HYPEBEAST

What Does Hypebeast Mean in a Text?

The Quick Answer

Hypebeast means "A Fashion Victim."

More Detail...

It is a term often used in fashion culture referring to a person who is driven by the desire to acquire trendy clothing, accessories, or other goods, particularly those associated with streetwear brands or designer collaborations. This desire is primarily motivated by the "hype" surrounding product releases, where limited availability often creates intense competition and high resale value.

Being a "hypebeast" can have both positive and negative connotations. On the positive side, it can denote someone who is very in-tune with trends and enthusiastic about fashion and culture. On the negative side, it can be used pejoratively to describe someone who blindly follows trends without developing their own style, or who prioritizes brand names and hype over the actual aesthetic or quality of the items (i.e., a "fashion victim").

When used as a derogatory term, hypebeast implies that such people are attempting to hide their character flaws by purchasing expensive and exclusive clothing and accessories. For example:

Ali: These sneakers were $500. Pretty cool, eh?
Sam: You're such a hypebeast.

Sam: Have you seen Ali's new sneakers? He thinks he's Jay-Z with those things on.
Lee: He is such a saddo hypebeast.

Hypebeast is similar in use to terms such as fashionista and fop. The popularity of the term is widely credited to college student Kevin Ma, who created a blog in 2005, to document his fashion interests. Ma called his blog Hypebeast, even though it was already quite well established as a derogatory term well before that time.

Image for Hypebeast

When I write Hypebeast, I mean this:

A hypebeast is usually derided by their peers.

Summary of Key Points

We have summarized the key points in the table below:

Hypebeast
Definition:	A Fashion Victim
Type:	Slang Word (Jargon)
Guessability:	3: Guessable
Typical Users:	Adults and Teenagers

An Academic Look at Hypebeast

As it is formed by merging two words into one, Hypebeast is a portmanteau word. It is a combination of the words Hype, as in "Extravagant or intensive publicity or promotion," and Beast, as in "Someone who demonstrates exceptional skill or dedication." Hypebeast can also be considered a neologism (i.e., a newly coined word or term which has emerged into everyday usage). Some neologisms are formally accepted into mainstream language (at which point, they cease to be neologisms), and some wither until they can longer be considered everyday terms. A neologism can be: