“Condragulations” & More Drag Slang Terms

Hallelooooo. After all these years, did you ever figure out what mama RuPaul and the rest of her fabulous Queens are saying? Well, fear not. Because hopefully this quick guide can help you learn what these colorful drag terms are all about.

Quick info: tracing the history and origins of drag and queer slang is a bit complicated but it is important to remember that these expressions have been around and used in the queer communities for a very long time, shaping society and culture as a form of self-expression. And this type of Queen’s English (no, not British monarchy Queenhttps://beelinguapp.com/blog/meet-the-royal-families or any of that but Queen as in Drag Queen) is sparkly, witty, charming, clever, ever-changing and more..

Giphy

• kiki: when queens catch up together, gossip
• snatched: to have everything together; to be perfect; to be on point
• shade: a negative comment; an insult
• gag, gagged, gagging: another way of calling a stunned reaction when seeing something beautiful, perfect, flawless, fabulous
• cooking: to let the face powder set in your face
• beat: to apply makeup perfectly
• hunty: a term of endearment
• serve: to give (the judges) a very stunning and perfect lewk (look)
• ate: to do very well; to serve (see previous term)
• shantay you stay: what RuPaul tells the queen when she is not getting eliminated
• sashay, away: what RuPaul tells the queen who is getting eliminated
• tea, T: gossip
• fish: refers to a queen who looks very feminine
• sickening: another way of referring to a look that is amazing, flawless, incredible
• condragulations: another way of saying “congratulations”
• werk: another way of saying work
• okurrr: another way of saying okay
• eleganza: something that is very elegant x 100

Learn a new language