I learned Gen Z slang to connect with my kids. They still cringe when I use it.

The author (not pictured) started learning her Gen Z kids' slang to connect with them.

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• I started using my teens' slang to better understand them.
• Words like "rizz," "mid," and "slay" entered my vocabulary.
• Sometimes it connects us — sometimes they cringe.

I remember how mystified the grandparents who raised me were when I hit high school and the word "like" permeated at least half of the words in any given sentence that popped out of my teenage mouth.