Catfish

/KAT-fish/

noun · verb

Online, a catfish is someone who uses a deceptive identity, while to catfish means to deceive someone that way.

#internet slang
#online deception
#catfishing
#fake identities
#dating terms

Meaning

Online, a catfish is a person who uses a false identity, often with misleading photos or personal details, to deceive someone. To catfish someone means to carry out that deception, and catfishing is the act. Romance is the best-known setting, but the term can also describe impersonation or other non-romantic deception. A fake account is not automatically catfishing: the relevant issue is deceptive use of the identity, not merely anonymity or pseudonymity.[1]

1. As a noun, catfish labels the person behind a deceptive online persona, especially one used to create a misleading relationship or impersonate someone.
2. As a verb, to catfish means to use a false online identity to deceive another person. Catfishing can be romantic, but it is not necessarily a dating or financial scam.
3. The term can also be used in the broader context of the Catfish documentary and television series, which helped establish and spread the online-deception sense.

Green-tinted screen image of a long-haired woman looking down at a camera, with a hand-shaped cursor near her shoulder. — The source identifies the woman as Aimee Gonzales in Catfish. According to the accompanying reporting, her photos were used for a fabricated online persona—illustrating how catfishing can involve someone else's pictures. Source

Examples

“That profile is a catfish.”

“They tried to catfish me through a gaming forum.”

“Catfishing is not automatically a dating scam.”

“The account looked real, but the person behind it was catfishing others.”

Origin and spread

The modern online sense is closely tied to the 2010 documentary Catfish, which followed Nev Schulman's online relationship with a persona that proved fabricated. In the film, Vince Pierce explains the title through a story that catfish kept transported cod active; the metaphor was about keeping people alert and engaged, rather than directly accusing anyone of identity fraud. Slate traces an earlier version of that fish-shipping parable to Henry W. Nevinson's 1913 essay and reports reasons to doubt its factual basis, so it should not be treated as established trade history. The later slang became more specific and accusatory, and the MTV series that began in 2012 helped spread it. Yahoo also identifies the 2013 Manti Te'o case as a high-profile moment in the term's wider visibility.[3][5]

How to use it

Calling someone a catfish usually makes an accusation of deceptive identity, so use it when the deception is reasonably supported rather than as a synonym for an anonymous or unusual account. The verb works with a person as its object: someone can catfish another user. Romance is common, but the word does not by itself establish a motive, financial request, or complete fabrication of every detail.

A man wearing glasses and a white tank top sits behind an open laptop, with blue screen reflections in his lenses. — Identified by the source as Nev Schulman in the 2010 documentary Catfish, this computer scene connects the expression to the film that helped establish its online-identity meaning. Source

The fish story is a metaphor

The documentary presents the catfish-and-cod story as an explanation for its title. Slate traces a version of the tale to a 1913 essay and reports biological and trade-related reasons to doubt it as literal history.[2][5]

A fake account is not automatically catfishing

The label points to deceptive use of an online identity. Someone using a pseudonym or private account is not necessarily catfishing unless the account is being used to mislead another person in the relevant sense.[2][4]

Questions people ask

Is a catfish always involved in romance?

No. Romance is the best-known setting, but the term can also describe impersonation or other non-romantic deception. It identifies deceptive use of an online identity, not a required romantic motive.[2][4]

Is catfishing the same as running a fake account?

Not exactly. A fake account describes the account; catfish usually labels the person behind a deceptive persona, while to catfish describes using that persona to mislead someone. A pseudonymous account alone is not enough.[2][4]