2022 ticked by with trends, memes and new slang rising all over social media throughout the year. But as trends pass by so quickly, we can only marvel at the few terms that withstood time and are still being used as the year comes to an end.
Now we know some of you have not been keeping tabs on these social terms, so how about a brief explanation to help you use a term or two in your next social-focused conversation?
Clock in as we take a look:
Quiet quitting
The big corporate no-no term. We have all had those moments in our work life where we made the conscious decision to not work further on a project, but what happens when we make that decision over and over (and over) again? Well, that is quiet quitting for you.
Quiet quitting is when employees feel that they are not being compensated for their work efforts so they make the decision to only do the bare minimum that is expected from them. Lack of compensation that leads to quiet quitting
is not only focused on financial incentives but rather:
- lack of work-life balance
- toxic work culture
- lack of engagement among employees, or
- bad management.
GOAT
If someone tells you that you are
the GOAT, then you have made it in life. GOAT — or rather, 'Greatest Of All Time' — is a new way to give someone a much-needed ego boost.
The
Cambridge Dictionary describes the abbreviation as a word "used to refer to or describe the person who has performed better than anyone else ever."
Now, if you use this new cool slang around the office, make sure you don't tell it to the oldest person in the office as sometimes — as we saw with
Meryl Streep in response to being called the GOAT — the abbreviation is interpreted as being old rather than being great.
Stan
When a stan stans, they do it to the max. Let us explain; a stan is an individual who idolises a famous person. But they aren't just a normal fan — they take their
obsession to a completely different level.
We've heard about ARMY and their love for BTS, Beyonce and her Beyhive and Gaga with her monsters, but sometimes even these famous personalities get groupies they can't handle.
The word stan can also be used in the following context, "We stan an independent Queen," or the more popular "I stan a sustainable brand". These phrases can express, support or encourage someone's actions.
Considering that there will always be fans and stans, we assume that this term won't die down quickly in the coming year.
Cheugy
The term cheugy — pronounced chew-gy — is a popular TikTok term, which
Taylor Lorenz from The New York Times says "can be used, broadly, to describe someone who is out of date or trying too hard."
Generally, cheugy is used in a negative context to describe someone's actions, not necessarily their personality traits. So, ditch the early 2000's slang and the ‘Live.Laugh.Love’ stickers to keep up with the times.
Bussin
Urban Dictionary describes 'bussin' as "[something] what you would say if something were really good".
Now think of that lovely dinner you had last night. Instead of saying "This is good!" around your younger friends, now you can say "This is bussin!"
It is a little cringe (we know), but thank goodness the younger generations cannot blame you for being cheugy if you are using their lingo against them.
Gaslighting
According to
Sarah DiGiulio from NBC News, "Psychologists use the term ‘gaslighting’ to refer to a specific type of manipulation where the manipulator is trying to get someone else (or a group of people) to question their own reality, memory or perceptions."
Although the term has been around for quite some time, it seems that 2022 was the year of exposing gaslighting on popular platforms such as TikTok and Instagram.
Influencers and TikTokers took to their platforms in 2022 to share experiences in which they were gaslighted by not only romantic partners but also:
- family members
- management at work
- friends, and
- the occasional law enforcement officer.
Cancel culture
Now, if you are not caught up on the term,
cancel culture is when a group of people on social media retract their support of an individual or group due to that individual's negative behaviour.
The most recent situation where cancel culture can be seen is with the mass population calling for
adidas to cut its ties with Kanye West. This was due to unsavoury remarks made by the pop star. So, cancel culture is a way for the masses to keep corporate brands in check with what or who they are associated with.
Viva the people!
Caught in 4k
Being caught out on a lie is
cringe, but being
caught out in 4k is even more
mortifying. The term caught in 4k refers to when a social media user is "incriminated with concrete digital evidence, typically on social media / film."
Caught in 4k took a techy turn when users on social started pointing out their favourite influencers and stars' controversial or deceptive behaviour on platforms, such as:
- Instagram
- BeReal
- TikTok, and
- Twitter.
Remember: Once it is on the Internet, there is very little that can be done to make it disappear.
Woke-ism
In the early 2000s being called 'woke' was a compliment of the highest standard, but now, in the 2020s, it has lost its cool and praised meaning.
Metro.com explains that 'woke has now become weaponised'.
The initial woke meaning was that someone was socially conscious of social issues; however, the word is now being used to argue against someone who is socially conscious by making them seem sensitive or unrelatable.
Situationship
Ever been in a situation where you have no idea how you ended up in it, but you are just going along? Well, my friends, welcome to the 'situationship'.
"A situationship is that space between a committed relationship and something more than a friendship," explains psychotherapist and author
Jonathan Alpert. So if you are not keen on this ship we suggest you hop off and find one that is a little more stable and in line with your wanted relationship status.
Now we know that 2022 was a woke year, but we can't help but feel that certain cheugy aspects made it feel like a situationship. However, let us not be gaslighted by the year that has passed and be caught in 4k with all the bussin terms we carry over to 2023. So, we hope that you enjoyed this article and that there is no cancellation of your favourite GOAT publication.
Which social terms do you think we will be seeing in the new year? Drop your favourite social terms in the comment section below.
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*Image courtesy of Canva