What Gen Z slang are you serving based on your zodiac sign?
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Gen Z — the surly, quiet-quitting, thumbs up canceling youth born betwixt 1997 and 2012 — have been serving slang both profound and confounding.
The younger generation has taken to openly shaming their uninitiated elders for their vernacular shortcomings, likely leading to a 123% increase in Google searches for “Gen Z slang” and an 86% uptick in queries for “Gen Z words,” according to data from communication and growth firm Movchan Agency.
My colleague, reporter Brooke Kato, was kind enough to provide a dictionary of Gen Z lingo and a “how-to guide” to help aging millennials and maligned boomers get fluent in youth speak.
In the spirit of learning a new language, we’re matching each serving of slang to a corresponding star sign.
Read on to learn more.
Slaps
Leave it to a Mars-ruled sign to suggest violence as a synonym for goodness. Aries goes hard, loves hard and likes to leave a mark, making “slaps,” a term for anything notable, from a cookie to a dance sequence, a perfect slice of slang.
Emoji
For, Taurus, a sign that struggles to talk about their feelings, emojis are the preferred and perfect method of communication. Add to the mix that Taurus is all about minimal effort for maximum payoff and a passive-aggressive thumbs up, a suggestive eggplant, a proud manicure and an honest melting face can speak volumes in scant pixels.
Dupe
Represented by the celestial twins Castro and Pollux, Gemini is the sign of duality and the double and “dupe,” shorthand for “duplicate” is used to describe an affordable imitation of or close alternative to an article of clothing or cosmetic product.
Gemini also governs exchange and social media, apropos considering TikTok is the preferred arena for savvy Gen Z folk to share their affordable dupes and commerce hacks.
In a similar vein of slang, “it’s giving” meaning to emulate or evoke is right in line with this mutable, mirroring air sign.
Menty B
“Menty B” is zippy shorthand for mental breakdown and the moon-ruled Cancer, with an outer shell that hides a squishy center — the unrepentant emo kid of the zodiac — is the perfect personification. Putting to practice the idea of the sad clown, Cancer is also ranked as the funniest sign in the zodiac and it tracks that those born under the sign of the crab would use humor to normalize discussions of mental health.
Rizz
“Rizz” as you may have guessed is an abbreviation for “charisma,” the natural domain of Leo. Rizz is primarily used to describe a bachelor whose charm renders them irresistible to others. A pseudo synonym for BDE, rizz is apt slang for the lion pride who, regardless of their given looks, possess a certain je ne sais quois that lends itself to dating out of their league and getting further, in life and loins, than their contemporaries.
Runner up for Leo is gas/gas up as these big cats are the resident hype men of the zodiac, here to praise you for your sobriety, bangs, and/or any other accomplishment big or small.
Side eye
According to Brooke Kato at “The Post,” “side eye” is “a way to vocalize judgment, referring to the action of giving someone a critical side eye for something they said or a decision they made.”
Side eye is, consequently, the signature look of the ever evaluating Virgo.
The phrase may have been popularized by Gen Z but the move was made infamous by apex Virgo Sophia Loren, see above.
Kitten fishing
Ruled by aesthetic leaning Venus, Libra is a sign known to smooth the edges and fluff the facts in service of appeal and appeasement.
According to sex and relationships expert Georgia Grace, “[Kitten fishing] refers to tweaking or embellishing certain aspects of your life, appearance etc to make yourself more appealing on dating apps – different to catfishing which is pretending to be someone else entirely.”
Lying lite? Diet deception? Full blown Libra.
Sus
Sus” is shorthand for “suspicious,” the general vibe of Scorpio, the most maligned of water signs. Born with a borderline psychic sense of intuition, a deep fear of betrayal and an unyielding belief that feelings are facts and vibes are bond, scorpions evaluate everything and everyone through their signature, sinister lens of leeriness.
Gyatt/out of pocket
Pronounced “GEE-YAHT,” gyatt is an abbreviation of “goddamn,” typically used in response to seeing an attractive stranger, a baddie if you will. Evocative of the archer energy of having zero chill and no filter, the term was popularized by Sagittarius Twitch streamer, YouTube sensation and alleged riot king Kai Cenat who is known to let out a hearty “gyatt” when a hot girl appears on his stream.
Runner-up for Sag slang is “out of pocket” as getting loose, catching shade and getting wild are a few of their favorite things.
Cap/no cap
No shade to the sea goat but “cap” is another word for lie or exaggeration and “no cap” translates to “absolute truth” or “for real.”
According to “USA Today,” “As early as the 1900s, ‘to cap’ meant to brag, exaggerate or lie about something. Additionally, ‘no cap’ can be used to describe something that has no limit. In the ‘Green’s Dictionary of Slang’ ‘to cap’ meant ‘to surpass.’ Therefore, ‘cap’ could be defined as the ‘top’ or ‘upper limit.'”
The pinnacle being the only place an ever climbing, always striving Capricorn seeks to be.
The slang was immortalized by Young Thug & Future in 2017 with the release of “No Cap,” a track that sings to asset acquisition; fine cars, fancy clothes and getting a blow jammie at Coachella, all of which fall under and in line with the get rich, live well ethos of this cardinal earth sign.
Astrology 101: Your guide to the star
Slay
Usually applied to appraise appearance or accomplishment, “slay,” has its roots in the LGBTQ+ ballroom scene. Delivered unto the mainstream by way of Beyoncé’s “Formation,” the hit includes the iconic declaration “I didn’t come to play with you hoes, I came to slay b–ch” from the hallowed mouth of Aquarius regent, the Queen Diva herself, Big Freedia (you best beeleevah).
Delulu
Pisces is ruled by Neptune, planet of dreams, delusions, bathtubs, opiates, creativity and fantasy. In kind, and in adjective, “delulu,” an abbreviation of delusional is, according to Kato, “often used in a romantic context when the person reads into the actions of their crush a little too much or creates an irrational fantasy.”
Irrational fantasies? Delusional romanticism? Pure Pisces my babies.
Astrologer Reda Wigle researches and irreverently reports back on planetary configurations and their effect on each zodiac sign. Her horoscopes integrate history, poetry, pop culture and personal experience. She is also an accomplished writer who has profiled a variety of artists and performers, as well as extensively chronicled her experiences while traveling. Among the many intriguing topics she has tackled are cemetery etiquette, her love for dive bars, Cuban Airbnbs, a “girls guide” to strip clubs and the “weirdest” foods available abroad.
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