Ending a relationship by suddenly disappearing — no call, no text, no explanation.
When [The Banshees of Inisherin](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2022/oct/23/the-banshees-of-inisherin-review-martin-mcdonagh-colin-farrell-brendan-gleeson) became such a hit last year, I couldn’t help wondering if o…
04. [↑](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghosting_(behavior)#cite_ref-4)["Why Ghosting Is Leading the World's Mental Health Crisis \| Psychology Today"](https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-power-slow/201710/why-g…
Ending a relationship by suddenly disappearing — no call, no text, no explanation. A specific 2010s+ dating-app crime. By the 2020s it had gone professional too: job candidates ghost offers, recruiters ghost finalists. The verb is now universal.
ghosting means Ending a relationship by suddenly disappearing — no call, no text, no explanation. It's mostly used in dating-app and relationship conversations. It's casual and generally safe with friends and online. It's standard online vocabulary; nothing inherently concerning about hearing it.
Slang is read by different audiences for very different reasons. The For parents view re-explains the term in plain, non-judgemental language so a caregiver can understand what their child means without needing the surrounding subculture. The For English learners view focuses on register (when it's safe to use), formal alternatives, and common mistakes — what a textbook won't teach you.
Add your own interpretation of "ghosting".
Head-to-head pages explaining the difference.
How people talk about dating apps, modern romance, and the situationships they swear they're over — from ghosting and breadcrumbing to soft-launching, hard-launching, and the ick.
See all Relationships & Dating slang on Slangora.
Browse all slang words starting with G.
Hyper ghosting is the nuclear option — an instant, total blackout with zero wind-down period. Where most ghosting involves a gradual fade, hyper ghosting is a hard cut: one moment fully engaged, the next completely unreachable across every platform simultaneously. The block comes before you even realize what's happening. No last message, no slowing cadence, no forewarning read receipts. Hyper ghosting leaves the other person genuinely questioning if the person still exists, because the disappearance is so swift and complete it defies the usual social logic of slow exit.
Resigning by simply disappearing — slowly fading out of meetings, stopping replies to email and Slack, eventually not showing up at all — without ever submitting a formal resignation. Borrowed from the dating term "ghosting", ghost quitting became more visible in the post-2020 remote-work era, when employees could be physically absent for days before anyone in management noticed. It is most common in low-engagement hourly or contract roles, but has also been reported among salaried remote workers. HR teams generally treat it as job abandonment and process the exit unilaterally, often with consequences for references.
Sus ghosting is a disappearing act so poorly timed, so conveniently placed, or so nakedly motivated that it raises immediate questions about what the ghost is hiding. They vanished right after you asked a direct question, dropped off the week of a major event, or went dark immediately after you mentioned running into their ex. Sus ghosting isn't just abandonment — it's abandonment with receipts suggesting something shadier is going on behind the scenes. The ghost didn't just leave; they left for a reason, and everyone can smell it.
If an [internal link](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:WhatLinksHere/Ghosting&namespace=0) led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.
“When [The Banshees of Inisherin](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2022/oct/23/the-banshees-of-inisherin-review-martin-mcdonagh-colin-farrell-brendan-gleeson) became such a hit last year, I couldn’t help wondering if one of the reasons it was resonating so powerfully was that – despite being set on a fictional island off the coast of Ireland in the 1920s – it was essentially about ghosting.”
"Third ghosting this month. The market is cooked."
ghosting means Ending a relationship by suddenly disappearing — no call, no text, no explanation. It's mostly used in dating-app and relationship conversations. It's casual and generally safe with friends and online. It's standard online vocabulary; nothing inherently concerning about hearing it.
"ghosting" is slang. It means: Ending a relationship by suddenly disappearing — no call, no text, no explanation. Register: casual. Use it in: casual conversation and online posts. Avoid in: formal writing and professional emails. A more formal way to say this is "ignoring someone without explanation".
“When [The Banshees of Inisherin](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2022/oct/23/the-banshees-of-inisherin-review-martin-mcdonagh-colin-farrell-brendan-gleeson) became such a hit last year, I couldn’t help wondering if one of the reasons it was resonating so powerfully was that – despite being set on a fictional island off the coast of Ireland in the 1920s – it was essentially about ghosting.”
“04. [↑](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghosting_(behavior)#cite_ref-4)["Why Ghosting Is Leading the World's Mental Health Crisis \| Psychology Today"](https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-power-slow/201710/why-ghosting-is-leading-the-worlds-mental-health-crisis). _www.psychologytoday.com_.”
“If an [internal link](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:WhatLinksHere/Ghosting&namespace=0) led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.”