ate

What it means

To have performed something flawlessly or looked stunning — short for the idea that someone 'ate it up.' Often extended to 'ate and left no crumbs,' meaning they did it perfectly with nothing left to critique.

Examples

• She ate that performance, the crowd went wild.
• You ate with this outfit, seriously.
• He ate and left no crumbs on that final exam.
• The way she ate that high note — chills.

Where it comes from

Rooted in Black and LGBTQ+ ballroom culture, where 'ate' praised a fierce, flawless look or performance. It spread through drag and stan culture before becoming a TikTok and Twitter mainstay in the early 2020s.

Related slang