We’ve all been there – we overhear our kids, nieces, nephews or younger siblings having a conversation and it's in a completely different language. Rizz? Cheugy? What on earth are you on about? Ahh, it’s from a TikTok.

Yes, the power of TikTok is one to be reckoned with, creating entirely new languages that only certain demographics understand. If your kids return home with a new dictionary worth of words that you have never heard, it can be very confusing. Luckily, the global student housing brand and operator, Yugo, has created a cheat sheet so parents, uncles, aunties and everyone else don’t need to hire a Gen Z translator.

Rizz

You may hear your child talking about ‘rizz’, and how much rizz somebody has. Now, although this sounds like some sort of cheesy cracker, rizz is actually short for charisma – and generally refers to how a person acts when they are trying to charm/seduce a partner. For example, if you use a great chat-up line at the bar and it works, you’ve got excellent rizz. If you struggle to talk to potential partners, you’ve got negative rizz. It’s a sliding scale.

Beige flag

You’ve heard about red flags – serious traits in a person that make you want to avoid them or stop hanging out immediately, but have you heard of beige flags? This trending new phrase depicts something mundane about a person that has the potential to put someone off. Lets their dog eat food they’ve dropped on the floor instead of cleaning it up? Beige flag. Always the last one ready even though they outwardly claim to be the most organised? Beige flag. You get it.

Cheugy

This one’s a killer. Back in the day, we used to call outdated, stuck in the past people ‘grandma’ or ‘grandad’ as a sarcastic light insult – but today’s generation has a different word entirely. Cheugy is a word that Gen Z uses to describe millennials when they are being particularly… millennially. Got a live, laugh, love sign in your home? Cheugy. Wear skinny jeans on a daily basis? Cheugy. Excuse us whilst we go and grab some mom jeans…

It’s the ___ for me

You might have heard your child watching TV and exclaiming ‘it’s the ___ for me’, with the blank referring to something that is happening in the scene. Well, they’re actually referring to something embarrassing or annoying that they can see in the scene. Let’s think of an example. If your child was arguing with you about not being allowed out one night, instead of the usual ‘I hate you mum’ spiel, they might say ‘it’s the lack of trust for me’. They are basically pointing out the exact reason they are annoyed in that moment, and slotting it into that perfectly poised sentence. Hits hard, huh?

Go off/pop off

Okay, less of the negative - let’s move on to something lighter. When your child is complimenting something, instead of saying ‘great job’ or ‘looks amazing’, they might say ‘pop off!’. This essentially is a way of expressing excitement or positivity towards somebody else, in a complimentary way of course. Made the best lasagne ever for dinner? Go off, sis.

Alternatively, if your child hears someone putting in a great argument, or expressing an opinion they agree with, they may also say ‘pop off’ or ‘its popping off’. The TL;DR is - it’s a term of endearment, whatever the situation.

We stan

Last but not least, we have an iconic Gen Z phrase. Now, this one has a bit of background. A ‘stan’ is somebody who is a huge and enthusiastic fan of a certain TV show, film, band, or brand. It originated as a blend of the words ‘stalker’ and ‘fan’, meaning someone who was so obsessed with their passion that they would stalk people involved in it. You can be a Game of Thrones stan, an Apple stan, a One Direction stan, a pizza stan – you can basically ‘stan’ anything. But, more recently the term has evolved to be less stalker, and more fan. If your child sees someone in a restaurant wearing a cute outfit, they might say, ‘we stan’.

If they saw a dog playing enthusiastically in the park, they might say ‘we stan’. They essentially mean that they are a fan of what they are looking at. So, with six popular and common Gen Z terms translated, you are ready to impress your kids with your knowledge next time you hear them ‘popping off’ in the group chat. We stan.