What Does 'Yeet' Mean?

The slang term Yeet has many different meanings, with the two most prominent ones just being the word replacing a more commonly used one for the same meaning. In its original meaning, it was a dance trend that involved shoulder and wrist movements to simulate riding a bicycle, but the term itself quickly detached from the dance and made its way around in passing during the latter half of the 2010s, picking up new meanings along the way. Here's a quick explainer on the origins and proper use of yeet.

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Where Does 'Yeet' Come From?

The term "yeet" comes from a dance video that was common around 2014. The dance started to spread around the internet, and with it, the word itself. Yeet soon found itself becoming a catchphrase of sorts, being used in multiple different ways online, though primarily involving the act of throwing a thing or being overly excited about something happening or about to happen. The original dance video involving yeet was uploaded onto YouTube on February 12th, 2014.

Yeet's Usage In Memes

The term "yeet" built up a dedicated following online during the late 2010s, with the word becoming a simple text comment, action or funny addition to a sentence, as well as generally evolving into an all-around swiss army word for internet culture. Someone online could "yeet the trash" as their way of explaining taking out the garbage or say "Yeet, let's go" without the implied throwing of something taking place at all.

In other instances, such as this meme that involves the protagonist of the KOTOR video game "yeeting" a child, it's used in its most common form meaning to throw something in a rough manner.

Is Yeet A Swear Word?

No, yeet is not a swear word, it's more of a word that could be said to replace a swear word, but it has no connection to swear words.

What Does Yeet Mean In 2021?

In 2021, yeet had three major meanings: Throwing an object, displaying excitement at something, and as a meaningless word that people like to use for random purposes in a nonsensical manner.

Who Started Yeet?

There are five individuals credited with the creation of yeet: @1ballout_, @Thefuhkinmann, @KronicCaviar, @AXXXXJXY, @JollyceM and @SmashBro_KB.

Related Memes

With yeet going from the term for a dance to the action of throwing to a generalized sentiment online, there have been numerous memes and viral videos associated with the word over the years.

Yeet Cannon

Yeet Cannon is a slang term often used by gun enthusiasts when referring to a firearm that typically used for recreational purposes with little utility for hunting or self-defense. On March 22nd, 2018, Vimeo user Alex Reyes uploaded footage from the game PlayerUnknowns Battlegrounds titled "Supressed Yeet Cannon" (shown below).

This Bitch Empty! Yeet!

This Bitch Empty! Yeet! refers to a Vine in which a young woman is handed a soda can and exclaims "This bitch empty!" and then throws it into a hallway of classmates while shouting "Yeet!" The popularity of the Vine led it to be copied and referenced in text posts and jokes in which a person throws something.

Baby Yeet

Baby Yeet also known as Woman Throws a Baby, refers to an artwork by Spanish cartoonist Joan Cornellà in which a woman throws a baby as if it was a basketball. Starting in June 2018, the format has been circulated as an object labeling meme and a reaction.

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For the full history of Yeet, be sure to check out our entry on the slang term here for even more information.