Monkey branching, wokefishing, zombieing: Modern dating terms you should know

Keeping up with modern dating lingo can feel more complicated than landing a date itself. Modern dating scenarios have changed dramatically, thanks to dating apps and digital communication. This change brings a whole new vocabulary to describe the confusing, sometimes painful experiences that can occur in contemporary dating. Familiarity with these terms is important for navigating the new dating world. It’s always good to know whether you are being ghosted, kitten-fished, or slow-faded.Benching (verb): When someone keeps you on the waiting list while they date other people. They tell you they’re interested but are not prioritising you. You are basically a backup option.Breadcrumbing (verb): Sending texts daily to keep you interested without committing. They maintain just enough contact to keep you in their life as a backup option.Catch and release (verb): Dating intensely and then suddenly losing interest. Then they disappear, only to repeat the same pattern with someone new.Cuffing season (noun): A trend of dating someone during the autumn and winter months. Colder months can feel more isolating, and people also want a partner for the festive season. Such relationships often end in spring.Cushioning (verb): Maintaining multiple romantic interests simultaneously as emotional safety nets, so that if your main relationship ends, you have others lined up.Dry-texting (verb): Sending minimal-effort, short, limited, or non-enthusiastic responses in conversations. This attitude results from a lack of interest or willingness to put in effort.Freckling (noun): The opposite of cuffing season. It’s when someone dates casually during the summer months, when going out is easy, then ends things when autumn arrives.Future proofing (verb): Instead of falling for instant chemistry, a partner is selected based on long-term potential, emotional stability, and shared goals.Ghosting (verb): When someone you are dating suddenly cuts off all communication without explanation or warning, as if they have disappeared from your life completely.Haunting (verb): Just like a literal ghost, the ex reappears after ghosting you. They start engaging with your social media profiles through likes, comments, or unexpected messages.Icing (verb): When the person you are dating deliberately ignores your messages and calls to get you to break up with them. This silent treatment is a break-up tactic.Love bombing (verb): Giving someone excessive affection and attention in the early phase of dating to quickly win them over.Monkey branching (verb): Only moving on to a new relationship after securing another romantic interest. Just like a monkey, they swing from branch to branch to avoid being alone.Negging (verb): Giving backhanded compliments to lower someone’s self-esteem so that they seek your validation.Orbiting (verb): When someone engages with your social media by liking posts, viewing stories, and watching your updates to stay on your radar without initiating any direct communication.Roaching (verb): When you discover that the person you are dating is seriously involved with several people and never disclosed this to you.Slow fade (verb): When someone gradually reduces communication. There is no official break-up or explanation. The connection just fades away.Stashing (verb): When your partner is hiding you from their social circles. You hardly get to meet their friends or family, despite being in a relationship.Textationship (noun): A relationship that exists mostly through texting. There may be great conversations online but rare or no in-person meetings.Wokefishing (verb): Presenting yourself as more politically progressive, socially conscious, or ‘woke’ than you actually are to attract certain partners.Zombieing (verb): A form of haunting where someone who ghosted you suddenly reappears and acts as if nothing happened. This approach usually comes through casual messages or attempts to reconnect.