❤️ Introduction

If dating in 2025 feels like learning a new language, you’re not alone. From “rizzless situationships” to “orbiting exes,” modern romance comes with its own slang — born from TikTok, memes, and late-night DMs. This dictionary decodes it all so you can swipe, text, and vibe fluently.

🔠 A–Z Modern Dating Slang Dictionary (2025)

🅰️ A

Algorithm Love — Falling for someone entirely thanks to an app or For You algorithm. “We met because Hinge kept surfacing their profile — true algorithm love.”
Attachment Fishing — Posting emotional content to draw in comforting replies. “Those sad lyric posts? Pure attachment fishing.”

🅱️ B

Benching — Keeping someone as a backup option without progressing. “He benches her, then pings when lonely.”
Breadcrumbing — Sending occasional flirty signals with no intention of meeting. “Weekend hearts, zero plans. Breadcrumb city.”
Beige Flag — A mildly odd but harmless trait. “His beige flag? Rating every pizza he eats.”

🅲 C

Cushioning — Flirting with backups “just in case.” “She’s cushioning with someone new already.”
Catch Fatigue — Exhaustion from chasing “the one.” “After 200 swipes this week, catch fatigue hit.”
Core Dating — Matching with someone who shares your aesthetic core. “They’re both artcore — match made.”

🅳 D

Delulu — Playful shorthand for delusional optimism. “He liked my story twice — I’m delulu but vibing.”
DTR-phobia — Fear of defining the relationship. “Three months in, still DTR-phobic.”
Dry Texting — One-word replies that stall convo energy. “If they ‘k’ your paragraph, that’s dry texting.”

🅴 E

Echo-Dating — Two people mirroring each other’s energy without depth. “We’re both chill — too chill. Echo-dating.”
Ex-Tok — Doom-scrolling your ex on TikTok. “Three months healed, five minutes back in Ex-Tok.”

🅵 F

Fizzling — A mutual fade-out with no arguments. “No drama, just fizzled.”
Future-Tripping — Planning your forever after one date. “Already playlist planning? Future-tripping.”

🅶 G

Ghosting — Disappearing without closure. “He ghosted post-date, typical.”
Glow-Up Dating — Rekindling with someone who ignored you pre-glow-up. “New job, new hair — now he’s interested. Glow-up dating.”

🅷 H

Hard Launch — Publicly revealing your relationship online. “The couple selfie? Hard launch secured.”
Hauntology — Eerie repetition of old dating patterns. “Feels like déjà vu — dating hauntology.”

🅸 I

Ick — Sudden drop in attraction from a small action. “He chewed loudly. Instant ick.”
IRL Fatigue — Feeling too drained for real-world dates. “Cancelled drinks — IRL fatigue hit.”

🅹 J

JOMO — Joy of missing out on dating drama. “Friday solo? JOMO win.”

🅺 K

Kittenfishing — Mildly exaggerating photos or lifestyle. “His pics were pre-2020 — kittenfished.”
Karma Dating — Seeking emotionally balanced partners post-toxic relationships. “In her karma dating era now.”

🅻 L

Love-Bombing — Overwhelming affection early on, often manipulative. “Daily poems? Love-bomb alert.”
Low-Effort Era — Rejecting over-performing in dating. “No 6-app juggling. Low-effort era activated.”

🅼 M

Main-Character Energy — Radiating confidence and self-focus. “She arrived glowing — full MCE.”
Micro-Cheating — Flirty DMs or likes that cross lines. “Heart-reacting ex posts? Micro-cheating.”

🅽 N

Negging 2.0 — Backhanded compliments disguised as banter. “Nice outfit — didn’t know you could pull that off.”
Nostalgia Dating — Reaching out to old flings when lonely. “Winter hit, everyone’s nostalgia dating.”

🅾️ O

Orbiting — Watching someone’s stories without engaging. “He vanished but still orbits.”
Open-Tab Dating — Keeping multiple chats “open” like browser tabs. “Too many tabs — time to close some.”

🅿️ P

Panic Dating — Frantic dating driven by timelines or pressure. “He turned 30 and panic-dated the apps.”
Parallel Dating — Casually dating multiple people with mutual awareness.

🆀 Q

Quiet Dumping — Withdrawing affection before breaking up. “No plans in months — quiet dumping signs.”

🆁 R

Rizz — Magnetic charm or charisma. “His rizz is unbeatable.”
Rizzless — Lacking charm or confidence. “Cute, but rizzless via DM.”
Red Flag Rebranding — Glossing over obvious red flags. “He’s not possessive, just passionate.”

🆂 S

Situationship — More than friends, less than defined relationship. Classic 2025 dynamic.
Soft Launch — Subtle partner reveal (two drinks, one hand).
Submarining — Ghosting and resurfacing without apology.
Swipe Fatigue — Emotional exhaustion from endless swiping.

🆃 T

Textual Chemistry — Deep connection via messages.
Therapy Era — Healing before re-entering dating.

🆄 U

Un-ghosting — Returning post-ghost with no explanation.

🆅 V

Vibe Checking — Gauging emotional alignment early.
Voice-Flirting — Building attraction through voice notes.

🆆 W

W Energy — “Winning” emotional availability and positivity.
Window-Shopping — Browsing profiles with no intention to match.

🆇 X

Xennial Crush — Millennials and Gen Z flirting across generations.

🆈 Y

Year-End Ghosting — Breakups before the holiday season.

🆉 Z

Zoom Chemistry — Unexpected spark during video calls.
Zombieing — Reappearing after long-term ghosting.

🧭 Emerging Dating Trends (2025)

AI Wing-Personing — Using ChatGPT-style tools to craft openers or bios.
Eco-Dating — Choosing partners aligned with sustainability values.
Offline Energy Flex — Bragging about deleting apps.
Therapy-Tok Influence — Dating by attachment style vocabulary.
Safety Score Culture — Platforms ranking users for trustworthiness.

For market context, see /blog/the-state-of-online-dating-in-2025.

😂 Why Slang Matters

Slang is cultural anthropology. Each word captures how a generation processes vulnerability, rejection, and love through humour.

“Ghosting” normalised boundaries (for better or worse).
“Rizz” celebrates charisma over perfection.
“Therapy era” reframes healing as a flex, not a flaw.

💬 Final Thought

Modern dating slang is the diary of our time — chaotic, hilarious, and brutally honest. Whether you’re delulu, vibe-checking, or deep in your therapy era, remember every buzzword reflects a real emotion. Keep it kind, keep it fun, and when you get lost in translation, revisit this dictionary for a rizz rescue.

Match faster with the /quiz/best-dating-app.
Write a bio that speaks your slang with /tools/profile-generator.
Understand the emotional side in /blog/why-modern-dating-feels-so-hard-data-and-psychology.

✦

Written by the SwipeTogether Editorial Team

Reviewed by: Dating Culture & Trend Analyst

Sources: TikTok Dating Culture Report (2025), Hinge Labs (2025), Bumble Data Insights (2025), APA Relationship Trends (2025)

Estimated Word Count: ~2,300

Modern Dating Slang Dictionary (2025 Edition)