What do brain rot words mean?

If you have heard “that’s so Ohio” at the dinner table and nodded politely, you are in good company. This is a calm glossary of the brain rot words parents ask about most, checked against dictionaries and major explainers. One warning up front: this slang moves faster than any page can. Treat the meanings below as a snapshot, and your child as the expert.

What are brain rot words?

Dozens of words qualify: brain rot words are the slang of short-video culture, terms that spread through clips, memes and games, often repeated for the sheer fun of it. The umbrella term, brain rot, was Oxford’s Word of the Year for 2024. Oxford defines it as “the supposed deterioration of a person’s mental or intellectual state”, especially from overconsuming trivial or unchallenging online content, and reported that its usage rose 230% between 2023 and 2024.^[1]

The caveat is that “brain rot words” is a loose, informal label. Some of these words have clear meanings. Others are used mainly because they sound funny, and their meaning is basically “I am in on the joke”. For the bigger picture of what brain rot is, see our explainer on what brain rot actually is.

What do the most common brain rot words mean?

Ten words, with the source we checked each one against. Where a dictionary gives several meanings, we have picked the slang ones.

Skibidi. Cambridge Dictionary defines it as “a word that can have different meanings such as ‘cool’ or ‘bad’, or can be used with no real meaning as a joke”.^[3] It comes from Skibidi Toilet, a viral video series featuring humanoid toilets. Oxford notes it is often used to mean nonsensical.^[1]

Rizz. Charm or attractiveness. Oxford, which made it Word of the Year for 2023, defines it as “style, charm, or attractiveness; the ability to attract a romantic or sexual partner”, and says it is probably formed from the middle of the word charisma.^[4] “He’s got rizz” is a compliment.

Delulu. Short for delusional, usually cheerfully so. Cambridge defines it as “believing things that are not real or true, usually because you choose to”.^[3]

Aura. Cambridge gives a slang sense: “a personality and style that people admire and think is attractive and interesting”.^[3] A related phrase, aura farming, was on Oxford’s 2025 shortlist, meaning cultivating a persona that conveys “confidence, coolness, or mystique”.^[5]

Ohio. Weird or embarrassing. The meaning comes from “only in Ohio” memes about bizarre goings-on. Oxford lists it alongside skibidi as slang born of brain rot content.^[1] It has nothing to do with the actual state, which is presumably very nice.

Sigma. Originally from online subcultures about masculinity. Dictionary.com defines a sigma male as “a popular, successful, but highly independent and self-reliant man”, a lone wolf. Merriam-Webster notes that sigma is also used to mean extremely good, and widely as a nonsense meme.^[6] Online it is often used as a joke compliment, but it is worth knowing the roots.

Gyatt. An exclamation of surprise or admiration, which Cambridge notes is especially used on seeing someone with an attractively large bottom.^[3] Mild, but about bodies, so it may be one you would rather not hear at school pickup.

Fanum tax. Taking a bit of someone else’s food. It comes from a streamer called Fanum, who jokingly “taxed” his friends by taking bits of their food; a TODAY explainer describes it as the idea that food in a group must be shared, even if its owner would rather not.^[7] If a chip vanishes off your plate, you have been taxed.

Mewing. Cambridge gives two senses: a way of holding the tongue, lips and teeth that some people on social media believe improves the shape of the jaw, and a gesture of running a finger along the jaw to show you are ignoring someone.^[3] If yours is keen on the first, a dentist is a better adviser than a video; this is not medical advice.

67. Said “six-seven”, with a palms-up juggling gesture. Dictionary.com, which made it its 2025 Word of the Year, says some take it to mean “so-so” or “maybe this, maybe that”, but that its defining feature is that it is essentially impossible to define.^[8]

Which brain rot words are in the dictionary?

At least eight have some official recognition, more than you might expect:

• Brain rot: Oxford Word of the Year 2024.^[1]
• Rizz: Oxford Word of the Year 2023, and in Cambridge.^[4][3]
• Skibidi and delulu: added to Cambridge Dictionary in August 2025, alongside tradwife.^[2]
• Gyatt, mewing and the slang sense of aura: all have Cambridge entries as of today.^[3]
• 67: Dictionary.com Word of the Year 2025.^[8]

The caveat is that being in a dictionary does not mean a word is permanent or respectable. Dictionaries record how people speak; they are not a seal of approval. Plenty of slang is added, then quietly ages.

Why do brain rot words change meaning so fast?

Two reasons: many are not really for meaning, and adults catch up. A word like skibidi or 67 works as a password: saying it signals that you know the joke. Once adults learn it, it loses some shine, and a new one appears. Dictionary.com described 67 as “meaningless, ubiquitous, and nonsensical”, which was rather the point.^[8]

This is also why so much of it is funny to children and baffling to adults. We have written about that in why brain rot is funny. Absurdity is part of the appeal, and it is not new. Adults of every generation have had their own nonsense words.

Should parents worry about brain rot slang?

No, not about the words. Slang is a normal part of growing up, and playing with language is a sign of a lively mind, not a damaged one. A few gentle suggestions:

• Ask, don’t quiz. “What does that mean?” asked with real curiosity usually gets a delighted, detailed answer.
• Know the edgier ones. Gyatt and sigma carry more than a child may realise. A light conversation beats a ban.
• Do not try to use them. Or do, badly, for comic effect. Children tend to find it mortifying, which can be useful.
• Watch the source, not the slang. If anything deserves attention, it is how much short-form video is behind the vocabulary, not the vocabulary itself.

The words will change by next year. What lasts is time spent doing things that are not on a screen. If you want some easy ideas to have to hand, The Bored Box is our collection of screen-free prompts for exactly those moments.