CATFISH

What Does CATFISH Mean in a Text?

The Growing Glossary of Dating Slang

If you're new to online dating, then I'm afraid there is whole new language with well over 250 terms for you to learn.

Particularly since the rise of the iKids, people have been far more open about their sexual preferences and desires, and this has generated a long glossary of new dating terms. Many sexual preferences are still abbreviated on dating sites, presumably with the idea that those who do not understand the term do not need to know it. That thinking does not help newcomers though. Here is the term you're looking for:

A CATFISH is a false online persona to lure someone into an online relationship.

More Detail...

The term CATFISH can also be used as a verb meaning "to lure someone into a relationship by adopting a false persona online." Of note, the scope of the term CATFISH is steadily expanding. The term is increasingly used to denote any false online persona (i.e., not expressly for the purpose of luring someone into a relationship). For example, someone trolling an internet chat forum using a false persona might also be called a CATFISH. (A person using a false identity is also called a SOCKPUPPET.)

Image for CATFISH

When I write CATFISH, I mean this:

A CATFISH is a fake online persona.

Summary of Key Points

We have summarized the key points in the table below:

CATFISH
Definition:	Fake Online Persona
Type:	Slang Word (Jargon)
Guessability:	4: Difficult to guess
Typical Users:	Adults and Teenagers

Examples of CATFISH in Sentences

Here are examples of CATFISH in conversations:

• Pete: Did you meet that cheerleader at the cinema?
• Jordan: She didn't show. I think she might be a CATFISH.

• Sam: I was seriously CATFISHED by a man last night.
• Jo: How do you know?
• Sam: When I asked for a photo, he sent me a picture of Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz, and when we spoke, it was clearly someone putting on a woman's voice.

An Academic Look at CATFISH

CATFISH is a word which is employed as slang word. (Slang refers to words, phrases and uses of language that are regarded as very informal and which are often restricted to a special context or a particular group of users.)

CATFISH can be used as a noun or a transitive verb. For example:

• She is a CATFISH.
(Here, CATFISH is a noun.)

• She CATFISHED John.
(Here, CATFISH is a verb. Note that it is transitive; i.e., it can take a direct object (here, John).)

What Did We Say before Texting and Social Media?

Before the digital era, we might have said something like "fake persona" instead of CATFISH.

Example of CATFISH Used in a Text

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