meme

American  

[meem] / mim /

noun

1. 1. a cultural item that is transmitted by repetition and replication in a manner analogous to the biological transmission of genes.

   2. a cultural item in the form of an image, video, phrase, etc., that is spread via the internet and often altered in a creative or humorous way.

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verb (used without object)

memed, memeing, meming

1. to create and spread memes.

   He spends a lot of time memeing and sharing his videos with friends.

verb (used with object)

memed, memeing, meming

1. to make the subject of a meme.

   cute cats that get memed.

meme British  

/ miːm /

noun

1. an idea or element of social behaviour passed on through generations in a culture, esp by imitation

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Etymology

Origin of meme

First recorded in 1976; coined by British evolutionary biologist C. Richard Dawkins (born 1941), shortening of Dawkins's original creation mimeme, which was based on Greek mī́mēma “imitation, copy; artistic representation,” but which Dawkins also wanted to look and sound like gene; mimesis ( def. )

Example Sentences

But the Young 40 memes also represent Korean youth's growing scepticism of this almost forced reverence for elders.

From BBC

Some meme stocks create their own reality by becoming valuable enough to raise money cheaply and then plow that capital into a viable business.

From The Wall Street Journal

PHILADELPHIA—Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has become an unlikely folk hero, the subject of internet memes celebrating his stewardship of the central bank.

From The Wall Street Journal

The company’s presentations attempting to stoke enthusiasm for Horizon Worlds provided fodder for popular mocking internet memes.

From The Wall Street Journal

Starbucks spokesperson Jaci Anderson said the drawing of a popular meme, John Pork, was created in the morning, hours before the deputy visited the coffee shop.

From Los Angeles Times