The Dating Slang Glossary: From Ghosting to Delulu

Dating slang moves faster than your situationship's replies. Quick version: ghosting is vanishing without a word, breadcrumbing is sending just enough attention to keep you hooked, orbiting is ghosting you but still watching your stories, zombieing is coming back from the dead, love bombing is way too much affection way too fast, a situationship is a relationship with no label, rizz is charm, and delulu is delusional (often on purpose). Below: every term you'll meet on the apps, what it really means, and what to do when it happens to you.

The vanishing acts

Ghosting

Ending things by disappearing. No message, no explanation, just silence. The classic. (Yes, an app called Ghosted is defining ghosting. We're in on the joke.) If it just happened to you, here's what to text after getting ghosted.

Soft ghosting

They still technically answer, with a thumbs-up, a "haha" or a heart reaction, but the conversation is dead. Ghosting on a payment plan.

Slow fade

Replies get shorter and slower until there's nothing left. Like ghosting, but with a dimmer switch.

Left on read

They opened your message and didn't reply. Read receipts: humanity's cruelest invention.

Orbiting

They stopped texting you, but they watch every story and like a photo of yours from 2023. Gone, but not gone. Also called haunting.

Zombieing

They ghosted you, then rise from the dead months later with "hey stranger 👀". Friendly reminder: you don't owe a zombie a reply.

The mixed signals

Breadcrumbing

Tiny crumbs of attention (a like, a "we should hang out sometime") and never an actual plan. Enough to keep you hoping, never enough to feed you. The test: suggest a specific day. Breadcrumbers hate calendars.

Benching

You're on the bench, kept warm in case their first pick doesn't work out. Occasional texts, zero playing time.

Cushioning

Keeping a few flirty chats going on the side, just in case the main relationship crashes. A pillow for the fall, and you're the pillow.

Curving

Dodging without ever saying no. Every plan gets a "haha maybe!" A soft rejection in disguise.

Situationship and talking stage

The talking stage is the early, pre-label phase: lots of texting, maybe a date or two, nothing official. A situationship is when that phase has lasted months: more than friends, less than partners, zero label. One is a stage, the other has become a lifestyle. We have a full guide on how to ask "what are we?".

DTR

"Define the relationship." The talk. The one that ends a situationship, in one direction or the other.

Too much, too fast

Love bombing

An avalanche of affection very early on: "you're my soulmate" on day three, nonstop texts, big gestures. It feels amazing, and sometimes it's a way to rush you or control you. Real interest is consistent, not explosive. It's high on our list of red flags and green flags.

Future faking

Planning your trip to Lisbon together before the second date. Big promises, zero follow-through.

Cuffing season

The colder months, when everyone suddenly wants someone to watch series with under a blanket. Starts roughly with the first hoodie of the year.

The fakes

Catfishing

Pretending to be someone else online, with stolen photos or a made-up identity. Sometimes for fun, often for money. Learn how to spot a catfish before they ruin your week.

Kittenfishing

The light version: a real person, but with photos from five years and three filters ago. You meet up and spend the first ten minutes playing "spot the difference". This is exactly why Ghosted publishes photos as they are (no filters, no retouching, no AI), and removes heavily edited or AI-generated ones.

The vibe check vocabulary

Rizz

Charm, game, the ability to flirt. Short for "charisma". Good rizz gets you a date. Unspoken rizz gets you a date without saying a word (rare, legendary).

Delulu

Short for delusional, usually about a crush. "He liked my story, so we're basically engaged." The ironic motto: "delulu is the solulu". Fun in small doses.

The ick

A sudden, irreversible turn-off over something tiny. The way they run for the bus. How they say "yummy". It makes no sense, and that's what makes it the ick.

Red flag, green flag, beige flag

A red flag is a warning sign (rude to waiters, still "best friends" with all six exes). A green flag is a good sign (they ask questions and actually listen to the answers). A beige flag is neither, just a little boring (their whole bio is a sitcom quote).

Main character energy

Confidently living like you're the lead in your own movie. Great on a first date. Less great if they forget you're in the scene too.

FAQ

What's the difference between ghosting and breadcrumbing?

Ghosting is zero contact. Breadcrumbing is just enough contact to keep you around. One leaves, the other lingers.

What's the difference between a situationship and a talking stage?

Time. A talking stage is the early phase where you're figuring each other out. A situationship is when months have passed and there's still no label.

Is orbiting worse than ghosting?

It's more confusing, which can make it hurt more. Mute them. Out of sight, out of orbit.

What does "delulu" mean?

It's short for delusional: building a whole love story in your head from very little evidence. Mostly said as a joke about yourself.