shitpost
/SHIT-pohst/noun · verb
Meaning
As a noun, a shitpost is an online post—such as a meme, image, video, comment, or caption—created to be deliberately absurd, low-quality, irrelevant, provocative, or difficult to take seriously. As a verb, to shitpost means to make or share that kind of content, often to derail a discussion, bait a reaction, or amuse an in-group.
- 1. A deliberately absurd or nonsensical online post, often built from a bizarre edit, mismatched reference, bad spelling, or intentionally pointless premise.
- 2. A provocative or inflammatory post designed to derail a conversation, bait another user, or generate attention rather than contribute sincerely.
- 3. The act of making or sharing such content, especially in a meme-heavy online community.
Examples
“That blurry picture of a raccoon reviewing tax law is a top-tier shitpost.”
“I joined the thread to answer the question and accidentally started shitposting.”
“This group is 90% shitposts and 10% people asking where the files are.”
“The caption is so confidently wrong that it has to be a shitpost.”
“Please stop shitposting in the help channel for five minutes.”
Origin and spread
Shitpost is a compound of shit and post, using shit in the sense of something worthless, poor-quality, or deliberately objectionable. The term developed in online forum and imageboard cultures, where knowingly low-quality or off-topic contributions could disrupt ordinary discussion. 4chan’s FAQ defines shitposting as knowingly contributing low-quality, off-topic, or ill-intentioned posts, while a 2017 academic analysis describes it as poor-quality online rhetoric that breaks established discourse norms. Merriam-Webster records noun use from 1996 and verb use from 1993, although those dates should be treated as lexicographic first-known-use dates rather than proof of a single origin point for today’s meme-centered usage. The expression became notably more visible in mainstream discussion during the mid-2010s and was selected as the American Dialect Society’s Digital Word of the Year for 2017.[2]
How to use it
Shitpost is vulgar and strongly informal. It can describe harmless nonsense shared among friends, but it may also refer to trolling, political provocation, harassment, or intentionally offensive material. Calling something a shitpost usually signals that it should not be read as a sincere contribution, though the label can also be used after the fact to blur whether a post was meant seriously. In a formal or professional setting, use terms such as deliberately provocative post, parody, or irrelevant post instead.
