Discover English slang in this lesson as my nieces and nephews introduce me to 8 new terms. Explore the linguistic play across generations in America.
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Video Transcript:
Don’t sleep on this video.
I’m 42, I don’t know any current slang. In this video, my nieces and nephews teach me. This is for all you old people out there.
If someone uses the phrase “Don’t sleep on something”, that means don’t underestimate something. Because it’s actually great.
Don’t sleep on the beach sandwich! Tastes so good down by the water.
Yes.
Don’t sleep on the beach sandwich. Don’t underestimate how amazing it can be.
Something I like is “Don’t sleep on”.
Oh yeah.
So and so.
Don’t sleep on that movie. That’s good. Like don’t fall asleep on that. That’s a good one.
So is that like If I’m starting to say I don’t like something you would say that? Or when would you say that?
Ah, just a passing comment, don’t sleep on that recipe like don’t sleep on crocs.
Right.
Don’t sleep on crocs? Okay. My niece thinks Crocs are pretty great. Don’t sleep on this video. Don’t underestimate it, it’s a great video. In fact, hit the like button and subscribe with notifications right now.
This next one is confusing because it has two different meanings which have an opposite feel.
In my bag. What’s in my bag? Well, I got my mask of course. Wait. This is not what it means. We’re not talking what’s in bag but the phrase is “I’m in my bag” and that means I’m sad.
Do you know “I’m in my bag”?
No.
When you’re really sad or like you’re just broken up with, you’re in your bag.
Well, it also depends.
Wait, you’re in your own bag?
Yeah.
Like you’re in your feels?
Like if I’ll be like I’m in bag like how would I use it to describe
If you were like “We’re leaving the beach today, I’m really in my bag.”
Vacation’s over. I’m in my bag or “I just got dumped. I’m in my bag.”
Sad, bummed out, not a good thing. But it also means completely focused in your zone, a good thing. My nephew quotes a song where it’s used that way.
This person’s like “I ain’t in the mood if I ain’t in my bag.”
Okay.
Being in your bag is like you are at the exact mental emotional state that you need to be in that moment. It’s like “I ain’t in the mood if I ain’t in my bag. Like a feeling like nice.
Are you feeling nice? In the zone? At one with what you’re doing? You’re in your bag. Are you sad, down in the dumps, feeling crappy? You’re in your bag.
Like oh, we just stopped at Taco Bell at 1 in the morning. I’m really in my bag or like.
It’s like “I’m in my bag” or like “I’m knee-deep in my bag.”
My nephew is so focused on the enjoyment of eating Taco Bell at 1 in the morning, he’s knee-deep in his bag.
Moving on, my niece posted this photo of her mother on Snapchat. Note the caption: Did her hair. Gas her up y’all. Gas up, a slang phrasal verb.
“Gas me up” means compliment me?
Yeah.
Oh yeah.
Interesting because gas also means farts.
Right.
Which is why that one’s very rude.
But it’s like Gas me up is like hype me up.
Okay.
Give you confidence.
Don’t sleep on me.
Gas me up, hype me up, make me feel good about myself.
Gas has a lot of meanings. If something is a gas, that’s an old-fashioned way to say “A good time”.
“Oh, we had such a gas at your party!”
Like I said, this one is old-fashioned, use with caution. Gas is short for gasoline and in the US, we use that for what we put in our car, fuel. It’s also one of the states of matter along with solid, liquid and plasma. But in that clip I also mentioned it’s when air builds up in your body, ugh, it doesn’t feel so good and well, you fart.
Gas her up means compliment her. I was told that gas means great. Earlier that week, my nephew Ian made a chocolate cake that was perfect. And someone said, “Ian, that chocolate cake was gas”.
The next time you’re in your bag, I’m going to gas you up. But don’t be sus.
What is sus?
Ah, I think it’s like from suspect or suspicious. It’s like you’re acting really weird like suspicious.
I’ve found that in my texts a lot, I have a group chat with my two roommates and it’s like, my boyfriend turned his location off, that’s so sus. And we’re like, “Oh my gosh, so sus!”
So it’s just like suspect. It’s short for suspect and it means something is fishy.
Oh, you’re being sus.
You’re being sus like you’re being like you’re joking or you’re like..
So it’s like cagey? In that respect or is cagey my wording.
I don’t know what that means.
None of you don’t know what that means?
I guess cagey is outdated because I knew it and none of them did. If you’re cagey, you’re purposely not being clear. You want to avoid giving direct information and that is “Sus”.
But what’s not sus is a new Youtube feature, “Super Thanks”, this allows you to show your support for my channel and help me figure out which videos are your favorite and which kinds of videos you want more of. Do you love this video? Leave a super thanks. All super thanks donations are going to new equipment, actually a new camera so I can get better clips in low-light like in this video. Super Thanks, try it out and thanks for your support.
We’ve learned “In my bag” but do you know “Out of Pocket”? You’re going to learn a bonus phrase here: Depop Girl.
Do you know the app “Depop”?
No.
It’s like you’re selling. It’s kinda like Goodwill Online and girls like, Depop girls like you’re Y2K, you’re two thousand. vintage baby tee
What does Depop stands for?
It doesn’t stand for anything, it’s just the app.
Depop?
But they like, scam people, like they’re like $50 for this kids t-shirt that was definitely originally $10.
Right.
But you’re calling it baby tee vintage Y2K vibes.
Uhuh.
Depop is an app where you can sell used clothes and a Depop girl is someone who buys cheap things and resells them on this app for an inflated price. Honestly to me, that just sounds like basic capitalism. But knowing what that means helps set the context for this next part, the slang term “Out of Pocket”.
So don’t use that app.
No, you can but don’t get scammed by these Depop girls. They’re out of pocket.
What is that? I don’t know that one.
What does that mean? Okay, explain that.
It’s like you’re out of your lane, like you are way too much right now or like someone says something that’s like rude or mean or like
Is it like out of line?
Yeah.
Out of pocket. Slang for rude, out of line, not acceptable, not okay.
Now I’ve heard and used the phrase “Out of pocket” a lot in the context of healthcare, total different use. This refers specifically to money. The way that US healthcare system works, most people have health insurance through work which pays all or most of the monthly fee for insurance which is called the premium. An out-of-pocket expense is something you pay in addition to the premium. For example, you might have a copay when you visit your doctor. You pay twenty bucks or fifty, your insurance pays the rest but that twenty or fifty dollars is out of pocket. You have to pay it even though you have health insurance. But it has this slang meaning too, not acceptable, rude.
We don’t support this one but simp. You know simp?
No.
In case you didn’t get that, it was “simp”. A little hard to hear because of that stop P. Simp What does simp mean?
It’s literally just a guy being respectful to a girl.
Okay.
But like real life experience I was like to someone, “Can you get my charger?” We’re watching Bachelorette, Batchelor in the common room. I said, “Can you get my charger?” He goes up, gets his charger, his friends go “Simp!”
Uhuh.
That’s how it started.
You shouldn’t.
Oh my gosh, why are you go getting her charger?
Uhuh.
And like that’s how it started. But now people are like, “I simp for Cristina Aguilera.”
They explained that basically it seems to apply to any or all affection or respect that a man may give a woman outside of a very macho masculinity. But you can use the word a few different ways.
But if you do have a crush on someone, you’re simping.
Okay.
Right, right yeah so it’s like if you’re crushing on them.
I’m simping so hard right now.
Right. People turn it into a good word.
Yeah, and into a verb.
It can be sweet. I’m simping.
Right.
— we’re simping so hard for each other.
Have you ever heard of the–
A noun getting turned into a verb, simping. After “simp”, the term “stan” came up.
So stan is like
It’s like a super fan.
Stan is like, I support you like I got your back.
It’s more of a what’s the word when it’s non-romantic?
Platonic. It’s like a platonic I like and respect you
And I probably sort of it’s like I die hard support this like I stan Doritos.
Right.
It started with Eminem’s one song because he has a fan, a super hardcore fanboy named Stan.
Yeah.
So now stan means really like, support
Right.
Or it’s just like after meeting someone for the first time like someone’s friend, someone brought a friend and you’re like I don’t know if I’m going to like them but then like you hang out with them you’re like “You know what, we stan Lucy.”
Uhuh.
Stan can be a noun, big fan or a verb, to really love and support something like my niece’s example “I stan Doritos.”
And for me, that is also true. I stan Doritos. I absolutely love them, do not open a bag around me if you’re not going to share with me.
Okay, last one.
Cheuggy. Has anyone around here actually ever used cheuggy?
No.
Yes.
When did you used cheuggy?
Well, I feel like as millenials, we’ve talked about what cheuggy means. Cheuggy is anything that millenials do that gen-z rolls their eyes at.
You don’t want to be called basic or cheuggy. Cheuggy is someone who follows trends that are no longer cool; the opposite of stylish.
So, millennials. The generation below me. Now old enough to be made fun of and considered out of style by the generation below them, Gen Z.
My friend recently bought jeans and said to the sales person, “Help me find a pair of jeans that aren’t cheuggy.”
I’m Gen X, so you could be pretty sure that I’m cheuggy most of the time.
It’s so funny because like I get everything you guys are saying but I would never be able to use any of these words successfully.
Yeah. (laughing)
You know what I mean? But it’s enough to at least know and it’s so interesting to hear how they evolve like at first it’s negative and then use ironically and then it’s also positive and you turn it into a verb.
Right.
And all these things.
And I love it when you’re talking when you’re using them you don’t even realize it and they’re like, “Oh wait, that’s a good one.”
Right.
Massive thanks to my nieces and nephews for teaching me slang that I didn’t even know existed. If you want to pick up some good slang, follow some Gen Z on social media like my niece Ana who is in this video. She’s on Instagram and Tiktok. You can use Urban dictionary to look up terms you don’t know.
Be sure to subscribe with notifications to catch all of my English language learning videos and keep your learning going now with this video. I love being your English teacher. That’s it and thanks so much for using Rachel’s English.
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