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Teenagers

Parenting teenagers has its ups and downs. Get advice from Mumsnetters here.

Original poster

teen slang (especially used by girls)

71 replies

splodge77 · 12/08/2013 14:23

hi there, i'm a script writer currently working on a screenplay with teenage girls in but I'm aware that me teen slang is a bit out of touch!! (i'm 36 and my son is 2 so not quite there yet in picking up the lingo).

i've looked at some of the teen slang threads - very funny! but would love to hear more about current teen slang from mums of teen girls especially - particularly what 2013 equivalents of words like 'shagging' and 'up the duff' might be - both feel too 90s (when i was a teen ha!)

Any help much appreciated.

OP posts:
aufaniae · 12/08/2013 14:26

I walked past a teenage girl who was calling someone on a passing bus a "tosser" so I guess that must be in round here!

Seriously no idea. DS is 4, DD is 4m, so not a clue, but interested to see what people say.

dexter73 · 12/08/2013 18:15

banging=shagging

crazynanna · 12/08/2013 18:21

I think it depends where your screenplay is based, although I am sure a lot of slang is universal, but some is regional.

My dd says peek or peak for 'not good '

MoreThanWords · 12/08/2013 18:34

My dds say "getting with" - as in girls getting with boys - but I'm not sure what is involved!

Also "solid" - for difficult; "swag" - as in "just swag it out" (brazen it out to avoid embarrassment); or as "you look swag" (cool).

Will embarrass them by asking for more phrases .... Smile

MoreThanWords · 12/08/2013 18:41

"Banter" as in "just for the banter" ie just for the fun/sake of it.

"Peak" here as well.

"Preggers" is being offered as the alternative to up the duff.

I think they still say "sick" - or rather "siiiiiiiiiiiick" Grin

dexter73 · 12/08/2013 19:57

'Dollar' for money
'Peng' is good looking

spudmasher · 12/08/2013 20:03

YOLO precedes doing something risky/ indulgent- You Only Live Once

specialsubject · 12/08/2013 21:01

just use 'like' as every third word. Sorted. :-)

Original poster
splodge77 · 12/08/2013 22:45

Thanks for your responses & suggestions everyone, super helpful. Keep em coming...like.

OP posts:
stayathomegardener · 12/08/2013 22:48

On your blob....period

sandyballs · 12/08/2013 22:56

"Racist" is used constantly in my house, always in the wrong context, ie "DD could you load the dishwasher please"
Eye roll from DD and "racist".
Very annoying.

The word "awkward" is used far too much as well.

throughgrittedteeth · 12/08/2013 23:02

Please don't make it like Angus, Things and Perfect Snogging though! The books were brilliant but the slang made it very cringey in the film!

My sisters are 13 and 15 and actually don't use slag that much at all. They do say awkward a lot though, or rather awks. Hmm

throughgrittedteeth · 12/08/2013 23:03

*Thongs

throughgrittedteeth · 12/08/2013 23:04

Ahem *SLANG

Clayhanger · 12/08/2013 23:15

Clapped = ugly. Seems to have replaced butters of late.

Bare for very/extremely

Awks, obvs, just for the bants etc. Totes is for posh kids I think.

Long= anything that requires effort.

Yy on peak - used all the time. As far as I can work out its semantic range goes from ''tough luck" to "total feckin nightmare".

Original poster
splodge77 · 13/08/2013 12:35

Yeah banging for shagging seems to be modern equivalent but is it unisex? ie can a girl 'bang' a boy or does she just get 'banged' urgh! Not nice. It seems a harsher word than shagging somehow!! What's a fluffier equivalent, maybe there isn't one!

It's tricky as the film (if it ever gets made!) will be a 12a we hope so can't really use F word or anything like that..

OP posts:
monikar · 13/08/2013 19:21

splodge According to my DD 17, the term 'bang' is unisex. The only other alternative I can think of is 'smash', but this is used in the context of 'would smash', usually with a score out of 10. So to put that in context, if they are looking at a photo on fb they would comment '10/10, would smash', and not 'I would smash'.

Others - hench = a guy who is good-looking in a muscly sort of way.

Perf = perfect, when applied to guys.

Tight = secure, unlikely to break up as in 'our relationship is tight'.

MrsMongoose · 13/08/2013 21:30

Lots of slang is regional. When I went to university it was very apparent - phrases like 'allow that' made no sense to me.

Any more information regarding the context of your play would make things more authentic? Geordies use 'tash on' for snogging for example - London youths wouldn't use that.

elQuintoConyo · 13/08/2013 21:34

I used on the blob as a teen way back in 2002 90-96ish. Glad to see it is still around!

mrspink27 · 13/08/2013 21:38

Awkward and epic... seem to feature heavily as does random....

monikar · 14/08/2013 09:26

'Random' can be used as an adjective and as a verb. DD will talk about a 'random guy', but also a person can be 'a random'.

'Epic' is used a lot - I had forgotten that. If something is really bad then it is 'an epic fail'. Conversely, if something is really good then it is just 'epic'.

SuperiorCat · 14/08/2013 09:47

Class, epic, random, hench all seem to be positive adjectives I hear from DS female friends.

Butterz seems to mean wouldn't want to shag someone. "Er, no he's butterz"

Ramp is the local word for sex (from rampant) - "I'd ramp him"

I've heard one say "up-duffed" about a pregnant teacher, but was said with scornful disgust so there may be a different word for pregnant teens as obviously old people having sex is repugnant.

Lots of abbreviation used too - totes, obvs, babes, blud etc and interspersed with like.

God knows how they cope with slang on social media as my phone keeps wanting to auto-correct

ilovemulberry · 14/08/2013 09:48

cringe- used a lot
blatantly- used incorrectly a lot
uggers- ugly
dry- rubbish
bare jokes- really funny
Boi's- friends

monikar · 14/08/2013 11:05

Teen girls may call each other 'babe' or 'babes' for their close friends, as in 'thanks babe'. 'Babe' can also be used as a compliment, for a boy that has done something a girl is pleased with, as in 'he's such a babe', or directly to the boy, 'you're such a babe'.

A boy who has behaved badly is said to be a 'tosser' - 'he's such a tosser' - ime this is what girls will say about boys. Boys will say to one another 'you're being a dick' when they think the other boy is behaving badly. These two words may not be 12A rating though.

SuperiorCat · 14/08/2013 11:12

Oh and "ledge" - as in "you are a ledge" (legend) = really cool person (either sex)