We explain what it means that something is lit either lit af and how these expressions are used on social networks. Also, what is its meaning in other jargons.
What do “lit” and “lit af” mean?
In social media jargon, lit It is an expression used to express that something has a very positive evaluation for the speaker, that is, as a synonym for “great”, “excellent” or “cool”. Like this last word, lit It is a loan from English, that is, an Anglicism, and for that reason it must be written in italics when it is a formal context.
This word comes from the past conjugation of the English verb to light (“ignite”), so it could be translated as “on” or “radiant.” In the English language, it is quite common to compare sudden joy or happiness with the light turning on, for example, when saying that someone's face “lighted up” when opening a gift (her/his face lit up as she opened her present).
On the other hand, In rap music and other street slang the term is used lit as a synonym for “intoxicated”that is, “drunk” or “drunk,” a usage that originated in English more than a century ago, and has come back into fashion. For that reason, lit He also went on to describe the party atmosphere, the excitement and hubbub of the parties. Hence it is used in other contexts to refer to fun, joy, or good timesand with that meaning it was borrowed into Spanish, given the predominance of English in social networks and world 2.0.
In this same context, lit af consists of an abbreviation of the superlative expression lit as fuckwhich would mean “lit to the max” or “lit to the bone” (although expressed in a much cruder way). This expression means that something or someone is fun, good or extremely attractive. For example:
- “That post stayed with you lit affriend”.
- “Mary's sister is lit af”.
- “Yesterday we went to Pedro's party, everything was lit af”.
Other uses of the term “lit”
In Hispanic contexts of social networks and community 2.0, it is possible to find the term “lit” used with different connotations than the original ones in the English language. In this case, This is an abbreviation of “literal,” which means that things happened in the exact way they are told.without exaggerations or metaphors. For example:
- “My girlfriend is lit in China” (“literally in China”).
- “Yesterday we ate lit un kilo de patatas” (“literally a kilo of potatoes”).
Continue with: Cringe
References
- “Lit af” in Urban Dictionary.
- “What the hell is Lit and why do they use it so much? Here we explain it to you with little apples” (video) in Daily Trend.
- “It's Lit” in Merriam-Webster Dictionary.
