Revealed: The 10 most-searched SLANG words in the UK this year – so, do you know what they mean?

Are you down with the kids, or beginning to show your age? 

The answer may lie in how many of these baffling slang words you know the meanings of. 

Experts from Unscramblerer.com have analysed Google search data for 2024 to reveal the most searched for slang words in Britain. 

‘Gaslighting’ – a type of manipulation that makes you doubt your memories and feelings – tops the list, with a whopping 170,000 searches. 

Meanwhile, other confusing words including ‘skibidi’, ‘pookie’, and ‘hawk tua’ have also had Britons turning to Google. 

‘The English language is ever changing. Every year new slang words are created,’ said a spokesperson for Unscramblerer.com.  

‘Many slang words are born through trending topics and viral videos on social media. 

‘However only few manage to stick around long enough to be added to the dictionary and remain in daily use.’

Are you down with the kids, or beginning to show your age? The answer may lie in how many of these baffling slang words you know the meanings of

In the study, the team used Google Trends to discover the top trending slang terms, alongside Ahrefs to find the number of searches. 

‘UK most popular slang terms can be discovered in Google Trends through the keyword “meaning”,’ Unscramblerer.com explained. 

‘People will hear or read slang terms and search for the meaning of the term (example “demure meaning”). 

‘Ahrefs shows many variations of meaning searches like “slang” or “trend” (example “demure slang”) and similar keyword combinations (example “what does demure mean”). 

‘We added up 150 search variations of top slang terms.’

The analysis revealed that ‘gaslighting’ was the most-searched slang word (170,000 searches), followed by ‘skibidi’ (125,000 searches). 

Derived from the YouTube animated series Skibidi Toilet, this word is used in gaming to describe someone who is evil or bad. 

‘Pookie’ – a word used to show endearment and affection – is third on the list with 47,000 searches, followed by ‘hawk tuah’ (40,000 searches). 

TikTok user Jools Lebron made a series of viral videos using the phrase “very demure”. This trend gave the word a playful slang meaning. She uses it to assess appropriate makeup and fashion choices in various settings

‘Hawk tuah’ is a catchphrase coined by Haliey Welch during a viral street interview in June 2024. 

In the video, Welch stated that her signature move for making a man ‘go crazy’ in bed was to ‘give him that hawk tuah and spit on that thang’. 

‘Sigma’ – an independent person, often described as a ‘lone wolf’ – is fifth on the list (37,000 searches). 

This is followed by ‘SMH’ (shaking my head), which was searched for 31,000 times. 

The ‘very demure, very mindful’ TikTok trend had 26,000 people searching for ‘demure’, while 25,000 searches were for ‘rizz’ – a shortening of ‘charisma’, used to describe charm. 

‘Dei’ (diversity, equity, inclusion) was ninth on the list (17,000 searches), while ‘aura’ rounded out the top 10, having been searched for 13,000 times. 

An ‘aura’ is used to describe the vibe someone gives off, with ‘aura points’ making you cooler. 

If you’re not Gen-Alpha, you might feel embarrassed to incorporate these slang words into your vocabulary. 

However, Unscramblerer.com is encouraging everyone to get involved. 

‘Slang words are a normal and fun evolution of language,’ the spokesperson added. 

‘We encourage everyone to learn some new words and surprise their children by using them.’