New dating terms seems to pop up on the daily, and it can be quite confusing to keep up with the latest rising trends. How many times have you politely nodded your head pretending to understand your friend when they’ve said something like this:
“He was totalling flexting and sexting me over the weekend, pretty much love-bombing me. But then out of nowhere he ghosted me, which is so much worse than the slow fade. If he slides into my DM’s next week I’m gonna to leave him on read.“
Sound familiar?!
Today, I’m highlighting all the most popular dating behaviour, and dating terms you need to know as a singleton, couple and everything else in between!
The Only Dating Dictionary You Need
Let’s start with the basics shall we…
Dating: Simply put, this is when two people meet in a given location to spend time together. Dating is a great way to get to know people before jumping into a romantic relationship. Dating lets you test the waters!
“Seeing” someone: When you’re not quite exclusive yet with someone. You’ve gone on dates with them and are taking time out of your schedules to see each other but nothing has been officially labelled.
Sexting: The act of sending steamy overtly sexual text messages to someone you’re interested in.
Exclusive: Pretty self-explanatory, but being exclusive with someone means that you’re not dating anyone else. Exclusivity can lead to DTR.
DTR (acronym): Define the relationship. When you establish what your relationship status is with someone you’ve been dating/seeing.
Friends with benefits: When you only share a sexual relationship with someone, but nothing more.
Spring fling: A temporary and very casual relationship with someone during the spring and summer months.
Hooking up: Many refer to “hooking up” as a less direct way of saying having sex. Although, you can also use the term hooking up to mean everything beyond kissing.
Cuffing season: This season has been identified as the time of year when the seasons change and the months get cooler, resulting in more singles looking to cozy up with someone.
Facebook official: When you officially change your relationship status to “in a relationship” on your Facebook bio, for all the world to see.
IRL (acronym) : In real life. Often used when you take an online relationship offline and IRL!
Bae: Your lobster, person, boyfriend, girlfriend, partner, spouse etc.
Catfish: No, this is not referring to the fish. A catfish is someone who pretends to be a different person online than they are IRL.
Deal breaker: When an aspect, habit or quality about someone turns you off. For example, a person who smokes may be a deal breaker for you.
Ghosting: Immediately ceasing all communication with someone you’ve been dating – you’ve essentially vanished, like a ghost!
Dating behaviours coined by Plenty of Fish
Flexting: Digital boasting to impress a date before meeting IRL. Think flexing but via text message.
Cricketing: Leaving someone on “read” for too long and taking your sweet time to continue the conversation.
Ghostbusting: Continuing to text someone after they’ve ghosted you.
Serendipidating: Putting off a date and “leaving it up to fate” in case someone better comes along in the interim.
Fauxbae’ing: Pretending to have a significant other over social media when you’re actually single. Usually used in an attempt to make an ex jealous, or to convince a nosey family member of a nonexistent partner to get them on your back.
Scrooging: Breaking up with someone shortly before the festive season, so you don’t have to get them a gift.
Instagrandstanding: Posting on your social feed, specifically for one person’s benefit.
Banksying: Like Girl With Balloon was shredded and ruined on purpose, this is a breakup that is carefully planned way in advance of following it through.
Throning: Dating someone just to boost your personal profile or reputation.
Cohabitdating: Shacking up with your new partner in a hurry to relieve financial stress, even though you may not be quite ready yet.
You-turning: When you fall head over heels with someone, and then suddenly change your mind about them due to a total deal breaker.
Vulturing: Becoming much more romantically interested in someone when you sense their relationship is about to end, and you swoop in to woo them. B
Grande-ing: Personal celebration after a break up, as made popular by singer, Ariana Grande. Practicing gratefulness at the end of a relationship and rejecting negativity and bitterness as you move forward with your life.
Additional Good to Knows
Cloaking: Coined by writer Rachel Thompson, this is when someone decides to stand you up for a date and proceeds to block you on any dating app you’ve communicated through.
Orbiting: Coined in an essay by writer Anna Lovine, this is when someone breaks off direct contact with you but continues to comment and like your social posts.
Slow Fade: When someone doesn’t quite ghost you, but instead phases you out more and more day by day. Texting becomes less, they respond to your messages with one word answers.
Breadcrumbing: Stringing someone along via text with zero intention of actually meeting them IRL.
Well there you have it, you’re all caught up on the latest dating trends. If you have your very own trend you care to share with our team, we’d love to hear about it!
