According to the internet, everyone’s saying the word “chic” too damn much. After all, the word is a quick, easy, and obvious indication of things that are “stylish and fashionable.” It makes sense that, particularly on social media—where microtrends are born and die within mere hours—people vying for the label of tastemaker are holding up their subjective submissions for the word chic with the hope that they will influence you too.
The word’s complete takeover, and its subsequent backlash, comes after years of what’s in and out videos and weeks of the “kinda chic” trend happening across Instagram and TikTok. Originally posted by influencer MariaBegins back in April, the sentiment touched down in America, leading to a slew of posts from influencers, celebrities, and brands alike—one account even lamenting that toast is kinda chic (so true). Google Trends has the phrase “kinda chic” as a breakout term spiking by almost 2,700% in the past month, which is a testament to how the phrasing “kinda chic” has inundated our timelines.
It’s all contributed to a rise in “chic” gatekeepers, bringing an age-old sentiment back to the forefront: If everything is chic, nothing can be chic. But really, I think we’re trying too hard to make chic mean something more than what its modernized (and slightly bastardized) definition is. As they said in Blades of Glory, “No one knows what it means, but it's provocative…get’s the people going.”
My first encounter with the word “chic” was on television shows, usually coming from the mouths of wealthy, thin white women somewhere deep in California with Valley Girl accents saying, “très chic,” without an ounce of a French accent. So, my initial understanding of the word was connected to that of a Parisian aesthetic—berets, cigarettes, and a sort of ennui that my Southern, loud, maximalist, and incredibly unmysterious self could not identify with.
But in recent years, on the days where my outfits are a bit more subtle, I’ve had my fellow fashion girls say I look “chic.” This complement meant I was pared back, dabbling in sartorial simplicity, and was worthy of the title. But for many people on the internet, “chic” is just a boilerplate, not necessarily a badge of honor.
When traced back in time, the word “chic” came into the English language from the French, with their definition originally meaning “artistic skill or finesse.” Many experts believe the French borrowed it from the German word “schick,” which means “skill, tact, or a neat arrangement.” The meaning of “chic,” like many words in the English dictionary, has shifted over time. And we’re experiencing that right now.
There are people on the internet claiming that “chic” should not be used by everyone. It should be reserved only for moments of true chic-ness. But, I must ask: who is going to stop the un-chic? Should we call Zendaya and Law Roach? Maybe have Rihanna on speed dial to confer? Until we come to an understanding of universal sartorial truth, we’re left with trend cycles and word overuse, because the actual truth behind the domination of the word chic is the algorithm.
Everyone is just hoping to land on the coveted “For You Page.” Presenting yourself as a trendsetter with the built-in caché to use the word spreads your message further and starts viral moments like the “kinda chic” one. It’s why Diet Coke is posting “kinda chic” content alongside every fashion and lifestyle creator right now. Here’s an actual universal truth: In the age of influencing, chic, cannot mean what high society folk want it to mean. Not when we’re ravaging through miles and miles of content on the daily, with LiketoKnowIt and Amazon Storefronts shaping our timelines. Welcome to the new landscape. Chic is everywhere and everyone. You are chic. We are chic. I am incredibly chic because I do not protest others' self-assessment as a means to uphold my own sartorial hierarchy.
Technically, everything can be chic because chic does not exist. Its origins are as broad and vast and blanketed as the ways in which Western culture uses it today. You are not more chic for not using chic, or for only tossing it out only when you deem it truly accurate. The self-elected harbingers of taste can look down on its oversaturation by normal people, but in this day in age, we’re going to have to accept that chic is just another overwaxed internet term. As long as there are people googling “chic dresses,” and “chic hotels” and “chic shoes” there will be creators labeling their fashion videos and lifestyle content accordingly to reach said audience. We are all just hamsters on a wheel, chasing an algorithm with promises of engagement and followers, waiting for the day someone finally says it’s okay to stop. And that's…kinda chic?
Aiyana Ishmael is the style editor at Cosmopolitan magazine. In her work, Aiyana focuses on the culture of fashion and how it intertwines and shapes the zeitgeist. She is an award-winning journalist from Miami, Florida, and a graduate of the historically Black university, Florida A&M. She is a 2024 Forbes 30 Under 30: Media honoree, and her debut romance novella PASSING GAME is set to release March of 2027 (831 Stories/Simon & Schuster).
