Do you know what they are on about?
Find out what you know and how students express their thoughts.
In a world that is dominated by memes on ever changing social media platforms your grasp of some basic slang phrases can make or break your reputation as a cool human.
Do you know what your Gen Z students are saying? Do you school them on the correct and most common usage of their expressions? Do you point out the faulty grammar in slang? Or do you just ignore slang?
Let’s have a look at some of the most common slang terms for 2020:
• To be extra
o to be unnecessarily dramatic and over the top.
o He flung himself to the floor after hearing the news. He’s so extra.
• Periodt
o a word used at the end of a sentence, meant to add emphasis to a point that has been made. Often regarded as a more extreme/ intense version of period. It is also often preceded by the words and that's on to add further emphasis.
o This is the worst movie of all time, and that's on periodt.
• Fit
o in British English; attractive. American English; shortened version of outfit.
o British: He’s so fit. American: My mom’s fit is bold.
• Fire
o used to reference something cool or amazing.
o This list is fire, share it with your colleagues.
• Cap/ no cap
o cap is to lie; no cap is telling the truth.
o All you do is cap, there is nothing real about you.
• Shade
o can be used as itself to refer to a situation where someone illustrated sneaky actions toward someone or something. On the other end, the person who has done the sneaky action has participated in the verb form of shade, which is to throw shade.
o You are throwing shade like it’s no one’s business.
• Flex
o as a verb: to knowingly flaunt and show off. As a noun: the thing being shown off itself.
o Big flex, I just got a promotion.
• Lit
o an adjective to describe when something's amazing, exciting, high-energy, or otherwise great. It can alternatively mean intoxicated or drunk.
o The party last night was lit.
• Salty
o to be annoyed, upset, or bitter, usually about something minor.
o She looks salty, do you know what happened?
• Slay
o to do really well or succeed at something. The term first emerged during the 1970s and '80s in the midst of black drag and ballroom culture.
o Slay girl, slay.
• Stan
o Noun: overzealous and obsessive fan. Verb: to be that kind of fan. It originated from an Eminem song of the same name. Someone can be a stan of a celebrity, or used as a verb, they can stan them. The word can also be used to express tame support of a person or a cause.
o I stan pretty hard for Queen Elizabeth.
• Finsta
o Secondary, private, Instagram account, usually the posts are more personally authentic and only shared with close friends.
o I posted that meme on Finsta.
• Deadass
o For real, definitely, seriously, I agree.
o I won a car! Deadass?!
• Bet
o Term of agreement, affirmation or approval along the lines of cool or no doubt. Can also suggest doubt or disbelief, similar to yeah, sure.
o I’ll bring that new game tomorrow. Bet!
• Yeet
o Exclamation of excitement, approval, surprise, or all-around energy.
o That’s what I’m talking about it! Yeet Yeet!
• Sksksks
o Stand in for typing hahaha, or expressing awkwardness, could also be used instead of OMG.
o And she fell face first into the mud. sksksks
• Ok Boomer
o Catchphrase that gained popularity in 2019, used to dismiss or mock attitudes stereotypically attributed to the baby boomer generation.
o When I was in college my summer job paid for my tuition. Ok Boomer.
Not all of these words and expression use the correct grammar for the sentence, not even mentioning the correct spelling of the word. How do you deal with these in the classroom?
We think it is fun to use them, make sure you have the context right, and use a more general example of the same slang as well. Explain why some slang might be misunderstood and how they can better express themselves in and out of the classroom.
Slang is cool and fun when you are a teen, but bad (grammar) habits are hard to shake when one grows up. It’s best to try and educate students in a fun way and try to teach them so good language habits, that’s on periodt!