Gamble's Dictionary of New-Age Literary Terms
These days, over half of the high school is made up of children born after the year 2000. These new-age kids have come up with new-age literary terms (They call it “slang.”), and you may or may not have noticed that these words are coming up in conversations increasingly often. Next time someone tells you to “dab on ‘em” or “sauce” their pencil to them, let this be your guide.
Baller \bawl-er\ adj 1: used to describe one who has completed a great action, or the action in and of itself. Often used as an exclamatory. Ex: When Ben drained the triple somersault full court shot, everyone shouted “Baller!” n 2: one who is skilled at a sport involving a ball.
Crusty \cruss-tee\ adj 1: used to describe something in a rusted or broken-down state. Ex: Sam’s truck is so crusty that you can see the wheels moving when you look at the floor.
Dab \dab\ v 1: to bow one’s head into the crook of his bent arm, usually done in celebration of something. Ex: Nice touchdown! Dab on ‘em!
Gains \gaynz\ n 1: what is obtained by “getting swoll.” Ex: When James was bench-pressing, Ben exclaimed, “Yeah James! Get them gains!”
Heated \Hee-ted\ adj 1: used to describe one who is confused, upset, bewildered, or embarrassed to an extreme degree of near anger. Stronger form of rattled. Ex: David was heated when someone told him Ichiro stinks. adj 2: used to describe something that was made warm.
Lit \Lit\ adj 1: used to describe something that is awesome. Ex: Dude! Brit Lit is so lit! I love that class!
Rattled \Rat-old\ adj 1: used to describe one who is confused, upset, bewildered, or embarrassed, often as the result of being roasted. Ex: Seth was quite rattled after he bore the brunt of the senior’s joke. V 2: the act (past-tense) of making a noise with a percussive object.
Roasted \Roe-sted\ adj, v 1: used to describe one who has been on the brunt end of a joke, which usually is verbal and pokes fun of one’s actions or tendencies. Also used to describe the action of making a joke which “roasts” someone. Ex: Adam got roasted by Nick when Nick made a joke about Adam’s height.
Sauce \Soss\ v 1: to transfer one object from one person to another. (see also: toss, give) Ex: Hey, David, why don’t you sauce me the hot sauce? n 2: something, usually a liquid, added to food to change or improve its taste.
Savage \savv-ij\ adj 1: used to describe one who has no concern about one’s mental well-being or is adept at “roasting.” Ex: James is such a savage; he’s always roasting them fools.
Suh dude \saw dood\ greeting 1: shortened form of “What’s up, dude?” Usually accompanied with a hand gesture. (Ask David for the gesture.) Ex: As Dwight entered the room, he put his hand to his face and said, “Suh dude.”
Swoll \swoll\ adj 1: used to describe one who “gets gains.” Ex: Sam gets gains every day; he’s gonna be so swoll.
Hopefully this guide can be helpful for navigating your daily interchanges with the kids these days. Try not to get too “heated” or “rattled” the next time some kid who’s never seen the 1990s says “suh dude,” then proceeds to tell you how “lit” it was when their totally “swoll” friend was getting those “baller” “gains” in this “crusty” weight room, and then “savagely” “roasted” him and “dabbed” in celebration before telling him to “sauce” him his water bottle. You can direct any further questions to me in person.