That Doesn’t Mean What You Think It Means

The Princess Bride is one of my top 10 favorite movies. One of the funniest parts, and probably one of the most quoted lines of all time, is when Inigo Montoya says, “You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.” That’s how I feel when I see the new, cool lingo that my tween is adding to his vocabulary.

I think the first time I encountered this was when I was online and saw something about “Netflix and Chill”. My first thought was yeah, that’s what I’m talking about! Then I realized it did not mean what I thought it meant. I was mortified because I’d used it in conversation the way I thought it should have been used! There have been several other instances when I’ve seen or heard a word and thought how un-cool I now am.

*Special thanks to Urban Dictionary for teaching me things I didn’t need to know*

Extra

New definition: Over the top, usually in a negative way. Someone trying too hard.
My definition/usage: Another one. As in, I have an extra child, and I don’t know what to do with it.

Lit

New definition: Cool and/or drunk or high
My definition/usage: Past tense of the verb “light”. ie: I lit the candle. 

Savage

New definition: Someone who doesn’t care about the consequences of their actions.
My definition/usage: Fierce, violent and uncontrolled, like an animal. ie: My children are running around acting like savage dogs.

Ship

New definition: Short for relationship. Used to say two people belong together.
My definition/usage: A boat but also could be used in place of an expletive. ie: Get your ship together.

Shook

New definition: Shocked or surprised
My definition/usage: Past tense of ‘to shake’. Also can be used to sing Elvis and leave your children shaking their heads. Cause I’m all shook up, mmhmmm.

Slay

New definiton: Multiple definitions but the most common use is to do something well, usually also while looking good doing it.
My definition: To kill. ie: Buffy slayed the vampires.

Stan

New definition: Combination of stalker/fan
My definition: A person’s name. Also the name of an Eminem song, which is apparently where the new definition came from. However, I would have never put two and two together. Because, hello 30s.

Woke

New definition: Knowledgeable, sympathetic and aware.
My definition/usage: To stop being asleep. ie: I woke up too soon and now my children are driving me crazy.

I’m not a person who isn’t totally hip (wait, is that word still used?!?), so I try to incorporate the cool definitions into my everyday lingo. I’m not going to lie, most of the time it’s used to embarrass my children. I’ve also tried to use it in groups online and it leaves me feeling…old. I think I’ll stick to the uses of the words that I know.

That way when I use them, I will know that it means what I think it means.

Photo Credit: Phuoc Ly Photography

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Kendra Fernandez
Kendra lives in Derby with her husband Leonard and her two boys- Leo and Jacoby. She works in downtown Wichita but spends most of the rest of her waking hours wrangling two crazy boys. You will more than likely find them at a game or practice. Besides spending time with her family Kendra loves to read and watch Game of Thrones, HGTV marathons and the Royals! She is also very active in PTO at her sons' school and is always trying to find ways to interact with other parents.