Which side are you on: "demure" or "lowkey"? I used to just call things "chill" now I hear both constantly.

I swear I never heard "demure" used unironically until like 6 months ago. Now people are calling everything from outfits to sandwiches "demure." Meanwhile "lowkey" has been around forever but suddenly it's in every caption and comment. I'm a designer so I notice language patterns, but this one feels different. People either love the old standby or think it's played out. Has anyone else noticed this split online? Which one do you actually use in real life?

2 comments

2 Comments

lewis.troy10h ago

Jumping off what you said about noticing patterns - I used to work in retail and "lowkey" was already dying out in my store before the demure thing even blew up. Now I catch myself saying "demure" for things I'd normally call "subtle" or "understated." It's wild how fast this one has spread too, like I'll see someone on Insta describe a basic beige sweater as demure and suddenly everyone's using it for everything

evaallen8h ago

Ha, I'm gonna be the contrarian here and say "demure" is actually the one with legs. I hear it way more in casual conversation than "lowkey" these days, especially from people who aren't chronically online. My mom used it last week describing a wedding invitation and I almost choked on my coffee. Lowkey feels like it peaked around 2019 and now it's just hanging around because nobody wants to admit it's over. Demure at least has this fun new energy, people are using it ironically but also genuinely and that's a combo that sticks around.