Slang dictionary
savage AF
or savage af or savage as fuck [ sav-ij ey-ef ] or [ sav-ij az fuhk ]
What does savage AF mean?
On the internet, savage AF is a slang way to characterize something as extremely good, brutally honest, or as a ruthless takedown.
Where does savage AF come from?
Savage AF brings together two slang terms. The first is savage, which has meant “brutal” or “aggressive” since the 1500s. Since at least the 1990s, savage has also been slang for “excellent” (Ć la “Ś¾±±š°ł³¦±šĢżor wicked).Ģż±õ³ŁĢżhas especially come to describe a remark as hilariously but ruthlessly on point.
The second is AF, often lowercased as afĢżand standing for as fuck. As fuckĢżis an intensifying phrase used since the late 1970s. It’s been abbreviated, and mildly censored, as AF in text messages and on social media since the late 2000s.
Together, savage AF have been doubling down on the intensity since at least 2009, whenĢżsavage AF debuts on Twitter. Early uses of savage AF describe something as extremely good, a use that continued into the 2010s.
Last nite was savage af! On everythinnggg!!
ā Black Cherry (@EatVitaminC)
Your savage af. Cool ass person, the life of the party. Oh btw ur better than the rest of the Zodiac signs.
ā iFollowYouNSHIT (@MrSavageAF)
In the mid-2010s, though, savage AFĢżparticularly spread as a way to characterize observations, jokes, insults, and comebacks, the kind that make you put a fist to your mouth … “Oh, no he didn’t!”
In this way, savage AF is a response to a clapback or mic dropāthat sizzling species of burns that inspires true awe. The slang initially sized up genuine disses, such as a rap battle barb or a Taylor Swift snipe, but the internet quickly appropriated it for more light-hearted humor and commentary.
LOL Canadians are SAVAGE AF
ā Jonsandman (@JonsandmanTv)
awwmemes.com
When someone isĢżsavage AF, they’re basicallyĢżspeaking their mind with a badass lack of regard for how it looks or the falloutālike Chrissy Teigen trolling Donald Trump on Twitter.
what time should we call your Uber?
ā christine teigen (@chrissyteigen)
Examples of savage AF
21 Kids Who Are More Savage Than Youāll Ever Be...When kids stop being cute and start getting real.
Who uses savage AF?
Online, savage AF widely characterizes someone who is being brutally honest …
I told my mom that Iām going to do hw all day and sheās like āfine but you need to go workout firstā homegirl is savage af.
ā steph āØ (@_myprettyeyes)
… or someone who won’t put up with anyone’s nonsense.
My aunt savage af. Her dude was bein real rude so she locked all the doors and sheās havin the baby tomorrow morning. She donāt take no shit
ā AleXi$ WiLLZ (@lexwilliams22)
This tell-it-like-it-is, truth-to-power savage AF-ery is generally seen as a positive quality, that a person is being real, even if it stings.
Iāll take a public poll: should MBās video tonight be A.ruthless B. Savage af or C beast mode
ā Ginger Boy Daley (@jdaley2113)
People especially like to slapĢżsavage AF on funny memes, takedown tweets, or celebrity rivalries, whether between Drake and Pusha-T or Chik-fil-A and Wendy’s.
Savage af
ā you donāt know me ā® ā¤š (@Jamie_eliza34)
Note
This is not meant to be a formal definition of savage AF like most terms we define on Dictionary.com, but is rather an informal word summary that hopefully touches upon the key aspects of the meaning and usage of savage AF that will help our users expand their word mastery.