Slay

To do something brilliantly or look amazing.

What it means

To slay is to do something brilliantly, especially when looks, style or performance are involved. You can slay an outfit, a presentation or a karaoke song. Cambridge lists the slang sense as “to be extremely good or nice,” and on its own, “Slay!” is a cheer for someone who just nailed it.

Where it comes from

The literal meaning, to kill, is ancient, and in the 1920s slay could also mean to make someone laugh (“You slay me!”). The modern sense has a specific home. Dictionary.com traces it to Black, Latinx and “queer ball culture in the 1970–80s,” where slaying meant an outfit, a look and a walk were flawless.

It reached a wider audience through drag. Dictionary.com points to the 1991 documentary Paris Is Burning and to RuPaul’s Drag Race, which from 2009 gave slay “a massive signal boost.”

Who says it now

Slay is older than Gen Z; the translator files it under Gen Z by its own convention. In our observation it is now used as a compliment across a wide range of ages, sometimes as a one-word cheer.

Tone

Upbeat and celebratory. As praise it is not rude, though it is often exaggerated for fun (“you slayed that grocery run”). Because it comes from Black and queer ball culture, some people like to acknowledge that history when they use it.

What adults hear, what kids mean

An older listener may hear the violent meaning first, which makes “she slayed” sound alarming out of context. In the slang sense a kid means the opposite of harm: someone did something brilliantly.

How to use it

Slay works as a verb with an object (“she slayed that speech”), as a verb alone (“that outfit slays”), and as a one-word reaction. For this sense the past tense is usually slayed, as in Cambridge’s example “Taylor Swift slayed last night.”

Two examples, written by us:

How to answer it

If someone says you slayed, say thanks. To return the compliment, “You slayed too” or simply “Slay!” works.

Same idea, other generations

The Slang-o-matic wheel files Slay under Gen Z for the idea of excellent. These are the words it files under the same idea, by generation. They are related, not always exact translations:

Related slang

Try the slang translatorAll slang by generation

Sources

Meanings and dates on this page come from these dictionaries. Each quote is copied word for word from the linked page.