Flex

Flex (verb / noun / modern slang)

(Also heard as: Big flex, Weird flex, Flexing, Humble flex)

Definition: Showing off your money, nice clobber, success, or body just to make sure everyone in the room knows you’re doing better than them.

Where It Comes From: Started with gym heads literally flexing their biceps in the mirror to show off their muscle. In the 90s, US rap tracks by artists like Ice Cube picked it up for flaunting cash and flash jewelry. Once Instagram arrived and everyone started posting steering wheel photos and designer shopping bags, the whole internet turned “flex” into the go-to word for showing off.

How People Actually Use It: Called out the second a mate “accidentally” leaves his new designer watch in full view of a photo, or casually mentions how much he spent on a pair of trainers. You’ll hear “weird flex” when someone boasts about something nobody cares about, like bragging they’ve only had two hours of sleep or that they haven’t taken a sick day in five years.

Examples in the Wild:

• “He only bought that bottle of champagne in the club so he could flex on his Snapchat story.”

  Translation: He bought an overpriced drink purely to show off on social media.

• “Bragging that you worked a 14-hour shift on a Sunday is a bit of a weird flex, mate.”

  Translation: Boasting about overworking yourself isn’t the compliment you think it is.

• “She booked front-row tickets to the gig just as a proper flex.”

  Translation: She bought expensive seats to show she has the cash to spare.

Similar Slang: Flashing the cash, Showing off, Bigging yourself up, Stunt, Flaunting, Bragging