"Choppleganger" Is a TikTok Word That Proves Gen Z Is Still the Most Brutal Generation

Internet slang is the kind of lingo that you have to almost treat as a full-time job to keep up with. New phrases pop up every day, and they fall out of favor almost as quickly. If you're still saying "cheugy," for instance, you're just not cool.

One word that has been making the rounds in 2026 is "choppleganger."

And if you have no clue what it means, you're far from alone. It really is difficult to keep up with new phrases, especially if you're over the age of 25. Here's what we know about the meaning of the TikTok word "choppleganger."

In order to understand the meaning of the word, you have to start with its root words. It combines "doppelganger" with "chopped."

Doppelganger is defined by Merriam Webster as "a ghostly counterpart" or someone who looks just like another person.

And chopped basically means "ugly" or undesirable, according to Urban Dictionary. If you combine the two to get "choppleganger," you get a word that basically means "someone who's ugly that looks just like you."

And yeah, it's just as mean as it sounds. Gen Z isn't exactly known for mincing words, especially online, and their slang can get pretty brutal. Considering that, "choppleganger" isn't as bad as it can get.

If you've ever run afoul of Gen Z internet denizens, you've probably been the recipient of their sharp "tongue." Gen Z, now in their late teens and twenties, is in a unique sandwich generation between the transitional Millennials and the fully-online Gen Alpha.

They've been subjected to non-stop trauma from their childhood days, from school shootings and unprecedented historic events to the COVID pandemic, just as most of them were starting their lives.

As a result, they can often seem callous, anxious, disconnected, or even cruel, and one USA Today article even asks if they're selfish. But are they?

Gen Z is only just now becoming a majority adult generation, which means there are still a lot of questions about what they will be like out in the world. But one thing is certain: They've been through hell and back.

As the USA Today article notes, the generation is particularly good at setting boundaries. Likely because they were raised in such unusual times, such as the COVID pandemic, which stripped them of their villages and forced them into more introspective and solo existences during pivotal points in their social development.

But this doesn't necessarily mean they're selfish, or even that anything is wrong with them. They've learned to cope in unimaginable circumstances, coming of age in a world full of chaos. While every generation has its own "things," and Millennials certainly seem to be getting the raw end of the deal, Gen Z has been dealt every blow imaginable as they try to get their legs under them as young adults.

Selfish? Maybe.

But they're certainly traumatized as well.