These are the words that leave parents scratching their heads as they try to decipher the meaning
The phrases ‘gram’ and ‘pwned’ leave mums and dads scratching their heads as they try to decipher what on earth their offspring are talking about, it has emerged.
Researchers who polled 1,000 parents and their children aged 8-13 revealed 45 per cent of adults wish they could speak more confidently to other generations.
More than one in four had no idea the ‘gram’ was social media platform Instagram, and nearly four in 10 didn’t know ‘hangry’ is a portmanteau used when one is angry due to hungriness.
And only one quarter were able to identify that to be ‘pwned’ means being ‘owned’ – i.e losing an argument online.
In fact, one in five adults believe it was just a mis-spelling of ‘pawned’.
A further 25 per cent didn’t know that ‘The Gram’ refers to social media site Instagram.
To bridge the generational language gap, O2 and the NSPCC have launched a quiz pitting the digital knowledge of parents’ against their kids.
Nina Bibby, Chief Family Officer and CMO of O2 said: “With our partnership with the NSPCC, we want to help parents have regular conversations about the online world and how to navigate it safely.
“As a mother I know how tricky this can be, and that’s why the Parents vs Kids quiz is a brilliant way to get the whole family together and test each other’s digital knowledge, whilst learning about online safety and having fun too.”
The study also found three in 10 parents were unable to identify Zoella as a famous British YouTube star.
And 15 per cent bizarrely believe the acronym ‘TBT’ to stand for ‘Tomorrow Basketball Time’ rather than ‘Throwback Thursday.’
Another third find themselves baffled by ‘FTW’, which stands for ‘For The Win’ – meaning something is good.
Thinking back to their own childhoods, just under half of Brits remember there being a language gap between themselves and their elders.
And it also emerged children from eight to 13 are more confident speaking about who has the most views on YouTube or celebrity culture rather than topics taught on the school curriculum, including history, politics and science.
Laura Randall, associate head of Child Safety Online at the NSPCC said: “It is really important for parents to have regular and open conversations, no matter how old their children are, about how they are using the internet.
“Parents vs Kids will help to facilitate that conversation while exploring the online world in a fun and inclusive way.”
The Parents v Kids quiz is available on Amazon Alexa and is designed to be played between parents and children aged from eight to 13.
The quiz features television presenter Lauren Layfield asking the kids questions, and comedian and Pointless presenter Richard Osman as the voice for ‘Team Parent’.
The study of 1,000 adults and their children was conducted via OnePoll.com.