vibe

What it means

The overall feeling, mood, or energy of a person, place, or moment. As a verb, to 'vibe' means to relax and enjoy yourself, or to get along easily with someone whose energy matches yours.

Words like “vibe” are exactly the kind of vocabulary our English vocabulary size test measures — find out how many English words you know.

Examples

• This cafe has such a cozy vibe, I never want to leave.
• We just vibed to music all night, it was perfect.
• I don't know, something about him is off — bad vibes.
• The whole trip had an immaculate vibe.

Where it comes from

Short for 'vibration,' the term comes from 1960s counterculture and was long used in Black music and slang. It became central to 2010s internet language through phrases like 'good vibes' and 'vibe check.'

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