If you’re already typing any of the words above into a search engine, there’s no need to feel abashed. It’s hard to keep up with the latest slang ­– as Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan recently found out when she dropped the term “six-seven” during a media call.

According to an analysis of 2025 Google search data, the most-searched-for slang word in Australia is “sigma”. You might think that’s the 18^th letter of the Greek alphabet, but in Gen Z and Alpha speak it typically means a particular kind of man.

“It refers to an independent, self-reliant person who operates outside traditional social hierarchies, often described as a lone wolf,” says Unscramblerer.com, which carried out the Google analysis.

Or, as an American teacher’s students explained it to him in a TikTok video: “You’re all that and a bag of chips.” It can also be used to mean “extremely good”, and as an expression of confusion or disbelief, as in: What the sigma?

Other frequently searched-for slang terms include “delulu” (short for delusional – ie someone with unrealistic expectations), “unc” (short for uncle and used in a humorous way to indicate old age) and “glazing” (excessive flattery).

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Unscramblerer.com said popular slang in 2025 continued to be heavily influenced by TikTok, Instagram, gaming, streaming, and the Gen Z and Alpha online communities.

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“Trends from social media spread rapidly via memes and viral challenges,” a spokesperson said.

“Fuelled by technology, our language adapts to new slang trends more rapidly than ever. Slang is a fascinating and fun mirror of our culture.”

Interestingly, one of the terms that popped up in the analysis was “gaslighting”, which actually dates all the way back to 1938 when it was used in British playwright Patrick Hamilton’s play (later adapted into a film) called Gaslight, about a man who lies to and manipulates his heiress wife to make her think she is going mad.

Referring to prolonged psychological manipulation, the term gaslighting has become more commonplace in recent years – especially to describe unhealthy relationship behaviour. It was Merriam-Webster’s word of the year in 2022.

Over time, of course, the meaning of some words can change significantly. Merriam-Webster states the term “magna male” was originally credited to a far-right activist and was used in the 2010s in an internet subculture associated with misogynist beliefs. However, its popular use today seems less toxic and is attributed to parody videos and memes on TikTok in the 2020s.

Other trending slang words noted by Unscramblerer.com relate to appearances. There’s “looksmaxxing”, for example, which is said to be about maximising your looks, and “mogging” – outclassing someone else by appearing more attractive, skilful or successful. Or “huzz”, in reference to an attractive group of girls, and “big back” to describe someone with a larger physique.

One of our favourites, though, is “fanum tax”, meaning to playfully steal a portion of a friend’s food without asking ­first. It was coined after American content creator and streamer Roberto Escanio ­– AKA Fanum – posted about charging his friends a joke tax in the form of a bite of the food they were eating. 

Also fun is “aura farming” – which, contrary to what you might think – has nothing to do with agriculture. The Guardian, which used a photo of Dune star Timothee Chalamet to illustrate an article about aura farming, described it as being all about “cultivating the coolest version of yourself”. 

In August an 11-year-old boy standing at the front of a boat encouraging rowers in a traditional Indonesian boat race in Sumatra suddenly went viral when footage of his celebratory dance was widely shared with the caption “the aura-farming boy”. Rayyan Arkan Dikha’s effortlessly cool moves have been imitated in myriad videos across social media.

And then there’s “six-seven”, most commonly used by gen Alpha and younger gen Zers, which appears to have originated with rapper Skrilla and his song Doot Doot that features the lyric “six-seven”.

It also has an association with American basketball star LaMelo Ball, who is six feet, seven inches (two metres) tall.

“There is no literal meaning to six seven,” says Unscramblerer.com.

“Its absurdity is the point, making it a prime example of ‘brainrot’ internet humour where the randomness itself becomes funny.”