Were my coworkers hip with the slang?

Could you define “delulu” under pressure? Language is ever evolving, and what was once cool to say when I was a teen is now “unc,” as the kids call it.

Every generation has its own terms, so to bridge the gap, I wanted to see how much we really knew about each other.

So, I, a millennial who thinks they are pretty cultured, challenged my coworkers to “The Generational Slang Showdown.”

The premise is simple: participants from each generation (Baby Boomers, Gen X, Millennials, and Gen Z) were challenged to correctly define slang terms and creatively use them in a sentence.

Nine of my coworkers threw their hats in the ring:

Team Boomer (1946-1964):

• Don Moncrief – Publisher, Houston Home Journal
• Jack Bagley – Editor, The Star-Mercury Vindicator

Team Millennial (1981-1996):

• Kayley Trischan – Graphic Designer, Houston Home Journal

Team Gen Z (1997-2012):

• Sandra Hernandez – Staff Writer, Houston Home Journal
• Owen Jones – Staff Writer, Houston Home Journal
• Evelyn Davidson – Features Editor, The Macon Melody
• Alaysia Ezzard – Community Reporter, The Macon Melody
• Casey Choung – Community Reporter, The Macon Melody
• Micah Johnston – Sports & Newsletter Editor, The Macon Melody

It was a nail-biter of a competition (I think. We did the quiz over email.)

After patiently waiting, the results were in… The winning team… (drumroll, please) was Gen Z!

Gen Z, first of all, showed up in more numbers than their older counterparts. (Probably because they’re more tech-savvy.) And out of the Gen Zs, five of them had perfect scores.

To give credit where credit is due, however, one of the Boomers got a perfect score (Don), and so did Kayley, our resident Millennial.

With that in mind, here were some of the more memorable responses to our slang terms.

Groovy (Baby Boomer), meaning “cool or awesome.”

• “Jason’s mustache is real groovy.” – Casey
• “Your poodle’s haircut looks real groovy!” – Kayley
• “Bell bottoms. A VW bus. He was about as groovy as it gets.” – Don

Square (Boomer), meaning “boring or unconventional.”

• “People have called me square my entire life.” – Jack
• “Don’t be such a square Barbara, we’re just going on a double date.” – Owen
• “Come to the concert, don’t be a square!” – Micah

Bread (Boomer), meaning “money.”

• “Need some bread to buy some bread, man!” – Jack
• “After working at the factory for two years, I finally have enough bread to go on that overseas trip.” – Owen

Take a chill pill (Gen X), meaning “calm down.”

• “He’s always wired! I wish he would just take a chill pill.” – Don

Sike (Gen X), meaning “just kidding.”

• “Faked a sucker punch at him, then laughed and said, ‘sike.’” – Don

Bogus (Gen X), meaning “fake or unfair.”

• “Some of the ‘sales’ at Sam’s Club are totally bogus — Costco is better.” – Evelyn.
• “The Braves lost the wild card game against the Cardinals on a bad infield fly rule? That’s bogus!” – Micah

Bae (Millennial), meaning “romantic partner.”

• “Pedro Pascal’s my bae 😘” – Sandra
• “Bae and I are going to Mykonos for our anniversary.” – Owen

Throw shade (Millennial), meaning “insult someone.”

• “I’m going to throw shade at her outfit later.” – Sandra
• “They love to throw shade when no one’s around.” – Alaysia

Adulting (Millennial), meaning “handling adult responsibilities.”

• “I made enchiladas last night, so I’ve had enough adulting for the rest of the month.” – Evelyn
• “I have given up on adulting and have decided to be a Beanie Baby rancher in Utah.” – Kayley
• “I just paid my bills, I’m adulting!” – Sandra

No cap (Gen Z), meaning “honestly or not lying.”

• “The time change has messed with my sleep schedule, no cap.” – Alaysia
• “I just hit the sickest kickflip, no cap.” – Casey

It’s giving (Gen Z), meaning “it reminds me of.”

• “The tornado sirens have been going off in Georgia, it’s giving purge.” – Evelyn
• “It’s giving Applebee’s vibes.” – Casey
• “I love the Macon Melody… it’s giving journalistic integrity.” – Micah

Delulu (Gen Z), meaning “acting delusional.”

• “You’re delulu if you think I’m going to go along with that.” – Jack
• “You’re delulu if you think Beyonce’s Act III will be anything but rock.” – Alaysia
• “David is so delulu if he thinks he could be Pedro Pascal’s long lost twin brother.” – Kayley

In the end, although times change and newer generations express themselves differently, these connections show we may be more alike than we realize.

For an added bonus, I’m curious if we can get Gen Alpha (2013-present) slang correct.

If you’d like to try the mini-challenge, simply choose your generation, attempt to define the Gen Alpha slang terms, and use each one in a creative sentence. Then, email your answers and generation to brieanna@hhjonline.com.

1. 6 7
2. Big back
3. Rizz
4. Ohio
5. Sigma