Scrolling Your Way to a New Dictionary

Hundreds of years ago, language evolved at a ridiculously slow pace. You only picked up a new word if it helped you chat with your local neighbors. Today, thanks to the internet, the English language is evolving at lightning speed.  

As Literary Hub points out, before TikTok took over our screens, apps like Vine paved the way by introducing us to words like “yeet” and “on fleek”. Now, TikTok has perfected that viral recipe with its incredibly powerful algorithm. The app tracks every single move you make to feed you a highly personalized loop of videos. When a catchy soundbite or dance goes viral, you naturally feel social pressure to participate in the trend to stay relevant. This rapid sharing turns quirky online jokes into permanent vocabulary. For example, the phrase “side-eye” started as a funny audio clip and quickly caused a massive tenfold spike in Google searches. 

In their study, two researchers, Lutfi Kurnia and Sigit Haryanto, found that young people use TikTok slang to build their unique social identities. Their research shows that users creatively mix global English slang with their native languages. For instance, they observed that Indonesian teenagers easily blend English terms like “delulu” or “spill the tea” into their local conversations to add humor and style. This mixing creates a fast, relatable form of digital intimacy among peers.

These viral words serve a real purpose beyond just sounding trendy. Users rely on slang to express complex emotions or share social judgments. Popular phrases like “red flag” or “toxic” allow teenagers to communicate their moral stances in bite-sized chunks quickly. Whether they are dropping a quick “LMAO” in the comments or saying “IYKYK” in a video, Gen Z uses these abbreviations to bond more efficiently online. 

Ultimately, the internet helped us stop worrying so much about perfect grammar, turning TikTok into a giant playground where we invent new words every day.

References:

Kurnia, L., & Haryanto, S. (2026). The linguistics of slang: Understanding Gen Z’s digital language on TikTok. JELITA: Journal of English Language Teaching and Literature, 7(1), 1-12.

Literary Hub. (2025). Algorithm on fleek: How TikTok is transforming the English language. https://lithub.com/algorithm-on-fleek-how-tiktok-is-transforming-the-english-language/