What’s good Chat. Today we’re going to be analysing the way we use skibidi alpha words in conversations to assert our dominance in our alpha ways – in other words, linguistics! Linguistics centered around slang to be more specific for all you freaky warriors. 

“Honestly who made these words?” reports an anonymous grade 6 student, in response to our survey on teen slang. “They are very brainrotting and annoying.”

Yes, indeed.

This might seem like a hyperbole to you, but it is unironic how some members of our school communicate with each other. With the rise of social media apps such as TikTok and YouTube (with the addition of YouTube Shorts), a specific type of slang has arisen from these apps as well as popular Twitch streamers and a collection of viral internet clips. Dubbed brainrot by most of our youth, this term has become so popular that it was named Oxford Word of the Year for 2024. 

So, chat, let’s learn a thing or two about the language we speak in everyday life.

Understanding Linguistics

Before anything else, we need to understand how slang works, and how languages develop. Language is described by the Oxford English Dictionary as “the system of spoken or written communication used by a particular country, people, community.” If you break down community to a subgroup of, say, teenagers, you’re onto something called colloquial language, or informal communication that makes great use of slang.

Now, slang is defined by the Oxford Reference as “a type of language consisting of words and phrases that are regarded as very informal, are more common in speech than writing, and are typically restricted to a particular context or group of people.”

MYP/DP English Language & Literature teacher Tim Emmons describes language as developing out of “necessity.” He adds that “words/phrases will grow or shrink in popularity as people perceive them to be useful.” So, if words and phrases grow and shrink because people perceive them as relevant, how does slang develop? 

Apparently the word Pumpkin has been going around (???) and I have no idea of the context but I’m really intrigued.
—Sarah, grade 10

DP English Teacher Daniel Ogendo describes the creation of slang as a direct influence of ‘borrowing’. Borrowing, as defined by ThoughtCo, is when a language borrows a word or phrase from another language. Ogendo explains, “This means that words from other languages (for example LOL) are adopted by others and used universally. The internet accelerates slang creation.”

Due to the fact that more people worldwide have access to the Internet, borrowing has become more common. For example, a lot of slang that we use comes from the African American Vernacular English (AAVE) and Drag.

Queen, period(t), cap, finna, and all the likes are terminology from either AAVE or Drag. Yes, that’s right—the colloquial language you use every day may have originated within the African-American or Drag Queen community!

It’s speculated that the reason this terminology from originally marginalized groups becoming popular is that they are now more integrated into our society. While some parts of the world still may hold racist values or hold conservative values, it’s generally agreed (especially by Western countries!) that these values are not good and holding them makes you generally a bad person. Therefore, when these people post online and are not shunned or avoided, the terminology spreads. This doesn’t even apply just to AAVE and drag!

Language is Fluid and Dynamic

A popular word that began circulating the Internet between 2019-2020 was bomboclat. Bomboclat, however, does not come from AAVE or Drag, but instead Jamaican slang. Apparently, it gained popularity on Nigerian Twitter and from there made it’s place on TikTok and Instagram.

The problem with slang is that it never stays consistent. Due to the constant stimulation that our mind feeds on, short-content is constantly made for a wide audience and therefore the popularity of words grow in a short amount of time.

Over 150 Secondary students responded to a survey conducted by The Bite last fall. One option permitted within the survey was the option to write any slang words we might’ve missed – and there were several I hadn’t heard of before, including ‘balkan rage’ and ‘german stare’. Even now, after extensive research, I still don’t understand these references. Some sources say that it’s a joke on Balkan women expressing their anger and frustrations, others say it is a simple attempt to show adult behavior. 

Some slang can also take on the form of an inside joke, or information that others may not understand. In fandoms, which is described by the Oxford Languages as “the fans of a particular person, team, fictional series, etc. regarded collectively as a community or subculture”, people will often have their own jokes and slang based on an event that happened within the media.

Half of these words I use ironically, and half of them aren’t. At this point, I’m not sure which is which, and I’m sure a lot of people in school feel the same.
—Anonymous grade 10 student

Above all, the slang we actively use serves two specific purposes, at least in my opinion.

Firstly, it is used to express meanings or language that we don’t get from the normal English vernacular.

Yeah, you could technically say ‘I did horrible on that test, I’m definitely getting a 3.” But you could also say “I’m so cooked, I’m not getting anything higher than a 3”.

You could say, “I ate so much, I’m going to gain so much weight,” but you could also say, “Bro, I’m so big-backed.” One of them sounds objectively less formal than the other.

Which brings into my second purpose, which is that slang keep things humorous. In a world where we’re facing wars and political problems left and right, language holds power. Words like murked, skibidi, alpha, sigma, NPC, and all the likes have a funny connotation behind them because you know the origin. 

Understanding Current Slang 

Due to the rising popularity of words, slang in 2025 may be difficult to interpret and understand. Especially since a lot of these words rely on social cues, due to the fact that they’re homonyms. A homonym is a word that has the same spelling or pronunciation, but a different meaning and origin. This contrasts with homophones, a category for words that are pronounced the same but have different meanings and often different spellings.

In the survey, there were specific words that were incredibly popular among AISB students. To bring more insight on these words, and explain the origin, I’ll be highlighting the most popular words that were brought up:

Cooked

Cooked is by far the most popular word used in the school, with 74.2% of the respondents using it. Cooked likely comes from the phrase ‘cooked to a crisp’, meaning someone is burnt out. It also might come from the idea of farmers working hard hours and getting ‘burnt’ in the sun. When it comes to how it’s used within everyday life, it depends. It can mean something that’s impressive or good (“I think I cooked this”, “Chat did I cook?”) Cooked can mean you failed horribly, especially in the context of “Am I cooked chat?”

Freaky

This word comes from the Oxford Languages definition, simply meaning ‘very odd, strange, or eccentric.’ Depending on the context it can mean different things, though. Typically when you call someone ‘freaky’ you’re referring to them doing something out of the ordinary, sometimes with a romantic connotation behind it, sometimes not. 

Fire

As mentioned before, a lot of slang is taken from African American Vernacular English. Fire is a direct example of this! Fire is derived from 90s AAVE, meaning exciting and outstanding. In common slang, it’s used the same.

Tweaking

Likely derived from ‘tweak’, the word for both methamphetamine and methamphetamine addicts. It’s used to describe someone who is acting agitated and erratically in a way similar to drug addicts you may find on media. Someone who says they’re tweaking, or going to start tweaking are trying to say they’re going to start acting in an agitated manner.

The images above are an exaggerated example of brainrot used in media

Glazing

Glazing refers to complimenting someone repeatedly, often in a very high manner to the point it’s bordering (if not) boot-licking. The compliments are over the top. When you’re ‘glazing’ someone, you’re preaching them to the highest value in an obnoxious way. 

Cap / No Cap

Cap is another word coming from AAVE. It simply means that someone is lying. Origin might come from the fact that if you put a cap on something, you’re covering it. If someone is ‘capping’, they are deliberately lying to you. 

Non-Playable Character (NPC)

NPC stands for Non-Playable Character, which is a character in the game that is non-playable and therefore is just an automaton and can’t think for themselves. NPC is typically used to refer to someone who doesn’t do anything particularly special and lacks a deep personality or compelling interests. It is typically used as an insult.

Sigma

A sigma is a usually hypermasculine individual who strays from the pack and is, therefore, “cool” or at least slightly different but not innovative. Sigmas are often represented by characters in media, a popular one being the character Patrick Bateman from the film, American Psycho; though it is worth noting the filmmakers were making fun of these types of males to show how braindead and soulless these masculine corporate types truly are. (The film was directed by a woman, yo!)

Chat

Chat is a word that refers to an audience. This audience depends on the context, however. It is derived from Twitch streamers, who refer to their audience as ‘chat’. While talking to a group of people, the usage of chat can be used to indicate to the group that they need to do something. However, chat can also be referring to an audience that isn’t in the actual space—a fourth wall break, essentially.

Many of the terms and definitions for these slang words are hard to pin down, as many are used decontextualized from any form of meaning or sense-making.

Hence, brainrot.

I hope you have learned a thing or two about the language you use everyday. Add more in the comments below!