” “Bet.”
33. Cap – A lie. Example: “You licked your elbow? C’mon that’s cap.”
34. No Cap – The truth. It’s also used to emphasize that you’re saying the truth. Example: “I love this song, no cap.”
35. Extra – Over-the-top behavior. Example: “Why are you being so extra?”
36. Chat – Close friends. Example: “Chat, is this outfit good?”
37. Finna – Short for “fixing to/going to,” meaning about to. Example: “I’m finna leave.”
38. Fire – Outstanding or impressive. Example: “That song is fire.”
39. Ghost – To voluntarily ignore someone. Example: “She ghosted me after one text.”
40. Lowkey – Discreetly or secretly. Example: “I lowkey love that show.”
41. Salty – Bitter or upset. Example: “He’s salty about losing.”
42. Khia – Irrelevant thing or unsuccessful person. It’s the new word for “flop.” Example: “It’s time to dumb that khia boyfriend of yours.”
43. Rizz – Charisma or charm. Example: “His rizz got him her number.”
44. Ate – Dominated a task. Example: “She ate that performance.”
45. Sus – Suspicious or shady. Example: “Yea, that sounds sus.”
46. Mid – Average or unimpressive. Example: “The food was mid.”
47. Pookie – Affectionate nickname. Example: “My hubby is such a pookie.”
48. Simp – Overly devoted to someone/something. Example: “He’s simping for her hard.”
49. Sending Me – Hilariously funny. Example: “that dance of yours on tiktok is sending me lmao”
50. Delulu – Delusional. Example: “Thinking he’ll call? Delulu.”
51. It’s Giving – Resembling something. Example: “It’s giving rich auntie.”
52. AF – Intensifier (as f***). Example: “I’m tired af.”
53. IYKYK – Insider knowledge (if you know, you know). Example: “That party? iykyk.”
54. Yas – Enthusiastic yes. Example: “Yas queen.”
55. Oof – Discomfort or sympathy. Example: “Oof, that’s rough.”
56. Finsta – Private Instagram account. Example: “I vent on my finsta.”
57. I’m Dead – Laughing hard. Example: “That joke has me dead.”
58. IJBOL – I Just Burst Out Laughing. 
59. Moots – Mutual followers. Example: “I have the best moots.”
60. Periodt – Emphasizes finality. Example: “I’m right, periodt.”
61. Sksksk – Excited typing, like keyboard smashing. It can be a mix of any random letters, though. Example: “I got tickets, sksksk!”
62. BRB – Be right back. Example: “brb grabbing coffee.”
63. GTG – Got to go. Example: “gtg, talk later.”
64. IDC – I don’t care. Example: “idc what we eat.”
65. IDK – I don’t know. Example: “idk what that means”
66. IKR – I know, right? Example: “ikr, he’s so annoying”
67. IHYK – I hope you know. Example: “you’re beautiful, ihyk.”
68. IMO – In my opinion. Example: “That movie was awful imo.”
69. LMAO – Laughing my a** off. Example: “LMAO, you did what?”
70. NVM – Never mind. Example: “nvm, I figured it out.”
71. OMW – On my way. Example: “omw, be there in 10.”
72. RN – Right now. Example: “I’m so bored rn.”
73. SMH – Shaking my head. Example: “you forgot again? smh”
74. Facts – Truth. Example: “You’re right, facts.”
75. TFW – That feeling when. Example: “TFW you have your cheat meal.”
76. But OK – An odd boast. Example: “You ate 10 tacos? Weird flex but OK.”
77. Womp Womp – Sarcastic sympathy. Example: “Missed the bus? Womp womp.”
78. AFAIK – As Far As I Know. Example: “AFAIK, they haven’t broken up yet.”
79. ATM – At The Moment. Example: “I’m busy atm, ttyl.”
80. TTYL – Talk To You Later. Example: “I’m busy atm, ttyl.”
81. HBD – Happy Birthday. Example: “Hbd, hope you eat cake all day”
82. ICYMI – In Case You Missed It. Example: “icymi new taylor album dropped.”
83. IDRC – I Don’t Really Care. Example: “idrc what he thinks tbh.”
84. MFW – My Face When Example: “mfw he said ‘you up?’”
85. NGL – Not Gonna Lie. Example: “You cooked ngl”
86. NP – No Problem. Example: “Thanks for helping, np.”
87. ISTG – I Swear To God. Example: “istg this guy is so annoying.”
88. DW – Don’t Worry Example: “You’re good, dw.”
89. FFS – For F***’s Sake. Example: “leave me alone ffs.”
90. IRL – In Real Life. Example: “Met Mr Twitter friend irl finally.”
91. JK – Just Kidding. Usually added at the end of a sentence using a slash (/) or brackets. Example: “Ugh I hate you (jk).”
92. /S – Usually added at the end of a sentence using a slash (/) or brackets to denote sarcasm. Example: “Wow, I just love getting ignored by everyone /s”
93. MB – My Bad. It’s used to admit a mistake. Example: “Forgot to reply, mb.”
94. IDEK – I Don’t Even Know. Example: “Idek what’s going on.”
95. GTFO – Get the F*** Off.
96. STFU – Shut the F*** Up
97. FW – F*** With. Meaning that you like something or you’re into it. Example: “bro i really fw this song”
98. OG – Original Gangster. It’s usually used to describe someone who’s the original, the first to do something, or just highly respected for their authenticity or legacy. Example: “She’s the OG of skincare influencers.”
99. Cooked – Totally exhausted, overwhelmed, or mentally checked out. It’s also often used to praise someone. Example: “After that exam, I’m cooked.” “Nah bruh, YOU will cook the exam.”
100. real – Used to strongly agree with something or to express that something is deeply relatable or authentic. It’s also used when you have a neutral response. Example: “She ate that performance” “real”.

How to Talk Like a Gen-Z?

Now that you’ve got the Gen-Z dictionary, let’s see how to use it and talk like a Gen-Z.

1. Use lowercase (even when you know better). Example: “it’s fine. i didn’t want this anyway”
2. Stretch your letters for max emotion. Elongating vowels or consonants could help make you sound like a Gen-Z. But don’t overdo it. Example: “heellloooooo” or “noooooo whyyyyyy”
3. Use full caps when you’re overexcited, shocked, or fake yelling in a funny way. Example: “STOPPP WHY IS THIS SO ACCURATE” Example: “I LITERALLY CAN’T EVEN”
4. Say it like you’re spiraling (but cute). Use ellipses, filler words, and half-formed thoughts. Example: “so like… idk what’s going on but like. yeah.”
5. Use keyboard smashes as an emotional outburst. Example: “ajsdklfjslkdfjs I’M CRYINGGG” (this means they’re laughing very hard).
6. Some emojis are now a universal language. Use the crying face (😭) to laugh or the skull (💀) when something is dead funny or weird. Example: “he said what he said ✨respectfully✨”; “this is the funniest sh*t ever 💀😭”
7. Speak in abbreviations like it’s second nature. Example: “fr lmk if u still down bc i’m not tryna overthink rn”

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