United Statesbail
verb · Informal
To leave abruptly, or to back out of a commitment. 'She bailed on dinner.'
United States
American Slang for Filler Words
27 American slang terms for filler words, each with its meaning, how it is pronounced and an example of it in use.
The small words that hold speech together: hedges, tags, intensifiers and pause-fillers. Almost invisible to native speakers and almost impossible for learners.
bet
interjection · Informal
Okay; got it; sounds good. A one-word confirmation.
+1 more sense
bless your heart
phrase, idiom · Regional
Genuine sympathy for someone's misfortune.
+1 more sense
Use with care
canceled
adjective, verb · Informal
Publicly rejected after a controversy, with the aim of withdrawing support and attention. A genuinely contested term — what counts as being cancelled, and whether it happens at all, is politically loaded.
+1 more sense
Use with care
chill
adjective, verb · Colloquial
Relaxed, easy-going. Of a person, a place or a plan: 'he's chill', 'a chill evening'.
+2 more senses
deadass
adverb, adjective · Informal
Seriously; for real. Both as an intensifier and as a standalone challenge: 'deadass?'
doing the most
phrase · Informal
Overdoing it; trying far too hard. Its counterpart, doing the least, means putting in no effort at all.
facts
interjection · Informal
Agreed; that's exactly right. A one-word endorsement of what was just said.
fixin' to
phrase · Regional
About to; on the point of. Marks immediate future intention, and is a genuine grammatical construction rather than a colourful phrase.
ghost
verb · Informal
To cut off all contact with someone abruptly and without explanation. Originally about dating and now used of friends, recruiters and clients too.
hang
verb, noun · Colloquial
To spend unstructured time with someone. 'Want to hang?'
+1 more sense
hella
adverb, adjective · Regional
Very; a lot of. Northern Californian, and a reliable regional marker — Bay Area speakers use it constantly and Southern Californians largely don't.
highkey
adverb · Informal
Openly, very much, without hedging. Formed as a deliberate counterpart to lowkey.
kick it
phrase, verb · Informal
To relax and spend time together with no particular plan.
let him cook
phrase, idiom · Informal
Give them room to work — their plan may look strange but it will come good. Sometimes sincere, sometimes sarcastic about something clearly going wrong.
lowkey
adverb · Informal
Slightly; secretly; a bit. Hedges an admission the speaker is half-embarrassed by: 'I lowkey want to leave'.
+1 more sense
no cap
phrase · Informal
No lie; I'm serious. Appended to a statement to vouch for it.
+1 more sense
receipts
noun · Informal
Documentary proof of a claim — screenshots, messages, recordings. 'Post the receipts.'
say less
phrase · Informal
You don't have to explain further, I'm in. Signals immediate agreement — the opposite of asking someone to be quiet.
shade
noun · Informal
A subtle, deniable insult. Throwing shade is criticising someone obliquely enough that they cannot easily object.
shoot the breeze
phrase, idiom · Colloquial
To chat idly about nothing in particular.
spill
verb · Informal
To share information you have been holding back. Usually as a one-word imperative: 'spill'.
tea
noun · Informal
Gossip; the inside story. Spill the tea is to share it; what's the tea is to ask for it.
vibe
noun, verb · Informal
The feeling or atmosphere of a person, place or thing. 'The vibe was off.'
+2 more senses
wicked
adverb · Regional
Very, extremely. A New England intensifier: wicked good, wicked cold. Note that it modifies adjectives and is not itself one.
word
interjection · Informal
Agreed; I hear you. An acknowledgement.
+1 more sense
y'all
noun · Colloquial
You, plural. Fills a genuine gap in standard English, which lost its second-person plural, and has spread far beyond the South for exactly that reason.
+1 more sense