From "Dude" to "Periodt": What Slang Says About Us

I was thinking recently about the slang words that were popular when I was growing up. As a Gen Xer, I still use some of them: totally, dude, bummer, sick, and dope. It got me wondering about today's slang. Based on a quick Google search, there are quite a few options. Maybe I'm showing my age, but I feel like I need to provide a definition every time I use one.
 
Here are a few examples:
 
Period (or periodt) is used to emphasize that something is final—discussion over, end of story. Chopped bluntly describes something that looks bad. The ick refers to a sudden feeling of disgust or loss of attraction toward someone. And the infamous 6–7 seems to communicate a feeling of being just okay—not quite good, not quite bad.
 
There are many more, and some seem especially connected to how we communicate through social media and texting rather than through everyday conversation. In fact, how do you say periodt out loud?
 
American culture also has regional slang that depends on where you live. Growing up in Southern California, "that's live" was popular in my social circle. Live meant good, exciting, or awesome. In Hawaii, there is pidgin, along with the use of guys as a familiar, non-gendered way to address a group of people. In the South, you might hear y'all. In Pennsylvania, someone may refer to a jawn, while in Hawaii you might hear da kine. Both essentially stand in for "that thing" when the exact word escapes you.
 
The use of slang and regional language can sometimes create communication breakdowns—or even conflict. I remember a family member from Hawaii sharing that a complaint was filed against them after they addressed a mixed-gender restaurant staff in Oregon as "guys." Would y'all have been better received? Hard to know.
 
When I hear something unfamiliar, I try to stay curious and seek more information. That becomes especially important when we feel offended, excluded, or misunderstood. Assuming negative intent without fully understanding the context can create problems where none were intended.
 
The words matter. But so does our willingness to understand what others mean by them.
 
Humans have always created their own versions of language and meaning. Looking at slang across the decades is like examining a linguistic mosaic—each generation leaving behind clues about its values, experiences, humor, and culture.
 
Feels pretty rad to me.