Talking Stage
what it means
Sits before a situationship and before dating. "We're talking" means regular contact and mutual interest with no commitment on either side.
The period of getting to know someone romantically before anything is defined.
the origin story
AAVE and youth vocabulary that spread widely through Twitter and TikTok from around 2018.
It named a stage that dating apps effectively created — extended messaging before meeting. Complaints about talking stages lasting months without progressing became a genre of their own, and "stuck in the talking stage" is a standard frustration.
in the wild
Are you seeing anyone?
We're in the talking stage. It's been four months.
When does the talking stage end?
Genuinely nobody knows.
how to use it
- Describing early romantic interest without commitment
- Dating conversations
- Explaining an undefined status
- About established relationships
- Professionally
- As a way to avoid defining things indefinitely
related terms
receipts
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