You meet someone who vibes with you, an affection develops, you both confess your feelings and you start a healthy relationship. Simple right? Well, not really.
Let’s face it: modern-day dating is a difficult nut to crack, especially in today’s fast-paced world, where human minds and relationships have evolved to be extremely complex. While terms like ‘dating,’ ‘seeing,’ or ‘in a relationship’ are common to all, here are some new dating terms we should be acquainted with:
OPEN RELATIONSHIP
When two people are in a relationship, they are generally expected to be physically and romantically available to their committed partner. But in an open relationship, both partners are free to be romantically and sexually attracted to other people. While it may seem fun and exciting at first, it has a high potential for toxicity.
BREADCRUMBING
Have you ever been in a situation where a person suddenly flatters you with flirty texts and suddenly one day they stop texting? If yes, then you are probably experiencing what is known as breadcrumbing. In this situation, the other person keeps you hanging while being selectively available. They ensure that you do not forget them but also that you do not become attached to them. There is also a high chance that the same person may start texting you again and continue the same behavior.
SITUATIONSHIP
You may hear people saying, “We are seeing each other but aren’t dating.” This means they are in a situationship. To simply define it, a situationship is an association that is more than a casual encounter but less than a romantic relationship. Both partners may not be committed to each other, but what they have is undoubtedly more than friendship.
POCKETING
You are dating someone and while you know everything about that person, you still don’t know about his or her family and friends. Your partner may hesitate or give excuses to avoid introducing you to their close ones. This means that the person may want to keep the identity of their partner aside from their other relationships or they might not be confident about the relationship.
ORBITING
This orbiting isn’t about space or galaxies. Rather, it refers to a situation when a person may start following you, liking your stories and your social media posts, and even initiating a few online conversations. But such orbiting may only be limited to the online space, and the person may never take it outside the digital screen.
ZOMBIE-ING
The word zombie-ing is derived from the word ‘zombie’ which refers to someone who has died but has been supernaturally reanimated. In modern relationship terms, it means that after some initial conversation, a person may suddenly start ghosting you and disappear completely. After some time, the same person may return and begin acting with you as if nothing had happened. This may leave you confused and unsure about their real intention.
However, we need to consider the possibility that one might not be exactly situated in the aforementioned instances as many a time, things may overlap and one might find oneself experiencing a lot of things at the same time. But it’s always good to have an idea about dating terms.
So, the next time you get butterflies in your stomach, be aware of what things to expect in the future before fully committing to someone!