Middle school teacher shares Gen Alpha slang parents should know as kids go back to school
"Skibidi" and "sigma" are alive and well, but what do they mean?

Mr. Lindsay translates Gen Alpha slang for the rest of us.
Every young generation invents its own slang, much to the befuddlement of older folks who quickly tire of trying to keep up with constantly changing terminology. Remember Gen X's "bogus" or "gnarly" or "grody to the max"? How about millennials with "basic" and "extra" and "clapback"? Gen Z is still going strong with "giving" and "eating" and "mid," but even the older teens and young adults of Gen Z are beginning to feel their cool factor waning as Gen Alpha steps up to the plate.
Gen Alpha, born between 2010 and 2024, has arrived with a whole new vocabulary that parents of school-aged kids are scrambling to adjust to. Does anyone beyond high school age know what "skibidi" means? How about "sigma" or "gyat" or "Ohio"?
One group of people who have their fingers on the pulse of young folks' language is teachers. When you're immersed in tween and teen culture all day, you pick up some things, which is why Mr. Lindsay, a middle school teacher, shared a little Gen Alpha slang primer for the beginning of the school year.
"Mr. Lindsay here to remind you of some of the words that are coming to a classroom near you this fall," he began. "Word number one—GYAT. Still going strong, okay? It does not mean, 'Go You Athletic Teens,' it does not mean 'Get Your Act Together,' it is a reference to a big butt, and when they say this they are referencing a big butt."
"Next we have 'skibidi,' it's alive and well," Lindsay continued. "Are we any closer to a consensus on the definition of this word? Absolutely not. Some say it means something good, some say it means something bad. Most of them just use it as a filler word whenever they have the impulse to say it. Skibidi."
How about "sigma"? Or "what the sigma"? Watch Mr. Lindsay explain:
The line between Gen Alpha and Gen Z can be blurry, and right now the cuspers between those two generations are in middle and high school—prime time for slang usage. Mr. Lindsay made another video demonstrating how a millennial teacher might try to relate to those students on the first day of school and it's a masterclass in cringe cross-generational slang usage that somehow manages to slay.
Watch:
Others who work with young people confirmed that these terms are, indeed, alive and well among the tween set.
"These are now sliding down to the elementary grades as well. Teaching 3rd-5th grade vacation bible school this week and I’ve heard multiple skibidi and what the sigma references."
"I took my soon to be first grader to a baseball camp this week. It was for 1st to 6th but it was mostly the younger kids. I laughed so hard when one of them yelled, “what the sigma?!”
"My 12 year old overheard me listening, ran in and said- you can’t listen to our stuff!!!! And tried to steal the phone. 🤣🤣🤣. I said what the sigma, Bro. He hates me."
Parents are deeply appreciative of both Lindsay's vocab lesson as well as demonstration of terminology they've heard from their kids and are reluctantly fluent in:
"This lowkey kinda ate and I hate that I understood it 😂😂😂"
"Saying using your phone in class is giving pick me is the MOST effective way to stop it. Lol"
"My Gen Alpha kid overheard this and was like 'BET.'"
"If everyone does this we can unalive this slang, no cap."
"Why do I understand all of this?! 😂🤣😭 Parent problems I guess."
Millennials using Gen Z and Gen Alpha slang is endlessly funny. Social media creator Elle Cordova wrote a "first gen alpha poet laureate" poem using Gen Alpha slang in a poem written in the year 2060, and it's perfection. ("Ohio" means weird/boring/bad, by the way.)
There ya go, parents. At least now you know what your kids are saying, sort of. And if you really want to impress and horrify your children, make these words a regular part of your own vocabulary and see how long they keep using them.
- Teacher's funny lesson explaining Gen Z terms turned into a brilliant history lesson ›
- Therapist that coined 'honey badger generation' for Gen Alpha explains why it's perfect ›
- 'What on Earth is a GYAT?' Millennial feels ancient after learning the latest Gen Alpha slang ›
- Gen Alpha vs Millennial slang amusing rapid fire round - Upworthy ›
- Language expert gives incredible speech to high school students using only Gen Alpha slang - Upworthy ›
- Boomers and Gen Xers share favorite Gen Alpha and Gen Z slang - Upworthy ›
There's a reason why some people can perfectly copy accents, and others can't
Turns out, there's a neurodivergent link.
A woman in black long sleeve shirt stands in front of mirror.
Have you ever had that friend who goes on vacation for four days to London and comes back with a full-on Queen's English posh accent? "Oooh I left my brolly in the loo," they say, and you respond, "But you're from Colorado!" Well, there are reasons they (and many of us) do that, and usually it's on a pretty subconscious level.
It's called "accent mirroring," and it's actually quite common with people who are neurodivergent, particularly those with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). According Neurolaunch, the self-described "Free Mental Health Library," "Accent mirroring, also known as accent adaptation or phonetic convergence, is the tendency to unconsciously adopt the accent or speech patterns of those around us. This linguistic chameleon effect is not unique to individuals with ADHD, but it appears to be more pronounced and frequent in this population."
Essentially, when people have conversations, we're constantly "scanning" for information—not just the words we're absorbing, but the inflection and tone. "When we hear an accent, our brains automatically analyze and categorize the phonetic features, prosody, and intonation patterns," writes Neurolaunch. For most, this does result in copying the accent of the person with whom we're speaking. But those with ADHD might be more sensitive to auditory cues. This, "coupled with a reduced ability to filter out or inhibit the impulse to mimic…could potentially explain the increased tendency for accent mirroring."
While the article explains further research is needed, they distinctly state that, "Accent mirroring in individuals with ADHD often manifests as an unconscious mimicry of accents in social situations. This can range from subtle shifts in pronunciation to more noticeable changes in intonation and speech rhythm. For example, a person with ADHD might find themselves unconsciously adopting a Southern drawl when conversing with someone from Texas, even if they’ve never lived in the South themselves."
People are having their say online. On the subreddit r/ADHDWomen, a thread began: "Taking on accents is an ADHD thing?" The OP shares, "My whole life, I've picked up accents. I, myself, never noticed, but everyone around me would be like, 'Why are you talking like that??' It could be after I watched a show or movie with an accent or after I've traveled somewhere with a different accent than my 'normal.'
They continue, "Apparently, I pick it up fast, but it fades out slowly. Today... I'm scrolling Instagram, I watch a reel from a comedian couple (Darcy and Jeremy. IYKYK) about how Darcy (ADHD) picks up accents everywhere they go. It's called ADHD Mirroring??? And it's another way of masking."
(The OP is referring to Darcy Michaels and his husband Jeremy Baer, who are both touring comedians based in Canada.)
Hundreds of people on the Reddit thread alone seem to relate. One comments, "Omfg I've done this my whole life; I'll even pick up on the pauses/spaces when I'm talking to someone who is ESL—but English is my first language lol."
Sometimes, it can be a real issue for those around the chameleon. "I accidentally mimicked a waitress's weird laugh one time. As soon as she was out of earshot, my family started to reprimand me, but I was already like 'oh my god I don’t know why I did that, I feel so bad.'"
Many commenters on TikTok were shocked to find out this can be a sign of ADHD. One jokes, "Omg, yes, at a store the cashier was talking to me and she was French. She's like 'Oh are you French too? No, I'm not lol. I'm very east coast Canada."
And some people just embrace it and make it work for them. "I mirror their words or phrase! I’m 30. I realized I start calling everyone sweetie cause my manager does & I work at coffee shop."
This article originally appeared in May.