TikTok Is OD With Its Slang, however What Does "OD" Actually Mean?

Feb. 7 2024, Published 10:46 a.m. ET

Linguist David Crystal has many quotes about the constantly in flux nature of languages. “Dictionaries reside, breathing documents,” he reminds us, so it’s no marvel that phrases ceaselessly take on new meanings in slang. Thanks to the ability of TikTok, language is now changing faster than ever as whole generations are tuned into the similar source of entertainment. If Gretchen Weiners in reality wanted to make “fetch” occur, now will be the time!

The latest eccentricity in language is the use of “OD” on TikTok. People will say things like “That’s so OD” or “You’re OD.” Now that the vernacular is getting handed around left and proper in actual existence and social media, individuals are wondering what OD in reality method.

On TikTok, “OD” still stands for overdose, but it surely suggests that one thing is over the top or too much.

Plenty of content material creators say that something or somebody is OD when making videos. It signifies that one thing is an excessive amount of, so it has taken on a which means past a literal overdose. In the past, we used OD to explain when someone overdosed on something, whether that’s a drug, screen time, or any other destructive factor.

Now, however, if something or anyone is OD, it just means that they’re being over the top. But this use of the word comes from conversational slang and it best unfold through TikTok. We can see in two other videos how the slang has evolved from street slang into TikTok slang.

In the first video, shared in 2020 through writer Dewane Mutunga, he defines several New York City slang terms, from “Brolic” to “Jackin’” and several other others, together with “OD.” He explains, “OD simply way ‘a lot,’ like ‘excessive,’ like, ‘Nah that’s OD, you OD’ed,’ or whatever.” Now, virtually four years later, Gen Z women who use TikTok are also the use of the term “OD.”

The 2nd video options influencer Ryan Burton asking white women about different slang terms on the LoveLiveServe TikTok channel. “What does ‘That’s OD’ mean?” he asks them. “That’s overdose, like that’s an excessive amount of. You’re doing too much,” one woman says. “That’s the best answer,” Ryan confirms.

“That’s so much, that’s like, too much,” a distinct girl provides. “Overdose, that’s an excessive amount of,” any other says. It seems like maximum frequent TikTok users are acquainted with the road use of OD due to the platform's ease of sharing and converting language.

OD isn’t the one slang term that has taken on a new life because of TikTok. For example, the term, “bussin’” has been around on Urban Dictionary since 2006, nevertheless it has taken on an entire new existence thanks to TikTok. It signifies that something is “actually excellent,” so as an example, we’d say that our night out at the comedy membership used to be bussin’.

Another example of this is the term “highly spiced,” which TikTokers still use nowadays, even supposing it has been round with a identical meaning since at least the early 2000s if no longer earlier. Even nonetheless, TikTok has altered its meaning moderately. In the early 2000s, it simply referred to somebody or one thing sexual, while now, it additionally comprises things or other folks which may be competitive or controversial.

But perhaps an in-depth rationalization of all of TikTok’s converting slang is OD, so we’ll just leave it there.

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