Swag. Yolo. Fam. Squad. Lit.
These are just some of the many popular slang words that get tossed around in casual conversation. These words seem to pop up overnight, are used extensively on social media, and eventually seem to fizzle out of use.
“People both started and stopped using YOLO and Swag overnight,” said Fernand Qvyjt ’20. “One second they were used all the time, and then they weren’t.”
Slang words aren’t unique to our current generation. For centuries, slang terms have been used, some of which are words that we still recognize today. Words and phrases such as “chick-flick” and “freak out” originated in the ’90s. Other words, including those that have declined in use, have simply been recreated in new forms. For example, “lit” is practically the new equivalent of “groovy” from the ’60s.
As to why people use these words so extensively, different students had different opinions.
“I think people use them because there’s no better term flying around in our social sphere of influence,” Will Horta ’20 said. “If we could just start saying stuff like ‘excellent,’ ‘peculiar,’ ‘impressive,’ ‘band of brothers’ or ‘no one lives twice,’ everyone would be happier.”
Qvyit believes current slang is “easily recognized,” he said. “‘Llit’ has more emotional impact behind it than just saying ‘awesome’.”
Isaac Winters ’20 said that the slang words are “fun to use and throw around in moderation.”
Social media is also a big part of it. When celebrities and advertisers use these slang terms extensively in their posts and videos, people become more compelled to use them in their own social media interactions and daily life.
While these words might seem fairly harmless, using them extensively could be a problem.
“You wouldn’t want to use words like these in an interview or business setting,” Tom Pruter ’20 said. “They’re not professional.”
If you use these words too often in casual conversation, they might just slip out in a more formal setting, which could be bad, depending on the situation. However, as long as your vocabulary isn’t solely comprised of slang terms, you shouldn’t have a problem.
In the end, these popular slang terms aren’t going anywhere. They’re a part of our culture and arise throughout the ages. From the slang words of the 1900s all the way to our slang terms now, popular slang words are here to stay. Words such as “lit,” “on fleek,” and “YOLO” might decline in popularity, but the messages they express will always linger.
