ion
or ION [ahy-uh n] or [ahy-oh-en]
What does ion mean?
In science, an ion is an atom or molecule with an electric charge. Outside of the Chemistry classroom, though, ion is a black slang rendering of I don’t. As in ion wanna take another Chemistry class.
Where does ion come from?
The great British scientist Michael Faraday discovered ions in 1834. By the loss or gain of electrons, atomic or molecular ions carry a positive or negative charge, which attracts them to oppositely charge particles to form various chemicals. The word is rooted in the Greek for “going” due to the movement of this attraction.
Perhaps there are some of you who read the above paragraph and said Ion know what that means. This ion means “I don’t.” It is a spelling based on the colloquial pronunciation of I don’t, especially in Black English. Try this: say “I don’t know” fast and casually. You’re probably saying something that actually sounds like ion–oh. This is actually how we talk, people.
https://twitter.com/jessdaadoll/status/1067455378470916096
when people say “ion” instead of “i don’t” i literally can’t process it as that. i just read ion. like the scientific term.
— aubry (@AubryBailey) September 26, 2018
Ion for I don’t emerges in internet writing in the 2000s, as does the acronym ION for in other news. ION is used as a transitional phrase to change a topic, much like Anyways…
Examples of ion
Bah, I should gooooo. Got to be up in 5 hours to climb a stupid mountain *hates* ION the palm is awesome. Fix on the mooove! *hugs Tem*
To highlight a novel approach to overcoming this challenge, scientists at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) and Purdue University teamed to review the ion soft-landing technique and its application to materials synthesis.
Who uses ion?
The chemical ion helps make the world go round, even if baffles many a student in high school. They are key to understanding chemical bonds.
https://twitter.com/fantasia_ruff/status/1067473965352960001
The slang ion, meanwhile, baffles many a high school teacher, even if it makes social media and text-messaging go round. Memphis rapper Moneybagg Yo featured this ion in his 2018 “Ion Get You,” which contains the lyrics: “I don’t get you, I don’t get you, you so hard to figure out.”
So much death ion even kno how 2 feel
— Lyric👑 (@Lyrikkal) November 27, 2018
ION sees occasional use among the many abbreviations of internet slang, from LOL to STFU. Typically standing for “in other news,” ION signals a change of topic, often abrupt in nature and with a degree of self-deprecation.
I know you won't be able to tell but I just got new contact lenses. ION – excited to see my friend Cath 2nite who is moving to Singapore
— carla (urban_mermaid) (@u_m) October 29, 2007
NOTE
This is not meant to be a formal definition of ion like most terms we define on Dictionary.com, but is rather an informal word summary that hopefully touches upon the key aspects of the meaning and usage of ion that will help our users expand their word mastery.
