"GG! Even though we totally got rekt by a team of n00bs. This guy, StealthMaster77 – felt like he was smurfing, so annoying! Also, we really need to stop feeding the enemy." If this seems like a bunch of mumbo jumbo to you, you're forgiven. The slang that kids use in online gaming these days has truly taken a life of its own — it's almost like they're using a secret code to communicate! Yet, as parents, it is important that we understand what is going on in our kids' worlds, so that we can provide them with adequate guidance and support. In this article, we'll try to decode some of the more commonly used gaming slangs for you.

Where victory is achieved against the odds. E.g., where a player is the sole survivor of their team and manages to secure victory against a team of 5 opponents, this player can be said to have 'clutched' a 1v5 victory. (Now you know what it means if you interrupt your kids mid-game for dinner and they scream “Not now I’m clutching!”)

Used to highlight the difference maker in a round or game: either a player is so highly skilled that their team wins the round because of them, or they are so lacking in skill that they can single handedly cause their team to lose. This can be both used positively and negatively! E.g., "Your team won ’cause of your tank. Truly tank diff” or “Man, we have support diff, they keep on feeding”.

The act of getting defeated (e.g., 'killed') by the opposing team repeatedly, thereby helping (that is, 'feeding') the opposing team. This may be done on purpose or simply by being a noob (see below). [Parent Pro-tip: Watch out for players who may resort to negative or even abusive language while accusing others of intentional 'feeding' in the game!]

Good game (this is an old school one!) Ordinarily, typing "GG" in the chat at the end of a multi-player game is a show of good sportsmanship (akin to shaking your competitor's hand at the end of a sporting match) — seems innocuous, right? Not always — sometimes, 'GG' can be said in a sarcastic fashion to mock someone. For example, the combo 'GG WP' means 'good game, well played' (probably respectful) while 'GG EZ' means 'good game, easy' (probably insulting).

The act of doing something repetitively to progress in the game (such as to level up one's character, gain experience points or acquire certain items). E.g., "I spent the whole weekend grinding to unlock that new ability." [Parent Pro-tip: Pay attention to your kid's screen time as they can get easily caught up in 'grinding' in a game for hours upon hours!]

Refers to a new, lowly-ranked or unskilled player. Depending on the context, this can either be seen as a friendly term or a derogatory insult. E.g., "Stop being such a n00b!" [Parent Pro-tip: "n00b" wasn't a typo! Replacing letters with numbers and symbols is known as 'leet speak' or '1337 speak', an informal way of typing that originated from online gaming communities. Using leet can be a sneaky way for children to get around content moderation bots (e.g., the word 'porn' may be censored but not 'p0rn'.)]

Rekt is a phonetic spelling of “wrecked”. These apply when a player is majorly outperforming an opponent and wins them by a landslide during the game or after a round. They can be used to provoke an opponent about their skill disparity or lament about a player’s own lack of skill. E.g., "You got totally destroyed man!" or "Ugh I just got rekt!"

An adjective used to describe someone who is angry, upset or bitter, typically over a loss. E.g., "Don't be so salty just because you lost the match." or "He is feeling salty because I totally rekt him in the last 3 games!"

A beloved small, blue fictional creature... oops that's not right, that's another Smurf we're thinking of! 'Smurf' in online gaming refers to a highly-skilled player playing on a low-level account against other lower-skilled players, or more recently, used to refer to accounts that are lower in rank, but played by highly-skilled players. This can be disruptive and frustrating for some players — in fact, smurfing is explicitly banned in some games (like Fortnite)!

A player who intentionally provokes or attacks other players. E.g., "Don't feed the trolls" (that is, ignore the bullies!) One study suggests that there are 3 different types of trolls: (1) 'attack' trolls seek their victims' misery; (2) 'sensation-seeking' trolls seek friendship or conversation; and (3) 'interaction-seeking' trolls seek sensation and thrill for themselves. [Parent Pro-tip: Keep an eye out for any signs that your child is being targeted by trolls online! Trolling can escalate into cyberbullying and is typically forbidden by community guidelines/standards set by game developers.]