Are You Cheugy?
What the hell are people talking about when they say it, and are they talking about us?
We’re seeing the word “cheugy” a lot recently, and we’ve got some questions. Who’s cheugy? What’s cheugy? How do you pronounce cheugy? And, most importantly, how do I know if I’m cheugy, and if I am, how do I stop?! Have no fear— the first ever cheugiologists are here, and we’re breaking down cheugism.
Let’s get this out of the way first: it’s pronounced CHOO-GEE. Yes— it looks a lot funkier than that, and no— we don’t know why. The term was actually first born back in 2013 by then-high-schooler, Gaby Rasson. Though, it takes a while for a made-up word to work its way into the zeitgeist. Thanks to the internet, it happens way faster. It’s how we got important terms like “selfie,” “cringey,” and “FAQ.” It also gave us the verb versions of “troll” and “ghost” (which were previously just debatably mythical creatures) plus niche expressions like “Ok boomer,” “dumpster fire,” and “TL;DR.” And, we need these terms! They’ve made their way from an inventive linguistic brain somewhere across the world to us, because there was a vocab gap that needed to be filled. Cheugy is no different.
What’s the definition of cheugy? Well, that’s a bit more complicated. Cheuginess is subjective. Cheugy people (also known as cheugs) are basically out of date try-hards. The term falls somewhere between basic and corny; it’s a little eye-roll-y, a little embarrassing, and it mostly describes millennials. So, it’s not quite the out-of-touch embarrassment level of our parents, but… getting there. And, it’s not always easy to avoid— for millennials, a lot of the trends that are becoming popular are from when they were kids, and they come across as.... well, cheugy.
Image source Instagram @thefunnystitch
Though what's cheugy for you might not be cheugy for others, some things seem to be agreed upon across the board: “girlboss” energy (you know what we mean,) Harry Potter, Disney Adults, Live, Laugh, Love paraphernalia or decor with a similar vibe, Friends reruns, minions, and using words like “doggo.”
But, as Hallie Cain, who recently brought “cheugy” to TikTok and caused its rise in popularity, told The New York Times, “when I was first introduced to the word in 2015, low rise jeans were cheugy. Now, six years later, low rise jeans are back in style and I don’t think they’re cheugy anymore.” So, in the end, cheugy is ever-changing and always open for debate. Cheugy is really a state of mind. Now that you’ve had a crash course in cheugism, here’s a quiz to see if what you think is cheugy is the same as what others think is cheugy.
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