Catfishing, ghosting, and orbiting are some words from the modern-day dating vocabulary. Modern-day dating comes with its own set of pros and cons. It can be extremely confusing to navigate through and sometimes even overwhelming. In order to make it easier for you, we compiled a list of 15 dating terms you should know of.

Just like we mentioned above, catfishing is when someone creates a new identity to deceive the other to start a relationship. It can be as harmless as unrealistic or highly filtered pictures or something as scary as dating someone who is actually a scammer.

When someone you have been out with on multiple dates doesn’t reply to your messages for months, but they are online on Instagram, it means that they are Ghosting. Ghosting is when someone abruptly ends all forms of communication without any explanation or warning. P.S: It’s a d**k move.

Think of substitute players sitting on the benches during a match. That is exactly what benching means. It means keeping someone on the sidelines, but not completely ignoring them. So it can be that potential love interest who always likes your pictures on Instagram and sends you memes, but never actually makes plans to meet you.

Just like planets orbit the Sun, in the same way, orbiting is when a potential love interest keeps tabs on you on social media but never initiates any conversation. Some would interact with your posts, others won’t. But trust them to know about everything that’s going on in your life.

It’s when someone (gaslighter) convinces the other person that what they are saying and remembering is far from the truth. It’s when the gaslighter convinces the other person that what they are feeling is false because that event never happened. Psychologists have termed gaslighting as a form of emotional abuse.

It’s when someone gives you bits of attention and affection, and you think they are interested in you. In reality, they are not even doing the bare minimum. They keep stringing you because they like the chase not with the intention to commit.

It means you are posting your significant other on social media by dropping hints. For eg: just posting a food picture from a cute brunch date but you can see their elbow on the table, or just posting a picture from a date with just two wine glasses in sight. It’s to show people you are off the dating grid and are seeing someone, but also maintaining privacy. Even Bella Hadid has done this.

When two people are doing everything that people do in a relationship but they refuse to put an official label on it. That ‘something more than a friendship, but not a committed relationship’ phase. It differs from friends with benefits because in FWBs there is a clear non-involvement of emotions. In a situationship, you are stuck in the muddy waters of an emotional and a physical connection.

The talking stage is a prelude to exclusive dating. You go out on dates, try to get to know each other, and see if you would want to actually date them. But unlike dating, in a talking stage, you can go out and “explore” other options too.

Love bombing is when you have just started going out with someone and they shower you with tons of gifts, attention, and over-the-top PDA. They completely bomb you with their display of love and you are swept off your feet, but often times this leads to gaslighting and abuse.

They ghosted you, and you finally come to terms with that. But just when you thought that chapter was done, the person rises from the depths and sends you a “heyy”. Just like a zombie, rising from the dead.

You’ve been seeing someone for months and you think it is exclusive, but then you find out that they were going out with other people too and they hid it from you. That’s roaching. The best way to avoid roaching is to have a clear conversation rather than an implied understanding.

13. Fishing

It’s when someone sends out the same messages to a bunch of people and waits to see who would respond first. And then they go with the first responder.

Known as Define The Relationship. It’s when two people finally have the ‘talk’ and clearly define where the relationship is going.

Love languages are the different ways in which people express and like to receive love. There are five love languages: physical touch, words of affirmation, quality time, receiving gifts, and acts of service.