A 'side quest' in video games is an optional mission separate from the main storyline. The term has been borrowed into youth speech to describe an unplanned, often funny detour in everyday life. 'I went on a side quest to find iced coffee' = 'I took an unplanned detour for coffee'. If your teen describes their day in terms of side quests, they are using gaming metaphor for ordinary errands and adventures. Harmless and playful.
side quest
A small, unplanned detour from your main goal — grabbing tacos after work, taking a scenic route, talking to a stranger.
saɪd kwestCoined ~20222020sGen AlphatrendingCurrent426 viewsLast reviewed Jun 29, 2026＋ Add a definition
Seen in the wild
5 citations · last seen May 2026
Etymology timeline
Born ~2022 · 1 year of recorded useSeen in the wild
BlueskyMay 2026
♠️LIVE SOON🩸 Back in the Valley to deal with other events and more side quest catch-up Twitch: twitch.tv/adreancard YouTube: youtube.com/@adreancard ♠️ #VSky | #VTuber | #ArknightsEndfield | #Arknights 🩸
View source
BlueskyMay 2026
Some Baby prints are available now because of this little side quest and they'll be available at my next event: @mcmcomiccon london 22nd-24th May Table G20 so come get a picture of a weird little baby, if that's what…
View source
BlueskyMay 2026
Hated that area. I didn’t even try to finish any side quest nonsense there. If an area’s exploration mechanic is arbitrary teleportation, then I’m checking out as fast as possible
View source
BlueskyMay 2026
The Coeurl Kitten lvl 15 side quest. I was doing random side quest to level (haha) and that questline was the first to kill me emotionally, then I squealed when I got the minion. World building!!!! And it’s my first…
View source
BlueskyMay 2026
That is, objectively, a badass hobby and I encourage you to share about it whenever the mood strikes. Tbh I should take a side quest through what you have already 😉
View source
Definitions
Global
+912100%
#1·Apr 24, 2026Global
A small, unplanned detour from your main goal — grabbing tacos after work, taking a scenic route, talking to a stranger. Usually more fun than the main quest.
See it in action
“Some Baby prints are available now because of this little side quest and they'll be available at my next event: @mcmcomiccon london 22nd-24th May Table G20 so come get a picture of a weird little baby, if that's what you're into #mcmcomicon #mcmlondon #comicon #artist #artprint”
“That is, objectively, a badass hobby and I encourage you to share about it whenever the mood strikes. Tbh I should take a side quest through what you have already 😉”
"Was supposed to go home. Ended up on a 3-hour side quest in the thrift store."
Origin: TikTok-era, mainstreamed 2022–2025.
For parents
A 'side quest' in video games is an optional mission separate from the main storyline. The term has been borrowed into youth speech to describe an unplanned, often funny detour in everyday life. 'I went on a side quest to find iced coffee' = 'I took an unplanned detour for coffee'. If your teen describes their day in terms of side quests, they are using gaming metaphor for ordinary errands and adventures. Harmless and playful.
For ESL learners
'Side quest' originates as a video-game term for an optional mission separate from the main storyline and has been borrowed into youth speech to describe an unplanned, often whimsical detour in everyday life ('I went on a side quest for snacks'). Register: informal, gaming-influenced youth English. In formal writing keep the gaming sense; in personal use it is metaphorical. A common learner mistake is to limit it to gaming; the metaphorical real-life sense is now equally common.
Cluster: stranger
Heard in the wild
“♠️LIVE SOON🩸 Back in the Valley to deal with other events and more side quest catch-up Twitch: twitch.tv/adreancard YouTube: youtube.com/@adreancard ♠️ #VSky | #VTuber | #ArknightsEndfield | #Arknights 🩸”
— Bluesky· May 2026“Some Baby prints are available now because of this little side quest and they'll be available at my next event: @mcmcomiccon london 22nd-24th May Table G20 so come get a picture of a weird little baby, if that's what you're into #mcmcomicon #mcmlondon #comicon #artist #artprint”
— Bluesky· May 2026“Hated that area. I didn’t even try to finish any side quest nonsense there. If an area’s exploration mechanic is arbitrary teleportation, then I’m checking out as fast as possible”
— Bluesky· May 2026“The Coeurl Kitten lvl 15 side quest. I was doing random side quest to level (haha) and that questline was the first to kill me emotionally, then I squealed when I got the minion. World building!!!! And it’s my first MMO so I really wanted to explore it and the side quests”
— Bluesky· May 2026“That is, objectively, a badass hobby and I encourage you to share about it whenever the mood strikes. Tbh I should take a side quest through what you have already 😉”
— Bluesky· May 2026
Was this helpful?
Comments
Global
#2·Apr 26, 2026Global
A small, unrelated task or distraction from your main goal. From video game terminology where side quests are optional.
"Got distracted by a side quest at the grocery store."
Origin: Video game vocabulary (RPGs especially); generalized to internet usage in the 2010s.
Was this helpful?
Comments
For specific readers
Why is this section here?
Slang is read by different audiences for very different reasons. The For parents view re-explains the term in plain, non-judgemental language so a caregiver can understand what their child means without needing the surrounding subculture. The For English learners view focuses on register (when it's safe to use), formal alternatives, and common mistakes — what a textbook won't teach you.
Used in
Global
Have a better definition?
Add your own interpretation of "side quest".
🔥About Gen Z & TikTok slang
The words defining how Gen Z and TikTok talk right now — from rizz and aura to skibidi, delulu, and the ick. Updated as fast as the trends move.
See all Gen Z & TikTok slang on Slangora.
Tags
Other words near "side quest" (S)
side chickside-handedside-leversidelinesidemanside niggasidequestside returnsideshow alleyside tingsidewalksidewalk superintendent
Browse all slang words starting with S.
Related terms
People also read
Semantically related
- sidequest81%
(video games) A quest given to a player which has no direct bearing on the outcome of the main campaign or story of a video game, but often provides additional rewards.
- main quest76%
The primary task or focus — the opposite of a side quest. Used in productivity / life-as-RPG framing.
- sidequest75%
(fiction, history) In fictional or historical writings about chivalric romances: a quest embarked upon by a knight or other person which is not the main quest.
- main quest75%
The big important goal you're supposedly focused on — as opposed to "side quests" (fun but distracting). Gaming metaphor now applied to adult life.