Modern slang words have always been something I have been slow to catch on to. New terms and sayings are spewed out in conversation and I constantly find myself puzzled as to what these terms mean. I will always ask my friends to define texting lingo and other words for me, and I will get responses with surprising looks of concern when I don’t know the meaning of such terms. It can be pretty embarrassing, because I feel as though I am a modern college student who should be up to speed on words and sayings that everyone else on campus seems to already know. Most of the time others just find it funny that I don’t know or that I didn’t just look up these terms myself. Yes, the internet is a thing and more often than not it is pretty up to date with these kinds of popular sayings. I should really take this into consideration next time I am unsure to spare me some confusion. I knew it was bad when my mom asked the meaning of something and I couldn’t answer!
Even when I don’t know what is going on with modern slang most of the time, I always end up researching lingo of the past. I find seventies slang to be specifically fascinating to read about, and I love throwing words from this earlier time period into conversations. I think I have been deciphering the language of the wrong decade! For the girl who is always last in the room to know what any knew modern lingo suggests, I decided to do some research. It is really cool to see how different past and present lingo is, but it is also interesting to see how similar the meanings are. Here is a list the modern slang of today as compared to the lingo of the seventies. Can you dig it?
1. Lit, Dank, Fetch
These words basically mean something is good, cool, great, or tremendous. To translate, they carry the same meaning as seventies terms such as “neato,” “groovy,” or “far out.”
2. Cray
Cray is short for crazy. Believe me, I am cultured enough to know this! It simply meant “crazy,” “radical,” or “outta sight” back in the day.
3. No chill
This pretty much means to just “chill out” and be rational. It also means someone is simply uncool. In the seventies, one may say “don’t have a cow man” or “that dude is having a cow.” There is really no need to get in a mood about an issue and this person just needs to relax. 4. Savage
A person was brutal, but awesome. This may be something they do or say that may be fearless and even risky. This carried the same meaning as “doggish.” It meant someone said a cold blooded, or a messed up diss. Or someone did something really cool and in response someone else said, “Oh, you dog!”
5. Turnt
Nowadays this means people are extremely intoxicated, but it can also mean being happy, excited, and really energetic. It can simply suggest people are having fun. This similarly means to “get bent.” Party goers would get “messed up” or “bugged out.”
6. Bye Felicia
It’s a dismissive saying used to get rid of someone who is saying stupid things and you don’t want them around or it can be used towards someone you don’t care about. A similar saying of the seventies directed towards someone that people disliked was “keep on steppin”. They wanted the person to keep moving and to leave them alone. Also, “latered” was used meaning to get rid of someone. For example, “He was a complete dork so I latered him.”7. Mobbing
Today if you are “mobbing,” then you are having a grand time with close friends. Back then, one may have been “swingin’.” This also means having a good time.
8. Bae
“Bae” is just a term of endearment, meaning “baby” and “before all else”. Saying things like “fox” or “foxy mama” prove similar. For a guy, “hunk” or “babe” was popular too. For both, saying “my girl,” “my boy,” or “my lover” was used too. 9. On Fleek
Usually referring to perfectly groomed eyebrows, “on fleek” means something is “on point” or that it looks good. Saying “stylin’” carried the same connotation in the past.
10. TBH
This acronym meaning “to be honest” is used when people are trying to be real. I always laugh when people say this because I assume they are liars every other time they say something without saying TBH first. In the seventies, to say “I have the lowdown” or “here is the lowdown” means someone has the truth and the real facts about themselves or about something else.
I hope these comparisons shed some light on the lingo of today and the slang of yesterday. For now, I’ll catch ya on the flip side!