# What is the latest high school slang? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 18, 2013, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-latest-high-school-slang/653265 "2013-03-18T15:19:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![DiosaBellissima](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a8b319/32.png) [@DiosaBellissima](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DiosaBellissima)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2013, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-latest-high-school-slang/653265/21 "2013-03-19T02:06:28Z")
> [@nikonikosuru](#): > > A new one I learned today is rachet, used as a adjective. “She bein’ rachet.” I think it means acting like an idiot, I don’t know. I tried to look it up via urban dictionary but there doesn’t seem to be any agreement. Ratchet has been urban slang for a long, long time. Recently, my little white, upper middle class debate kids have started using it. . . totally improperly. For a woman to be ratchet, for instance, she needs think she’s hot shit. . . while really being a hot mess. You know what a hot mess is, right? Anyway, the kids are now using ratchet to mean stupid. Sort of in the way kids in the not so distant past would say ‘gay’ to mean ‘stupid.’ ie: “Ugh, that movie is so ratchet!” ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2013, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-latest-high-school-slang/653265/22 "2013-03-19T02:30:31Z")
Help a geezer out. “Swag”. I’m guessing it doesn’t mean free tchotchkes given away at industry specific conventions? ---
**Author:** ![DiosaBellissima](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a8b319/32.png) [@DiosaBellissima](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DiosaBellissima)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2013, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-latest-high-school-slang/653265/23 "2013-03-19T02:45:52Z")
Most people use “swag” as another way of saying cool. ie: Person 1: I just got an A on my paper! Person 2: Swag! Congrats! So, if you have any confusion about meaning 1, just think of it as a synonym for groovy. ‘Swag’ can also mean a cool person with style. A man may have ‘swag’ if he’s wearing a nice suit, smells good, and is well put together. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2013, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-latest-high-school-slang/653265/24 "2013-03-19T03:47:45Z")
I bought my grandson a new TV last year. His comment when he got it: “Baller!” I’m assuming that means “cool, daddio” in today speak. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2013, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-latest-high-school-slang/653265/25 "2013-03-19T03:55:36Z")
> [@Tollhouse](#): > > “my bad”= Im sorry… “i’m down for that”= sounds like a good idea… “low key” = casual, informal, easy…“ima” = I am, as in "Ima gonna call you later instead of Im going to call you later Are you, by any chance, reading words from the pull-out lyrics to **“The Chronic”** by **Dr. Dre** , circa 1994? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2013, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-latest-high-school-slang/653265/26 "2013-03-19T04:04:06Z")
> [@DiosaBellissima](#): > > …‘Swag’ can also mean a cool person with style. A man may have ‘swag’ if he’s wearing a nice suit, smells good, and is well put together. Kids that are full of themselves will call themselves “swag”. Ah, \*BUT _… the cool kids look down on the douchebags_ that act all “swag”. And so they laugh at them behind their backs and claim that SWAG = “Secretly We’re All Gay.” \*still the most-used slang label ever, according to my college kids ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2013, 5:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-latest-high-school-slang/653265/27 "2013-03-19T05:44:30Z")
swol = ripped = muscular/strong I learned that from my high school students. ---
**Author:** ![Blackberry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecd19e/32.png) [@Blackberry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blackberry)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2013, 6:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-latest-high-school-slang/653265/28 "2013-03-19T06:08:03Z")
Swag is just short for swagger. I’m sure you’ve heard of a cool person described as having swagger or something along those lines. And some of you do have a funny idea of what “latest” means. Not that I’m up on all of it, I just learned the word saditty the other day. Not sure how it flew under my radar for so long. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2013, 6:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-latest-high-school-slang/653265/29 "2013-03-19T06:44:28Z")
The slang at my High School, back in the early 80s, was very regional. I don’t think it was even used at the next school over (though that was about 50 miles away, as I lived out in the country). ---
**Author:** ![Nzinga\_Seated](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b5ac83/32.png) [@Nzinga\_Seated](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nzinga_Seated)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2013, 8:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-latest-high-school-slang/653265/30 "2013-03-19T08:03:40Z")
Posting from phone, so don’t can’t post as much as I want to, but I will point out that ratchet means tacky and ghetto. If I had to guess, I would bet it’s derived from “wretched”, probably from down south. I heard it from southern folks first. I love slang. It is very hard to get into it though without either constantly using it with others who use it or really loving hip hopor both. When it comes to street slang, I mean. Urban dictionary is way off lots of the time. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2013, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-latest-high-school-slang/653265/31 "2013-03-19T13:09:21Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > The slang at my High School, back in the early 80s, was very regional. I don’t think it was even used at the next school over (though that was about 50 miles away, as I lived out in the country). It would be interesting (and I’m sure someone has done it) to see if slang, like fashion, is more uniform in the internet age. ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2013, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-latest-high-school-slang/653265/32 "2013-03-19T13:16:33Z")
I’ve heard that nowadays a popular slang term for drugs is “Joss Ackland’s spunky backpack”. ---
**Author:** ![chargerrich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chargerrich/32/5399_2.png) [@chargerrich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chargerrich)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2013, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-latest-high-school-slang/653265/33 "2013-03-19T13:22:19Z")
Wow this thread is making some of you look way out of touch! I am 40 but since I play Warcraft I am completely up to date on today’s slang… try it! \>\< ---
**Author:** ![DiosaBellissima](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a8b319/32.png) [@DiosaBellissima](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DiosaBellissima)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2013, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-latest-high-school-slang/653265/34 "2013-03-19T16:38:42Z")
> [@Nzinga\_Seated](#): > > Posting from phone, so don’t can’t post as much as I want to, but I will point out that ratchet means tacky and ghetto. If I had to guess, I would bet it’s derived from “wretched”, probably from down south. I believe you are right with it being a derivative of wretched. And you are also right with the tacky and ghetto point. . .I just didn’t want to be the asshole white person saying it, so thank you for clarifying :p. ---
**Author:** ![gwendee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/35a633/32.png) [@gwendee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gwendee)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2013, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-latest-high-school-slang/653265/35 "2013-03-19T17:46:25Z")
> [@Toxgoddess](#): > > My 14-year-old daughter’s friend, on the phone with her mom: > > “Hashtag! Totes amazed!” > > Pause. “Yes, I’m speaking English”. > > 😛 > > (Totes = totally) My 15 year old son uses “totes.” He also responds to something he finds funny by saying “LOL” rather than just laughing. He pronounces it as one word, lohl, rather than spelling it out el oh el. If he’s telling me about something that was funny earlier he’ll say that he lolled. Just read back. JK is also in frequent use. ---
**Author:** ![PSXer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/48db29/32.png) [@PSXer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PSXer)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2013, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-latest-high-school-slang/653265/36 "2013-03-19T19:11:18Z")
za and da is how cool kids say pizza and soda. We are too busy for unnecessary syllables ---
**Author:** ![Ms.Pumpkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a87d85/32.png) [@Ms.Pumpkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ms.Pumpkin)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2013, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-latest-high-school-slang/653265/37 "2013-03-19T19:15:35Z")
A kid at work was raving about some new video game and called it “dank”. I guess that’s a good thing. ---
**Author:** ![ThisSpaceForRent](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thisspaceforrent/32/345_2.png) [@ThisSpaceForRent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThisSpaceForRent)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2013, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-latest-high-school-slang/653265/38 "2013-03-19T19:58:21Z")
Ham= hard ass motherfucker ---
**Author:** ![Mona\_Lisa\_Simpson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ce7236/32.png) [@Mona\_Lisa\_Simpson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mona_Lisa_Simpson)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2013, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-latest-high-school-slang/653265/39 "2013-03-19T20:29:19Z")
My favourite current slang (well, maybe a few years off current) but I still hear it is “Random”, used for something I would call bizarre or out-of-left field. But it is also used for uncategorized, like random people I don’t know. My student tenant would say things such as “Well I went to Jenny’s to watch a movie, there was her, her roommate,her roomate’s boyfriends and some Randoms. I thought it was gonna be a girl’s night but there were guys there and …long story short Random guy 3 and I ended up (some expression I don’t remember that meant making out and doing everything but sex)” She “cheated” on her long distance boyfriend with Random Guy three. I really had no opinion on the boyfriend thing, but the fact she made out with a guy she was still calling Random3 kind of made me wonder. Other uses of Random! are funnier, like when someone gets a super extra long french fry at McDonald’s, or two class mates meet up on a bus. Like OMG, so Random! ---
**Author:** ![xanthous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/53a042/32.png) [@xanthous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xanthous)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2013, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-latest-high-school-slang/653265/40 "2013-03-19T20:36:36Z")
> [@Drunky\_Smurf](#): > > IFUCKve been hearing buttfart and dickbutt alotFUCK > > I havenFUCKt figured out their true meanings yet so in the meantime donFUCKt be a dickbutt and get buttfartFUCK > (I like this new use of punctation.) I’m laughing like a hyena at this! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-latest-high-school-slang/653265.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-latest-high-school-slang/653265.md?page=3)