Glossary

Dating Glossary

Plain-language definitions for the terms you'll run into across dating apps, matchmaking services, and everyday dating conversation. Three of the most-searched terms have their own full pages — the rest are defined right here.

Catfishing

Creating a fake online identity — often with stolen or AI-generated photos — to deceive someone into a relationship, usually for emotional or financial gain. Read the full guide →

Ghosting

Ending communication with someone abruptly and without explanation, rather than directly saying you're no longer interested. Read the full guide →

Love bombing

Overwhelming someone with excessive affection, gifts, or attention early in a relationship, often to gain trust or control quickly. Read the full guide →

Breadcrumbing

Sending sporadic, low-effort messages or signals of interest to keep someone engaged without any real intention of committing to a relationship.

Orbiting

Ending direct communication with someone (sometimes after ghosting) while continuing to watch or engage with their social media activity.

Situationship

A romantic or sexual relationship that lacks clearly defined labels, expectations, or commitment — more than casual, less than an official relationship.

Soft launch

Publicly hinting at a new relationship on social media without fully revealing the other person's identity, often through a partial photo or vague post.

Benching

Keeping someone as a backup option with occasional attention, while actively pursuing other people or relationships.

Zombieing

Reappearing in someone's life after ghosting them, often acting as though the earlier disappearance never happened.

Compatibility score

A percentage or rating some platforms generate based on quiz answers or stated preferences, meant to estimate how well two users' values and habits align. It's a platform-generated estimate, not a guarantee of chemistry.

Verified profile

A profile that has completed a platform's identity or photo verification process, typically shown with a badge, intended to reduce (not eliminate) the risk of fake accounts.

Super like / boost

Paid or limited-use features on swipe-based apps that make your profile more visible to a specific person (super like) or to users generally for a set window of time (boost).

Incognito mode

A paid privacy feature on some apps that hides your profile from general browsing, showing it only to people you've liked or messaged.