High School Teacher Creates Viral Gen Z Slang Dictionary

By Audacy

 A Massachusetts high school teacher “slayed” the internet after a slang dictionary he created was put “on blast.”

In an attempt to keep up with the students in his class, Lowell High School sociology professor James Callahan created an alphabetized spreadsheet of the “Gen Z” terms the teens use.

"I often overhear students in the hallways or my classrooms using words [or> slang terms in their personal conversations," Callahan told USA Today. "In order to understand them better, [and> make a connection with them on a personal level, I started asking them what certain words meant."

The 43-year-old included phrases like “bop,” “spill the tea,” and “wig snatched,” with their prospective meanings. According to the spreadsheet, a bop is a “modern enjoyable song,” spill the tea means "to gossip,” and wig snatched means an “impressive or unimpressive act/appearance.”

One of Callahan’s students caught wind of the list and immediately shared it on social media.

“My sociology professor keeps an alphabetic list of new slang terms he learns from students and I will never get over it,” the student captioned a tweet featuring images of the list.

It has since been retweeted over 170K times, officially making Callahan internet famous.

When he realized his list had gone viral, Callahan responded by tweeting: “Excited, yet terrified!”

Despite the newfound notoriety, Callahan said his motivation for creating the dictionary was rooted in his student’s best interest.

"The typical teacher-student dynamic involves a rigid power structure,“ he added. “But in my experience, I've found that students are more engaged and perform better if I am able to reach them where they are.”