Gen Z has new X-rated term that’s leaving people ‘disgusted’

Gen Z has long prided itself on being the vanguard of linguistic evolution, spinning everyday words into bold, often controversial new meanings. But their latest verbal export, “cracked,” has hit a significant nerve, clashing with the very “woke” and inclusive culture this generation claims to champion.

For anyone over 25, decoding the Gen Z lexicon can feel like studying an alien dialect. Born between 1997 and 2012, this cohort has successfully mainstreamed a vocabulary filled with terms like “drip,” “slay,” and “bussin.” While most of these feel like harmless linguistic flair, “cracked” has emerged as a layered and, in certain contexts, deeply problematic addition to the digital vernacular.

From Digital Greatness to X-Rated Slang

Traditionally, the dictionary provides a binary definition for “cracked”: something damaged and showing splits, or a person who is “completely irrational.” However, in the hands of Gen Z, the term has been hijacked and reinterpreted to fit a new social reality.

The most common usage began in the gaming world. On platforms like TikTok and Reddit, “cracked” became the ultimate compliment for someone possessing god-tier skill in competitive titles like Fortnite or Call of Duty. In this arena, it is a badge of honor—a modern upgrade to “elite.”

As one Reddit user put it: “Cracked means insane, really good or godlike. Like when someone does some crazy s***, you say ‘damn he’s cracked.’”

But the term didn’t stop at high scores. More recently, it has taken an X-rated turn that is raising eyebrows across the internet. In specific social circles, “getting cracked” has morphed into slang for having sex, primarily framed from a male perspective.

The trend gained significant traction after several viral TikToks featured workers in the service industry dancing while overlaying text like: “Me when I got cracked three times last night which means everyone [gonna] get FULL fries today.” While these videos often garner millions of views, they have sparked an intense debate over the phrase’s darker implications.

 

The Logic of a “Violent Act”

The controversy reached a boiling point when TikTok’s resident linguist, @etymologynerd, posted a viral breakdown of why the term is raising alarms. He points out that unlike “sleeping with” or “hooking up,” “getting cracked” is fundamentally non-reversible and gendered.

“At least in heterosexual intercourse, if Britney slept with Derek, you can say that Britney got cracked, but not that Derek got cracked,” he explained. “The metaphor visualizes it as a violent act done by a man to a woman.”

This framing aligns “cracked” with older, aggressive metaphors like “smashing,” “banging,” or “hitting that.” By visualizing sex as something “done to” a partner rather than a mutual experience, critics argue the term erases agency and reinforces misogynistic power dynamics—the very things Gen Z usually claims to dismantle.

The reaction in the comments sections reflects this generational divide. “It sounds violent I don’t like it [to be honest],” one user wrote. Another added more pointedly: “Toxic masculinity influences common phrases and heightens the effect of how women [are] seen as objects… evolution of misogyny.”

 

The Slippery Slope of Digital Slang

The rapid transformation of “cracked” highlights the “slippery” nature of modern slang. Fueled by social media algorithms and the need for coded language to bypass censorship, a word can mean “amazing” in one post and a crude euphemism in the next.

While every generation invents its own code, the shift of “cracked” into the territory of gendered power dynamics has created a rare moment of self-reflection for a generation that prides itself on social awareness. It serves as a reminder that language—even when intended as a joke or a trend—carries the weight of the culture that created it.

As this term continues to circulate, the question remains: is this just the natural evolution of language, or a step backward for a generation striving for equality?