Latest news with #slang
Fast Company
a day ago
- Fast Company
Gen Alpha slang baffles parents—and AI
If a Gen Alpha tween said, 'Let him cook,' would you know what that meant? No? AI doesn't either. A research paper written by soon-to-be ninth grader Manisha Mehta was presented this week at the ACM Conference on Fairness, Accountability, and Transparency in Athens. The paper details how four leading AI models—GPT-4, Claude, Gemini, and Llama 3—all struggled to fully understand slang from Gen Alpha, defined as those born between 2010 and 2024. Mehta, along with 24 of her friends (ranging in age from 11 to 14), created a dataset of 100 Gen Alpha phrases. These included expressions that can mean totally different things depending on context—for example: 'Fr fr let him cook' (encouraging) and 'Let him cook lmaoo' (mocking). According to the researchers, the LLMs had trouble discerning the difference. In particular, AI struggled with identifying 'masked harassment,' which is concerning given the increasing reliance on AI-powered content moderation systems. 'The findings highlight an urgent need for improved AI safety systems to better protect young users, especially given Gen Alpha's tendency to avoid seeking help due to perceived adult incomprehension of their digital world,' the study reads. It wasn't just the AI models that performed poorly; parents didn't do much better. The parent group scored 68% in basic understanding of Gen Alpha slang, nearly identical to the top-performing LLM, Claude (68.1%). While the LLMs did slightly better at identifying content and safety risks in the language, only Gen Alpha members themselves scored highly in understanding the slang, its context, and potential risks. It's nothing new for young people to feel misunderstood by their parents, but now the gap is widening. Members of Gen Alpha, born post-iPhone and known as the iPad generation, have grown up online. Their native language, often sourced from online spaces (most notably gaming), evolves so quickly that what's popular today may disappear within a month.
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
American living in the UK says she was mortified after using a 'normal' US word that has a very different meaning in Britain
An American woman has revealed three of the 'spiciest' US-based slang words that would leave most Brits mortified. California-born Devin, has spent the last two years living in London, where she has picked up on subtle language differences between the US and the UK. In a video shared to TikTok, Devin, who uses the handle @devinguccii, admitted she ha 'learned the hard way' that certain words have vastly different meanings in the UK to back home in the States. Offering her advice to fellow Yanks, she began the video by announcing that there were three words in particular that had landed her in hot water in Britain. 'These are three American words I've discovered you should not be using in the UK, and what to use instead,' she said at the start of the clip. Introducing the first word, which she prefaced was the 'most PG' one was 'pants', typically referring to trousers in the States, but more commonly used to describe undergarments in a British context. 'In the US, it's a more general word for trousers, so it can be used in terms of tracksuit bottoms, jeans, slacks, khakis, anything that's a long version of a trouser,' she explained. 'But in the UK, it generally refers to men's boxers, so if you say 'Oh, I like your pants,' they'll take that as you can see my underwear, and you like my underwear'. Though, some in the comments disputed the claim that Brits don't refer to pants as trousers. 'Pants mean trousers in the north of the UK,' one wrote, while another pointed to a third meaning, when pants is used derogatorily. 'Pants can also mean something is rubbish. eg this film is pants,' the linguaphile wrote. Second on the list, and one which Devin said was 'a little spicier', was a phrase used by Americans to describe a bum bag - or as the they refer to it, a 'fanny pack'. 'In the UK the term is bum bang,' she retorted, explaining that 'fanny in the UK refers to a woman's genitalia'. 'Although, now they're more popular, you can usually get away with using the word fanny pack in the UK,' she added. Third and final on the list was one term that she discovered through 'trial and error' in the UK, and one which is perfectly normal when expressed in the States. 'Its the term that Americans use when you're holding two drinks at the bar or party or something and that is ... You're 'double fisting',' the TikToker explained sheepishly. British viewers were in stitches after hearing of Devin's dialectal blunders, with many expressing themselves in the comments 'Obviously it means something way dirtier in the UK and you should not use it, that's not the term. 'The term they do use is 'double parked',' she said, referring to the phrase commonly used to refer to an individual who has two drinks at the same time. 'Now of course, there's lots of other words that English and American people use differently but these are a little bit spicy that you could get yourself in a bit of trouble if you say them in the UK,' she concluded. British viewers were in stitches after hearing of Devin's dialectal blunders, with many expressing themselves in the comments. 'We say what we want in UK,' one joked. 'Definitely thought you were going to say the whole rubber/eraser thing! But yeah, double fisting doesn't sound great to a British ear,' said another 'Holding 2 drinks is Irish handcuffs,' a third said. Amused by what they'd discovered, one Brit wrote: 'I think it was a world record. How far I spat my coffee when you said double fisting.' 'May I thank you for causing me to spray a perfectly good mouthful of red wine across my keyboard and desk with your third one,' another joked. A fellow America sympathised with the linguistic faux pas, writing that she had made a similar mistake while travelling. 'My Europe hostel group have multiple chats called 'double fisters' now because they were so shocked by it but ended up using the phrase the whole rest of the trip because they loved it so much,' she said. Pointing out that pants had multiple meanings, another viewer wrote: 'Pants are underwear, not just boxers. Like when they say to girls, 'he just wants to get into your pants'.'
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Why Kids Are Calling Each Other 'Chat'
Slang has always evolved with the times. In the past, it grew out of vibrant communities, memorable pop culture moments, and a genuine need to fill gaps in language. But today's slang is increasingly shaped by the internet—not just spread through it. From livestreams to YouTube comments to Discord servers, much of the lingo kids use now is curated by the online spaces they spend time in. Such is the case with the latest word: "chat." "Chat" is a term of address that refers to an audience or group of people, similar to the Gen Z favorite "bruh" or the Millennial term of choice "dude." It's often used in the beginning of a sentence as a way to address the listener. Teens will say "Chat, what's up?" or "Chat, is this real?" The term originated from live streaming platforms such as Twitch, where "chat" refers to the running commentary or live responses from viewers where users have ongoing conversations with each other and with the creator of the livestream. Over time, streamers began speaking to the chat as if it were a person. Phrases like "Chat, did you see that?" or "Chat, chill!" became common among influencers and gamers with large followings. And the young viewers watching these interactions began picking up the same habits in real life. Now, instead of calling someone by their name, tweens and teens will jokingly say, "chat." The term has moved from being a literal reference to a livestream audience to a kind of ironic nickname for your friends—or anyone watching you in the moment. At face value, using "chat" in this way is mostly harmless. It's a funny way for kids to imitate their favorite streamers or poke fun at influencer speak. In many cases, it signals digital fluency more than anything dangerous. But the term's (and others like it) growing use among kids reflects how deeply content culture has seeped into kids' thinking. Does the adoption of online terms like "chat" point to a desire to be part of that world, to be like the influencer themselves? Some kids don't end with watching influencers, they act as if their lives are also being watched and narrated. It all ties into a bigger trend. Slang like "main character syndrome" and "aura farming" (which have also been popularized over the past year) reflect a culture of self-presentation, where tweens and teens shape their identities based on how they want to be seen, whether it's online or at school. Whether the use of "chat" signifies a more complicated relationship with social media depends on the child. Some kids genuinely use "chat" to parody streamer culture and joke about how ridiculous it sounds. Others may be mimicking it out of admiration. Either way, the growing use of phrases like "chat" points to how blurred the lines between reality and online performance have become. It's not a stretch to say that some tweens see themselves as mini influencers—with one survey discovering that 86% of young Americans aspire to become an influencer and another stating that "social media star" has climbed to the fourth most popular career choice among kids. Some kids have already begun creating their online persona, recording "get ready with me videos," narrating their days on Snapchat, or jokingly addressing "chat" as they walk through school. Whether they're doing it to be funny or to seek validation, the common thread is that they are constantly aware of being watched—or at least acting like they are. Read the original article on Parents
The Sun
18-06-2025
- Business
- The Sun
Top 50 slang words for money revealed including ‘shekels' and ‘spondulicks'
BOOMERS call it "cash", while Gen Z prefer to use "paper" – this is how different ages talk about money. A poll of 2,000 adults found Gen Z is the most likely generation to use slang terms, with 58% adopting new phrases, compared to just 19% of Boomers. With the way we pay for things continually evolving, so is the language we use to communicate these payments, and as such 29% believe the word " cash" may die out entirely one day. Longstanding phrases such as "lolly" (67%), "shekels" (35%) and "folding green" (13%) are widely used by the over 65s, but are rarely recognised or used by Gen Z or Millennials. However, terms such as "stacks" (32%) and "P's" (27%) are more commonly said by Gen Zs. Despite the introduction of cashless payments, 71% of Brits agree the decline of cash is not inevitable, with 82% believing it's important to have it readily available. Ross Borkett, banking director at Post Office, which commissioned the research said: 'Money, how we talk about it and how we use it, has always been a unique part of British culture. 'Such a wide range of phrases are being used for money, showing how entrenched cash still is within our society. 'Whether you need money to pay the window cleaner or own a local shop and need to deposit your daily takings, we believe cash matters, and it seems so does the public. 'While we're seeing a shift towards contactless and digital payments, this research highlights that Brits still find value in having access to cash - whether they call it 'quid' or 'coin'.' It's not just different generations which have slang terms for money; the research also found that where you live can impact your cash vocabulary. For example, "dosh" is most popular in the North East, while "bread" is most likely to be said by people in the South East. But in Northern Ireland"bank" and "moolah" are popular terms. This has resulted in more than a quarter (27%) of Brits travelling to a different part of the UK and hearing an unfamiliar term for cash. Common ways to pick up these quirky phrases are from parents (42%) and friends (46%), according to the OnePoll data. Dr Lynn Robson, lecturer in English Literature at Oxford University, said: 'As money has evolved from shells and coins to plastic and digital forms, so too has the language we use to describe it. Brit top 50 terms for money 1. Cash 2. Quid 3. Fiver 4. Tenner 5. Coin 6. Notes 7. Change 8. Dosh 9. Grand (or G - £1000) 10. Dough 11. Funds 12. Bucks 13. Bills 14. Coppers 15. Bank 16. Loot 17. Ton (£100) 18. Brass 19. Bread 20. Readies 21. Wonga 22. Lolly 23. Moolah 24. Pony (£25) 25. Monkey (£500) 26. Shrapnel 27. Smackers 28. Wedge 29. Score 30. Peanuts 31. Spondulicks (or Spondoolies) 32. Squids 33. Plastic 34. Paper 35. Shekels 36. Greenbacks 37. Stacks 38. Green 39. Foldin' stuff 40. Bob / Tenners and Twenties 41. Benjamins 42. Crust 43. Ching 44. Large 45. Cheddar 46. Beans 47. Folding green 48. Bangers and mash 49. P's 50. Racks 'Despite the changes in how we pay for things, 'cash' - which has been used in our language for over 500 years - is still the most popular word for money. "When it comes to the language of money, there are many cultural influences that can move phrases from the margins to mainstream culture. 'For example, sayings like "loot" are infiltrating conversations due to the popularity of games like Minecraft, but it is still those closest to us which have the greatest impact on our language.' .
Washington Post
17-05-2025
- Politics
- Washington Post
The old slang term '86' probably started as restaurant-worker jargon. Suddenly it's in the news
NEW YORK — The slang term at the center of a political brouhaha swirling around former FBI Director James Comey is an old one, likely originating as food-service-industry jargon before extending to other contexts. Some of that spread has given rise to accusations from Republicans that it was meant as a threat to President Donald Trump.
