How to speak Gen Z: As ‘vibe-coding’ is named word of the year and ‘lol’ is declared a ‘phone ick’ – take the test to see if you can keep up with the TikTok generation’s lingo

Are you bad with kids or are you starting to show your age?

The answer may lie in which of these slang words and expressions you use.

This week ‘weather coding’ was named word of the year by the Collins Dictionary.

Used to describe an easy way for non-IT people to create computer code by telling AI programs to do it, the phrase ranked highest, behind ‘aura-farming’, ‘clanker’ and ‘HENRY’.

At the same time, ‘LOL’ was declared ‘disgusting’ in a survey of 2,000 Brits by Sky Mobile.

This acronym, which means ‘laughing out loud’ and was first added to the Oxford English Dictionary in 2011, has now been overtaken by expressions such as ‘send me’ and skull emoji.

Are you talking about Generation Z?

Scroll down to see the full list of phrases used by younger generations that make you look old.

Slang words and expressions

Vibe coding, a term popularized by Tesla’s former AI Director and OpenAI founding engineer Andrej Karpathy, has been named word of the year by Collins Dictionary’s team of lexicographers.

Other words on the list include ‘biohacking’, which is defined as the activity of altering one’s body’s natural processes in order to improve health and longevity.

Another is ‘clanker’, a derogatory term for computers, robots or artificial intelligence resources, popularized by Star Wars: The Clone Wars.

The word has gone viral on social media and is often used to express people’s frustration with and distrust of AI chatbots and platforms.

The word ‘glaze’, which is also a term of disapproval, has gained traction this year; it means to praise or flatter someone excessively or unfairly.

Another is ‘aura farming’, defined as the deliberate development of a distinctive and charismatic personality; It’s essentially the art of looking cool.

The owners of the largest global tech companies, known informally as the tech bros, have been dubbed the ‘brotherhood’ after their high-profile attendance at US President Donald Trump’s inauguration, with the word also appearing on the list.

The ‘Gen Z look’ is the blank or expressionless look a teenager gives when forced to interact with strangers.

The increase in the use of the term ‘HENRY’, an abbreviation for ‘high income, not yet rich’, indicates that the term was also coined by Collins.

‘Cooling’, meaning a holiday in a place with a cool climate, and ‘duty masking’, the act of giving the false impression of being productive at work, are also on the list.

Microretirement, defined as a break between working hours to pursue personal interests, also has characteristics.

At the end of October, Dictionary.com announced the 2025 words of the year.

Topping the list was ’67’, a term that has resonated in schools across the UK.

According to the organization, the definition of ’67 remains complex.

He explained that some people see it as a word meaning ‘so-so’, while other children just see it as a way to annoy their parents.

Other words on Dictionary.com’s Word of the Year Shortlist include ‘Gen Z look’ and ‘traditional wife’.

Long a staple of sports arenas and concert venues, the kiss camera found new cultural life in the summer of 2025 after a viral moment that garnered global attention

‘Tradwife’ refers to the term ‘traditional wife’ used to describe women who adhere to some of the more traditional gender roles, preparing meals from scratch, living off the land and caring for their many children.

The ‘Gen Z look’ refers to the blank stare that some members of Generation Z have, especially in the workplace.

Emerging slang words and expressions

A survey conducted this week by Sky Mobile found that Generation Z They targeted millennials and Gen Xers to write ‘LOL’ after every sentence.

Boms, an influencer from London with 113,000 followers, shared a rant about the use of the phrase, saying: ’10 points to anyone who can tell me how valuable I am [LOL] is added to the conversation.

‘Let me leave the shackles you put on that word because we are tired, this is nonsense.’

Meanwhile, research from Currys last year warned that many popular acronyms are considered ‘obsolete’ by Generation Z.

YOLO (You Only Live Once) ranked first as the acronym that Generation Z respondents considered the most outdated acronym.

A study by Currys last year warned that many popular abbreviations were considered ‘obsolete’ by Generation Z.

This is followed by LMAO (35 percent are considered outdated), G2G (34 percent), LOL (32 percent) and ROFL (31 percent).

It’s not just words and phrases that make you look old; Your emojis and punctuation can also give away your age.

A survey of 2,000 young people aged 16-29 by Insights firm Perspectus Global found that 24 per cent of respondents said the thumbs up emoji was only used by ‘old’ people.

Other emojis used by ‘older people’ in the top 10 include a red love heart, an ‘OK’ hand and a grimacing face.

The humble period mark has also been criticized by Generation Z, who see it as ‘scary’ when used at the end of text messages.

Writer Rhiannon Cosslett tweeted: ‘Older people – are you aware that ending a sentence with a period is a sudden and hostile behavior for younger people in email/chat? ‘I’m really curious.’

If you want your messages to sound more sincere, linguists recommend trying to divide your thoughts electronically by sending each one as a separate message rather than using periods.

In addition, GIFs have become outdated, with younger users describing them as ‘for boomers’ and ’embarrassing’, according to GIF search engine Giphy.

“Using GIFs is something that has been encoded by the millennial generation,” one teenager said on TikTok.