Ceebs
/seebz/interjection · verb · noun · adjective
Meaning
An informal expression of unwillingness, low enthusiasm, or reluctance to make an effort. It can stand alone as a dismissive reply, replace “can’t be bothered” before an activity, or describe a task or mood as tedious.
- 1. A standalone response meaning “I can’t be bothered” or “I don’t feel like it.”
- 2. Used before an activity to say that someone lacks the motivation to do it.
- 3. A state of apathy or unwillingness, especially in the humorous phrase “the ceebs.”
- 4. Tedious, inconvenient, or requiring more effort than something feels worth.
Examples
“Gym after work? Ceebs.”
“I ceebs cooking, so toast wins.”
“I've got the ceebs about cleaning my room.”
“Three buses for one coffee? That's ceebs.”
“Updating every password is such a ceebs.”
Origin and spread
Ceebs turns the spoken opening letters CB into a one-syllable word. Sources connect it with several related abbreviations, including CBA (“can’t be arsed”), CBB (“can’t be bothered”), CBF (“can’t be fucked”), and CBS (“can’t be stuffed”), so a single expansion cannot be established for every community. An archived social-media post shows the noun phrase “the ceebs” in August 2012. By 2014, the term was being discussed in British and Australian media as youth slang, and later examples document verb-like use in Australian writing and continued use in New Zealand student slang.
How to use it
Ceebs is casual, playful, and often deliberately lazy-sounding. It fits texts, captions, and relaxed conversation, but it can come across as curt when used to reject an invitation or request. Although the word itself is not usually treated as profanity, some speakers associate it with the vulgar expansions CBA or CBF. Constructions vary by region: “ceebs,” “I ceebs doing it,” “such a ceebs,” and “the ceebs” are all attested.
Sources
- 1. Wiktionary — ceebsSupports: form.
- 2. Internet Archive — cam smith post dated August 19, 2012Supports: earliest documented use.
- 3. The Guardian — Mind your slanguage, and don't be an erk. YOLO
- 4. Pedestrian — Beauty Products For Hot Messes With Zero Time For Looking After Themselves
- 5. Critic Te Ārohi — Dictionary of Rare Duds Slang
- 6. University of Canberra — Essential Aussie Slang for International Students
