What is a meme & what does it mean?

The modern-day definition of a meme is a humorous image, video, piece of text, or GIF that is spread across the internet, typically on social media, and often with slight variations. Memes can be created by anyone and can be about anything, from current events, to mundane tasks, to pop culture references. The length of a meme varies.

How do you pronounce a meme?

Now, you might be wondering how to pronounce the word meme. The correct pronunciation is meem (rhymes with dream). The modern-day definition of a meme is a humorous image, video, piece of text, or GIF that is spread across the internet, typically on social media, and often with slight variations.

When was meme first used?

In fact, author Richard Dawkins first used the word in his 1976 work The Selfish Gene. The book looked at evolution and used meme to describe an idea or behavior that spreads across people in a culture. When someone says meme nowadays, they're probably referring to an internet meme.

What is the difference between a GIF and a meme?

It’s easy to confuse memes with GIFs, and sometimes GIFs are memes, but not all of them. A meme often includes an image with humorous or satirical text overlayed on top. A GIF, on the other hand, is simply a short, looping video clip. Now that you know what a meme is, you may want to try writing your own!