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; cf. mimesis ( def. )

Explanation

A meme is an idea or habit that's passed between people and generations through imitation. An example of a meme is the cultural tradition of women wearing skirts. A cultural idea, value, habit, or even something like a tune is a meme if it is picked up from someone else. A meme, which is pronounced "meem," will change over time, like younger kids who want to wear the exact same clothes but who eventually develop their own, though similar, styles. Recently, meme has become commonly used to refer to Internet memes — pictures, videos, or even slang words that are shared between Internet users.

Example Sentences

“When it happens” — the phrase became a meme almost overnight, as Troy Farah recently observed, in no small part because, even in our attention-addled age, people understand what it means.

From Salon • Jun. 1, 2026

A popular financial derivative that allows speculators to bet on prices for everything from obscure meme coins to shares of companies that haven’t gone public yet is finally gaining a foothold in the U.S.

From MarketWatch • May 29, 2026

A meme circulated portraying the Luce with iPhone applications photo-shopped onto the top, and another showing the car upside down and plugged into an iPhone charger.

From Los Angeles Times • May 27, 2026

Watching a capybara come when called is a highly Instagrammable moment, my in-person proof that capybaras have rightfully earned their status as a 2020s internet meme.

From Slate • May 27, 2026

Jontay sent me a message with a meme of one of the African princesses from the Black Panther movie.

From "Blended" by Sharon M. Draper