In British MLE: bad, unfortunate.
In British MLE: bad, unfortunate. Reverse-meaning of the American slang. Notable false friend across dialects.
"That's peak." — said to mean "that's rough, that sucks."
Add your own interpretation of "peak".
Slang from Black American Vernacular English (AAVE), hip-hop, drag and ballroom culture, the Caribbean, and NYC street vocabulary. The single largest source of new mainstream English slang in living memory.
See all Black culture & AAVE slang on Slangora.
Browse all slang words starting with P.
(slang, transitive) To badmouth; criticise or malign.
Peak long is the unholy intersection of two beloved UK slang terms for suffering — 'peak' (unfortunate, unfair) and 'long' (tedious, draining) — combining into something that covers the full spectrum of bad situations. It's not just annoying, it's actively unfair AND annoying. Missing your bus and then watching it drive away as the next one isn't for forty minutes? Peak long. Spending an hour on hold only to be disconnected? Peak long. This compound is what UK youths reach for when 'peak' alone doesn't do justice to the injustice.
In my country we buy zero cost ⚡ from Greece and sell it back in peak hours. But there are issues. Like peak production is at when sun is up, peak industrial demand is also up when ⚡ is cheap, and peak domestic deman…
“# Peak (video game) Peak (video game) For the disambiguation page, see [Peak](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peak "Peak").”
“Peak is developing its business in America, Europe, Asia and Australia with more than 5000 exclusive stores.”
“Peak lives with his mother, Emily, while his father, Josh, is a legendary mountaineer who has largely been absent from his life.”
Standard sense: the top of a mountain or a maximum value. American slang ("peak cinema") extends from this; UK MLE slang ("that's peak" = unfortunate) is the opposite valence.
"Reached the peak just before sunset."
In American English: the absolute best, the top. Note: this is the OPPOSITE of UK MLE "peak" which means bad. Generationally and regionally divided.
“The peak of classic youtube comedy”
“Anyone remember/know this channel? this channel was peak 2020”
"The opening scene is peak cinema."
“The peak of classic youtube comedy”
“Anyone remember/know this channel? this channel was peak 2020”
In MLE: bad, unfortunate, a tough situation. Effectively the opposite of how Americans use "peak."
"Lost my phone — that's peak."
"peak" means in mle: bad, unfortunate, a tough situation. It is one of many casual words teens pick up from friends, social media, music or sport, and on its own it carries no particular warning. If you hear your teen use it, it is fair to ask what they mean by it in their friend group, since meanings drift quickly. Asking out of curiosity rather than alarm tends to keep the conversation open and useful.
"peak" is informal English meaning in mle: bad, unfortunate, a tough situation. It is used widely across English varieties. A more formal or neutral equivalent would be something like "in mle: bad" expressed in standard vocabulary. A common mistake is to assume "peak" can replace its standard equivalent in every register; keep it for spoken or casual situations and use the formal form in writing. If you are a B2 or C1 learner, it is useful to recognise this word when you hear or read it, but think carefully about whether the situation really calls for it before using it yourself.
“7851 S PEAK DR, West Jordan, Utah, 84088 #WestJordan #utah”
“Animatronics are already peak cool. Don't mess with perfection.”
“In my country we buy zero cost ⚡ from Greece and sell it back in peak hours. But there are issues. Like peak production is at when sun is up, peak industrial demand is also up when ⚡ is cheap, and peak domestic demand is 5PM to 10PM. So who pays more at the end?”
“The Chinese mountaineering team of Wang Fuzhou, Gonpo, and Qu Yinhua made the first reported ascent of the peak from the North Ridge on 25 May 1960.”
“pretty. That's Heather Gay at her peak.”