Get unlimited access to everything VICE has to offer.

Turn off all ads on VICE.com

Exclusive New VICE Documentaries

Member Exclusive Features & Columns

Turn off all ads on VICE.com

Exclusive New VICE Documentaries

Member Exclusive Features & Columns

Turn off all ads on VICE.com

Exclusive New VICE Documentaries

Member Exclusive Features & Columns

4 Magazines Delivered to Your Door

The Real Meaning Behind ‘Polyester,’ Gen Z’s Favorite New Insult

The slang started with flashy edits and fabric jokes, then evolved into a catch-all for anything fake, disposable or painfully try-hard.

Share on X (Opens in new window)X

Share on Facebook (Opens in new window)Facebook

Share using Native toolsShareCopied to clipboard

Every generation creates its own slang for calling someone fake. Boomers had “plastic.” Gen X had “sellout.” Millennials had “basic.” Gen Z has gone with “polyester,” and the insult is more layered than it sounds.

“Polyester” has been making the rounds on TikTok and X this summer as shorthand for anything that looks good from a distance and falls apart up close. The influencer hawking a product they’ve never used, polyester. The carefully staged candid moment, polyester. The aspirational lifestyle that appears to have........

© Vice