KILLER CONTENT Glossary - Olivia Blacke

Thirsty, Salty, and a Whole Bunch of Other Words That Have Absolutely Nothing to Do with Food

Language is fluid.

Every generation adds to the collective lexicon, influenced by art, music, and pop culture. Even the way we communicate evolved from parchment to email to 280-character tweets. Whether you’re trying to decipher Elizabethan era correspondence or a millennial’s text messages, it can all look like Greek at first.

Meandering side note: Ironically, Greek had a huge influence on modern American English. As has Latin. French. Spanish. Multiple Native American tribal languages. Celtic. Dutch. Hebrew. Italian. Arabic. And probably dozens more I can’t think of off the top of my head.

A hundred years ago, if I said don’t @ me for surfing Twitter because I can’t even, I’d probably be tried (and convicted) as a witch possessed by the devil. Good thing those days are long gone, and along with our brave new world comes plenty of words and phrases that might not be familiar.

Below, for example, are a few examples of words used in KILLER CONTENT that might not be in everyone’s vocabulary. Yet.

So enjoy, and sláinte. Note – “Sláinte” isn’t one of those newfangled millennial words. Well, it’s millennial, but from about three millennium ago. It’s an old Irish word that makes a great toast, because it means anything from health and happiness to cheers. It’s also fun AF to say.

Adulting – The boring, difficult, and usually annoying act of being responsible. I really wanted to goof off today but adulting got in the way.
Amazeballs – Great. Outstanding. Excellent. Cool.
App – Short for “application”, an app is a program that runs on a smart phone or tablet.
Bae – Pronounced “bay.” Stands for “Before Anyone Else,” and usually means significant other/romantic partner.
Basic – Boring, unimaginative. Usually indicates someone (or something) trendy in a mildly insulting way. Pumpkin Spice Lattes are basic. And also delicious.
Bougie – Ritzy, high-end, upper class. Odessa’s aunt Melanie pays a small fortune for her bougie apartment in Williamsburg.
Bye Felicia – A usually sarcastic dismissal, an updated version of “Buh-bye.”
Can’t even – At your wit’s end, or alternatively overwhelmed by the cuteness of puppies. I mean, did you see that puggle? I can’t even.
Chuh – Yeah, sure. Duh. Uh-huh.
Content – Material found on the web. Can be video (YouTube, TikTok), images (Instagram), or written (Twitter, blogs).
DMs – Short for “Direct Messages”, a private chat function built into most social media platforms. Also called PMs for “Private Messages” depending on the app.
Don’t @ me – Used when someone expresses an (sometimes) unpopular opinion but doesn’t want anyone to argue with them. Pineapple does belong on pizza, don’t @ me.
Extra – Used as a noun, it means dramatic, over the top.
Feels – Emotions, often ironically. Those sappy Christmas coffee commercials get me in the feels every single time!
Frenemies – Friends in public, enemies in private.
Hashtag – Also known as the pound sign, “#” is used on social media sites to identify trends and topics. Common tags have made it into normal vocabulary (often ironically), such as “Hashtag blessed.” #KillerContentBook
Lit – Great. Outstanding. Excellent.
Lowkey – Sorta, kinda, maybe. I low key wonder if this glossary is totes necessary.
Mood – A single-word agreement of understanding. “I’d kill for a taco,” Odessa said. “Mood,” Izzy agreed.
Narp – Stands for “Not a real person.” I didn’t feel like adulting today, so I locked the door and narped around my apartment instead. It’s no coincidence that narping elicits the mental image of competitive napping – finally, a sport where I can excel!
Oof – An exclamation indicating someone is surprised or upset.
Salty – Bitter or upset.
Shipping – From “relationship”, it means hoping two people (real or fictional) get together. Often accompanied by cutsey combined names (like Izzy + Vincent = Vizzy). The word rose to popularity in fan fiction.
Stan – Combination of “Stalker” and “Fan” (or “Super” and “Fan” depending on who you ask), ie a hardcore fan that’s got one toe in creepy. A fan might wait in line for hours to meet their hero. A stan might wait all night outside their house.
Supsies – Essentially “What’s up?”
Sus – Suspect or suspicious. Can be something shady, or someone acting shady.
Tea – Depending on the context, it can mean “truth” or can mean “gossip.” Or both.
TED talk – An informative thread, especially sharing a nugget of knowledge. Origins in the educational TED talk lecture series. Did you like this appendix? Thanks for coming to my TED talk.
Thirsty – Looking to hook up, usually indicating desperation.
Totes – short for “totally.” Also, a kind of reusable bag that everyone should use to cut down on plastic bag waste from grocery shopping and also, as a bonus, makes carrying heavy groceries a lot easier. Just sayin’.
Trolls – Jerks that just want to get a reaction from others, especially jerks who harass others on the internet for no reason other than to make themselves feel bigger. See also people who give one stars with a salty review for no good reason.
V – A shortened form of “very”. Usually capitalized. Comes in V handy when you’re running out of characters.
Yolo – “You Only Live Once.” A reminder to seize the day. So go out there, follow your dreams, and never, ever let fear hold you back. Not ever.