slay

To slay means to do something brilliantly, or to look amazing. As a cheer, “slay!” is pure encouragement. If someone slays, they absolutely crush it.

What does slay mean?

In standard English, slay means to kill, usually in an old-fashioned or dramatic way. Slang flips that violence into praise, much like “you killed it.” People slay outfits, performances, exams, karaoke, and pretty much anything else they do with confidence and style.

It works as a verb (“she slayed that”), an exclamation (“slay!”), and an adjective in phrases like “slay queen.” Both “slayed” and “slew” show up as past tense, but “slayed” is the slang standard.

How to use it

• “You slayed that audition.”
• “New haircut? Slay.”
• “She walked in and slayed without even trying.”
• “We’re going to slay this group project.”

Where it comes from

Praise like “slay” has long roots in Black and LGBTQ+ ballroom and drag culture. It moved into pop culture through music, reality TV and social media, and by the 2010s it was everywhere online. Today it is so common that it is sometimes used ironically, for tiny achievements like finally replying to an email.

Related terms

• ate: did something extremely well
• slay queen: a woman who looks or performs amazingly
• left no crumbs: did it perfectly
• snatched: looking flawless
• periodt: end of discussion

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