zcontxt.

Internet Culture

Online norms, rituals and in-jokes.

Wojak

A crudely drawn bald cartoon face used to represent a feeling or a type of person.

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Sigma

A lone-wolf archetype — successful and confident without needing social status or approval.

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Gigachad

An exaggerated version of Chad — someone impossibly confident and capable.

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Chad

An archetype of an effortlessly confident, physically dominant man — used admiringly or mockingly.

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NPC Streaming

Livestreaming while performing robotic, looping phrases in response to viewer gifts.

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NPC

Non-Player Character — someone who seems to have no independent thoughts and just repeats what they're told.

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Rickroll

Tricking someone into clicking a link that turns out to be Rick Astley's "Never Gonna Give You Up".

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Respectfully

A word added before or after a blunt statement to soften it — usually without softening it at all.

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I Fear

A dramatic way to introduce an admission — "I fear I've made it worse".

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Girl Help

A caption expressing helpless amusement at your own or someone else's situation.

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Unhinged

Wildly chaotic behaviour — used as praise as often as criticism.

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Unserious

Not to be taken seriously — said about a person or a statement, usually with affection.

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Messy

Someone who creates or enjoys drama, usually deliberately.

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Read

A direct, precise insult that names someone's flaw exactly.

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Shade

A subtle, indirect insult — criticism disguised as a neutral comment.

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Clocked

Noticed and correctly identified something someone was trying to hide.

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Caught in 4K

Caught doing something in high-quality, undeniable detail.

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RIP

Used hyperbolically to mourn something trivial — a phone battery, a plan, a lost argument.

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Secondhand Embarrassment

Feeling embarrassed on behalf of someone else.

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Cringe

Embarrassing to witness — usually because someone is trying sincerely and failing.

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Based

Admirably willing to say what you think regardless of who disapproves.

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Ratio

When a reply gets far more likes than the post it replies to — proof the crowd sided against the original.

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Copium

An imaginary drug you inhale to cope with a loss — a joke about self-delusion.

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Cope

An accusation that someone is rationalising a loss rather than accepting it.

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