memes
Contagious online content
Memes are cultural elements—images, videos, phrases, ideas—that spread rapidly through imitation and sharing, especially online.
The term originally described any unit of cultural transmission (fashion, catchphrases, rituals), but now primarily refers to internet content that gets copied and modified: That format became one of the year's biggest memes.
Memes often layer humor through remixing familiar templates with new captions or contexts.
Spreading quickly online
- hashtagLabeled link for posts
- twitterSeries of high-pitched calls
- 4chanAnonymous posting site
- shareableAble to be divided
repost · trending · clickbait · subreddit · copypasta · shitpost · dank · normie
Provoking laughter or suspicion
- jokeHumorous statement seeking laughter
- parodySatirical imitation
- satireMockery exposing vice
- sarcasmIrony used to mock
mockery · irony · caricature · spoof · lampoon · absurd · silly · wit
Preset pattern for reproduction
- deep-friedCooked submerged in fat
- dogeViral Shiba meme
- rickrollMisdirect to specific video
- lossBeing without something
demotivational · stonks · chad · remix · iteration · variation
To distribute widely
- contagiousTransmissible between people
- trendingCurrently gaining widespread attention
- exponentialIncreasing by constant ratio
- proliferationRapid increase in quantity
replication · cascade · snowball · shareability · reach · engagement · circulation · explosion
Hereditary information unit
- replicationAct of duplicating precisely
- imitationCopy of the original
- evolutionSpecies changing over generations
- unitIndividual part or measure
inheritance · mutation · selection · propagation · ideology
One with confidential access
- referenceDirecting attention elsewhere
- in-jokeHumor for few
- subcultureGroup with alternative norms
- ironyMeaning opposite to words
layers · meta · niche · fandom · community · generational · zoomer · millennial
viral
Spreading quickly online
shareable · repost · trending · clickbait · subreddit · copypasta · shitpost · dank · normie
funny
Provoking laughter or suspicion
sarcasm · mockery · irony · caricature · spoof · lampoon · absurd · silly · wit · comedic
template
Preset pattern for reproduction
- deep-friedCooked submerged in fat
- dogeViral Shiba meme
- rickrollMisdirect to specific video
loss · demotivational · stonks · chad · remix · iteration · variation
spread
To distribute widely
- contagiousTransmissible between people
- trendingCurrently gaining widespread attention
- exponentialIncreasing by constant ratio
proliferation · replication · cascade · snowball · shareability · reach · engagement · circulation · explosion · surge
gene
Hereditary information unit
- replicationAct of duplicating precisely
- imitationCopy of the original
- evolutionSpecies changing over generations
unit · inheritance · mutation · selection · propagation · ideology
insider
One with confidential access
- referenceDirecting attention elsewhere
- in-jokeHumor for few
- subcultureGroup with alternative norms
irony · layers · meta · niche · fandom · community · generational · zoomer · millennial · participatory
- entertainmentmovie, movies, films, band, television
- visual mediafilm, video, drawing, photograph, television
- digital culturesocial media, hashtags, viral content, influencers, trolling
- social mediaposts, post, influencer status, followers, tweet
- 2010sInstagram, Snapchat, Uber, Airbnb, Bitcoin
- 2020s trendssocial media, influencers, streaming, TikTok, Instagram
memesoriginal thought
Idea without precedent
personal insight · oral tradition · academic discourse · direct experience
- meme cultureViral content sharing phenomenon
- internet memesReplicating digital humor units
- meme videoShareable humorous online clip
- meme stocksSocially-driven investment phenomena
- dank memesViral ironic internet humor
- animal memesHumorous wildlife images online