Gen X, those born between 1965-80, were often depicted as relaxed, cynical, and music-loving at their cultural peak in the 1980s and ’90s. You can kinda tell . . .
☞ Chill pill: What you tell someone to take when they are overreacting or stressed. (Needed more today than ever…)
☞ Gnarly: It can mean “bent or “twisted”. But it can also mean “amazing”. (Gnarly, I know!)
☞ Headbanger: Someone who loves heavy metal, which was huge in the 80s.
☞ Yuppie: based on the acronym “young, urban professional”, it refers to an ambitious, and well-educated city-dweller who has a career and an affluent lifestyle.” (And a scarf around the popped collar of his Lacoste alligator shirt!)
☞ Diss: To insult someone, or treat them with well, disrespect. (‘Diss tracks’ came much later, though…)
☞ Hella: It can be an adverb meaning “very, extremely,” as in “that pizza is hella good”. It can also be an adjective, meaning “many, much,” as in “we ate hella pizza last night”. (So, it’s a hella-useful word!)
☞ Trippin’: Means you’re acting like a fool, you’re being too excited, or you’re too bothered about something. (What if you’re trippin’ on chill pills?)
☞ Rock: Of course, the word goes way back before the 80s, but it was the 80s when it started to be used then as a compliment. If someone says “you rock”, it means “you’re absolutely awesome.”
☞ To the max: Short for “to the maximum,” it means “completely” or “extremely.”
☞ Dude: In the 80s, ‘dude’ became a term of address, like “hey, dude”, and of exclamation, like “Dude, that’s awesome!” (And in the 90s, “Dude, where’s my car?”)
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