While Kim Kardashian was busy ābreaking the Internetā with her controversial photoshoot for ±Ź²¹±č±š°łĢżin November of 2014, New Zealand singer/songwriter Lorde was teaching the worldāor at least her Twitter and Tumblr followersāabout a new slang use of the word mom.
How isĀ ³¾“Ē³¾Ģżused on the internet?
These three little letters tweeted out by Lorde in response to Kardashianās cover photo caused such confusion that the 18-year-old felt compelled to explain what she meant by ³¾“Ē³¾Ģżin this particular context. On Tumblr, Lorde responded to a concerned fan who asked how could she call herself a feminist, but then judge Kardashian for being a mother and posing nude. : āi retweeted kimās amazing cover and wrote āMOMā, which among the youthz is a compliment; it basically jokingly means āadopt me/be my second mom/i think of you as a mother figure you are so epic.āā
Itās clear that this use of mom is not just a part of Lordeās idiolect from aĀ fanās tweet defending her: “I’m giving her the benefit of the doubt and assuming she’s saying, like ‘omg mom.'”Ā From this tweet, itās obvious that āomg momā (followed by a smiley face with hearts in its eyes) is very different than just calling out the fact that someone is literally a mother. āThe benefit of the doubtā implies that misinterpretation is a real possibility and that mom has more senses than just the most common meaning.Ā Lordeās explanation makes it clear that the stand-alone mom can be an expression of adulation or variation on the rhetorical question, “Will you be my mom?”
How long has mom been used this way?
Here are examples from 2007 and 2010 where ābeing coolā warrants the evocation of mom:
wow you're cool. can you be my mom?
— Joseph Philipson (@joephilipson)
Dear Lady Who Just Asked The Concierge If It's Okay To Carry Open Beer On The Street,
Will you be my mom?
— caprice crane (@capricecrane)
It seems like Lorde’s use of ³¾“Ē³¾Ģżin reference to admired famous people didn’t really become widespread until the last year or two. Evidence of this trend is relatively hard to find because people predominately use the word mom or the hashtag #mom to refer to their actual moms, or to friends’ moms who they want to be their moms (often because the mommed individual has just baked something that looks delicious). It’s much more obvious that this particular use of ³¾“Ē³¾Ģżis in play when teen girls tweet at childless celebrities like Taylor Swift, Ariana Grande, and Chloe Grace Moretz as detailed onĀ . Model and actress that her fans were calling her mom.
Yes, Ruby Rose. The Internet is a confusing place, but it’s comforting to know that when lighted by the glow of our devices, anyone we admire can be our mom. All we have to do is type the word.
