bop

Bop has two very different slang meanings. Most often it’s a catchy, upbeat song. But it’s also an insult for a girl or woman seen as promiscuous, and that use is offensive. Which one someone means depends entirely on whether they’re talking about music or a person.

Bop as a song

“This song is a bop” means it’s fun, catchy and makes you want to dance. Wiktionary defines it as a good, catchy song, one that makes you want to move. It’s a friendly, everyday compliment, a little lighter than banger. “A total bop” and “nothing but bops” are common.

This sense comes from bebop, the fast jazz style of the 1940s; Merriam-Webster dates “bop” as short for bebop to 1945. To bop is also to dance to music with a strong beat.

Bop as an insult

In more recent slang, calling a person a bop is a put-down. Merriam-Webster’s slang page describes it as an offensive term for someone, usually a young woman, seen as promiscuous or as presenting herself immodestly online. It says this use became widespread after rapper Almighty Rexxo released a song called “Lala Bop” in 2021, though it had appeared in African American English and hip-hop lyrics since at least the 1990s. In 2023 a trend spread on TikTok of tagging girls as a “lala bop” or “school bop.”

Merriam-Webster notes that this use is considered harmful and is typically a form of cyberbullying. It’s misogynistic, and it’s worth knowing about if you’re a parent or teacher who hears it at school.

Examples

• “The new single is such a bop.” (song)
• “My playlist is all bops, no skips.” (song)
• “Kids at school keep calling her a bop and it needs to stop.” (insult)

Related terms

• Banger: a loud, energetic hit.
• Slaps: is really good.
• Pick-me: another label aimed mostly at girls.

See more terms like this in our Gen Z slang guide.