This post: 40 Funny Teenager “isms” That’ll Make You Laugh Out Loud
If you have a teenager in the house, you might enjoy reading these lighthearted observations (funny teenager “isms”) that capture the relatable life of parents with teens.
Enjoy the humor, parents, and remember to embrace the sweet and silly quirks of your teenager!
40 Funny Teenager “isms” That’ll Make You Laugh Out Loud
1. Hoodie Obsession
The obsession of wearing hoodies (usually with an obsession for one particular hoodie) ALL the time, day or night, rain or shine, regardless of whether it’s 18 or 80 degrees outside.
2. Selective Hearing Syndrome
The uncanny ability for a teenager to conveniently “not hear” their parents or teachers when they’re being asked to do something they don’t want to do, all while having supersonic hearing when it comes to overhearing conversations about pizza, chicken nuggets or nachos.
3. Procrastinationitis
The chronic condition of putting off homework, projects, chores, and other tasks until the last possible minute, usually followed by a sudden burst of frantic productivity just before the deadline.
4. Hangriness
The state of being simultaneously hungry and angry, often triggering irrational moodiness, sassy outbursts, and an urgent need for snacks.
5. Procaffeinating
The tendency to delay any productive activity until after consuming an insane amount of caffeine often found in an expensive Starbucks drink, a Monster, or other caffeine-powered drink until the caffeine kicks in and they get a false sense of motivation.
6. Tired… But Totally Wired
The feeling of being tired but too darn wired to sleep so you text your friends, scroll through social media for hours and go to bed late only to hit the snooze button 15 times the next morning because you’re a zombie and you can’t get out of bed.
7. Snack Attack Syndome
The sudden craving for snacks, typically occurring around midnight, resulting in a full-on kitchen raid, leaving crumbs and dirty dishes everywhere and eating your parents out of house and home.
8. Bad Hair Battle
The perpetual struggle of waking up with unruly hair that defies all attempts to tame it using every expensive hair product and accessory known to mankind.
9. “I’ll Do It Later” Syndrome
A teenager’s belief that everyone is being unreasonable by asking them to interrupt their slumber, downtime, or laziness to do something that can be done tomorrow… or next week… or next month… or next year – all while really pissing their parents off.
10. “Mom? Why Are You Ignoring Me” Mania
The obsession of a teen having to know where their mom is 24/7 and calling (or texting) her 32 times in a row until she answers.
11. Instant Reply Anxiety
The absolute frantic fear of missing a text and not replying within 6 seconds of receiving it.
12. Dysfunctional Drama Dilemma
The act of coming home from school and dumping all the drama that happened that day on your mom’s shoulders and then expecting her to sit back and do nothing, say nothing, and not offer any advice.
13. Foodie Fascination
When a teenager eats and 12 minutes later they’re talking about food, thinking they might be hungry, and standing in front of the refrigerator with the doors open for three minutes trying to figure out what they’re in the mood for… then, they grab a piece of cheese.
14. “Poster Board” Syndrome
When a teenager walks up to their parent at 10 p.m. like they don’t have a care in the world and tells them they need poster board (or some other freaking thing) for school tomorrow.
15. Random Outbursts of “You’re Ruining My Life”
When life is going good and suddenly (without warning) a teenager starts moaning, slamming doors, and claiming you’re ruining their life because you said “no” to some random thing they want to do.
16. Selfie-Obsession
The uncontrollable urge to take multiple selfies in different positions using different filters until you finally settle on “just the right” selfie.
17. Selfie Regret
The feeling a teenager gets when they post a selfie and it doesn’t get the number of likes, hearts, or thumbs up they hoped for so they start to agonize over whether they should have posted it in the first place.
18. Awkwardphobia
The fear of appearing awkward or doing or saying anything that might come off as awkward.
19. “Don’t Hug Me in Public” Dismay
When a teenager would rather get eaten by alligators than show or receive any form of public affection from their parent(s). (But then they’re really sweet when no one is looking.)
20. Netflix-Induced Hibernation
The tendency to binge-watch an entire Netflix series or multiple movies in one sitting leading to extended periods of sedentary behavior, excessive amounts of snacking, wearing pajamas, and temporary disconnection from everyone and everything.
21. Mysterious Disappearance Disorder
The uncanny ability a teen has to lose things that are typically right in front of them, including keys, shoes, backpacks, wallets, cellphones, and important papers for school.
22. “I Forgot” Fever
The mysterious and often frustrating illness every parent of teens must deal with when their teen forgets random things they used to know how to do like pick up wet towels, put clothes in a hamper, close cabinet doors, and say “thank you.”
23. Post-School Hibernation
The ritual of collapsing on the bed or couch after school and entering into a slightly catatonic state not wanting to move or do anything until you eat, take a nap, and call your friends to talk about your day.
24. Meme Madness
The contagious enthusiasm teens have for silly TikTok videos, memes, and quotes resulting in excessive sharing among friends and family.
25. Youtubitis & Gamingitis
The condition of spending hours (and hours) watching YouTube videos of cat compilations, crime documentaries, and makeup tutorials OR gaming excessively often leading to parents wondering if their teen is EVER going to come out of their bedroom.
26. Zombiemania
A teen’s state of mind when waking up early for school, shuffling around like a zombie, barely coherent, and refusing to talk to anyone until a sufficient amount of caffeine is consumed.
27. Sudden “Likes” Shifts
When a teenager changes their likes faster than a Vegas showgirl. From their music preferences to their favorite fashion preferences – parents have no idea who their teen is from one day to the next.
28. Text Talk Rules
The constant reminder from teenagers to their parents that it’s definitely not okay to use any form of punctuation or upper case letters when texting or the teen will accuse you of being salty or really old-school.
29. Slang Overload
The tendency for a teenager to use so much slang while talking that their parents have absolutely no idea what their kid is saying so they just smile, nod their head, and look it up on the computer after their teen leaves the room.
30. Car Chat Confusion
The cool and unexpected (often confusing to parents) way a teenager suddenly gets chatty when they’re in the car with their parent staring straight ahead at the road.
31. Social Media FOMO
The fear of missing out on social media so a teen constantly checks and refreshes their feed to stay up-to-date on the latest texts, quotes, memes, trends, and events.
32. Study Group Distractions
When teenagers get together to study but they don’t really study. They spend all their time, eating, talking about drama, sharing memes, and laughing about stupid stuff to avoid actually studying.
33. “I Have Nothing to Wear” Drama
When a teenager has a full closet of clothes but they’re still convinced they have nothing to wear so they whine and moan to their parents to take them shopping so they can buy something that looks exactly like what they have hanging in their closet.
34. Airbuds Detachment Anxiety
The fear of accidentally snagging your earphones and having them yanked out of your ears, often accompanied by mild panic and an “ow!”
35. Inexplicable Laughter Outbreaks
The uncontrollable fits of laughter shared by teen friends, typically triggered by something totally ridiculous, a memory, or maybe nothing at all, and often at the most inappropriate times.
36. “There’s Nothing to Eat” Syndrome
The annoying words a parent hears after spending $350 on groceries, often with the teen retorting, “But you just bought ingredients… you didn’t actually buy food.”
37. “Wanna Talk?” Midnight Madness
The strange, slightly frustrating, and sweet way a teenager suddenly wants to tell their parent(s) every nitty-gritty detail of their day precisely when the parent is crawling into bed.
38. “Take the Shortcut” ‘Til Mom Notices
The act of desperately trying to get out of work or chores by taking any and all shortcuts available including, picking up all dirty and clean clothes on your bedroom floor and throwing them in the wash, and throwing away forks and spoons instead of putting them in the dishwasher.
39. The “Real Quick” Lie
When a teenager says, “I’m gonna take a ‘real quick‘ shower,” what they really mean is that they’re going to take a 40-minute shower and then spend three hours lounging around in their robe with a towel wrapped around their head.
40. “I’m Turning Out Okay, Mom” Revelation
That huge sigh of relief parents of teens feel when they realize their teenager really IS turning out okay, that they’re amazing and wonderful and funny and capable, and maybe, just maybe they really did get this parenting gig right.
Ahh… teenagers! They might drive us a little crazy, but I’ll give them this… they ARE funny! Give that teen of yours a big hug! I hope you enjoyed these funny teenager “isms.”
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