WatchWord · Ages 10-25 · In use
toxic
In gaming, players who trash talk nastily, spam hurtful messages, troll or harass others. Also used for mean people or relationships in general.
Left that server, everyone in it was so toxic.
For parents and educators
Hearing your child call a lobby toxic is often a good sign: they noticed and left. Watch for the other side too: insults, slurs or threats aimed at them, or from them.
If you’re worried
Make sure your child can mute, block and report, and use the console or game settings to limit chat with strangers. If they get threats or slurs, keep screenshots and report them. Kids Help Phone: 1-800-668-6868 or text 686868.
Where it came from
Gaming communities picked it up in the 2010s from the general sense of poisonous.
Also heard as
toxicity, toxic lobby, toxic player