'Yass' (also 'yas', 'yaaas', 'yassss') is an enthusiastic, drawn-out 'yes' expressing excitement, agreement or hype — popularised in American drag and ballroom culture, mainstreamed via the 2013 Broad City episode where Ilana Glazer made it a national catchphrase. If your teen says 'yass queen' to a friend, they are hyping them up. Harmless and friendly.
yass
An emphatic, drawn-out "yes" — celebration, agreement, or hype.
jæsDocumented since 1990s1990sMillennialhistoricalCurrent401 viewsLast reviewed Jun 29, 2026＋ Add a definition
Etymology timeline
Born ~1990 · 1 year of recorded useMillennial / early-internet eraSee decade cohort →
Seen in the wild
BlueskyMay 2026
New @mapthepower.bsky.social report found that "the largest beneficiary of the [EITC and OSTC] school voucher tax credit programs is a company led by the state’s richest man and prolific school privatization advocate,…
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BlueskyMay 2026
yass raining here too, love it so much
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Wikipedia: Yass, New South Wales
Yass () is a town on the periphery of the Southern Tablelands and South West Slopes of New South Wales, Australia.
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Wikipedia: Yass, New South Wales
Yass is located 280 km south-west of Sydney, on the Hume Highway, and is 59 km from Canberra.
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Wikipedia: Yass River
The Yass River, a perennial river that is part of the Murrumbidgee catchment within the Murray–Darling basin, is located in the Southern Tablelands and South Western Slopes districts of New South Wales, Australia.
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Definitions
Global
+723100%
#1·Apr 24, 2026Global
An emphatic, drawn-out "yes" — celebration, agreement, or hype. Sometimes "yassify" (verb): make something more extra. Originated in 1990s Black and Latino ballroom culture; mainstreamed via Lady Gaga-era pop and now used in every group chat on Earth.
"YASS queen, those nails are insane."
Origin: Originated in 1990s Black and Latino ballroom culture; mainstreamed via Lady Gaga-era pop.
For parents
'Yass' (also 'yas', 'yaaas', 'yassss') is an enthusiastic, drawn-out 'yes' expressing excitement, agreement or hype — popularised in American drag and ballroom culture, mainstreamed via the 2013 Broad City episode where Ilana Glazer made it a national catchphrase. If your teen says 'yass queen' to a friend, they are hyping them up. Harmless and friendly.
For ESL learners
'Yass' (also 'yas', 'yaaas') is an enthusiastic, drawn-out variant of 'yes' expressing excitement, hype or fervent agreement, originating in American drag and ballroom culture and mainstreamed by Broad City's Ilana Glazer (2013-onward). Often followed by 'queen' ('yass queen') as a celebratory exclamation. Register: informal, originally LGBTQ+ culture, now mainstream. In formal English use 'yes' or 'absolutely'. A common learner mistake is to capitalise inconsistently; conventional spelling clusters around 'yass' with multiple s's signalling extended delivery.
Cluster: internet_object
Heard in the wild
“New @mapthepower.bsky.social report found that "the largest beneficiary of the [EITC and OSTC] school voucher tax credit programs is a company led by the state’s richest man and prolific school privatization advocate, billionaire Jeff Yass" littlesis.org/reports/comp...”
— Bluesky· May 2026“yass raining here too, love it so much”
— Bluesky· May 2026“Yass () is a town on the periphery of the Southern Tablelands and South West Slopes of New South Wales, Australia.”
“Yass is located 280 km south-west of Sydney, on the Hume Highway, and is 59 km from Canberra.”
“The Yass River, a perennial river that is part of the Murrumbidgee catchment within the Murray–Darling basin, is located in the Southern Tablelands and South Western Slopes districts of New South Wales, Australia.”
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Global
#2·May 3, 2026Global
Jeff Yass (born 1958), options trader, managing director and one of the five founders of the Philadelphia-based Susquehanna International
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Australia
#3·May 3, 2026AUS
Yass, New South Wales, a town in Australia
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Global
#4·May 3, 2026Global
Yass Valley Council, a local government area (shire) in New South Wales since 2004
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Global
#5·May 3, 2026Global
Municipality of Yass, original local government for the town until 1980
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Global
#6·May 3, 2026Global
Catherine Yass (born 1963), painter
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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.
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Semantically related
- yas79%
Enthusiastic affirmation. Drag-culture spelling of "yes," with elongation for emphasis. Sometimes "yass," "yasss," etc.
- yassified mode76%
The activated state of going full maximalist with no brakes — where subtlety is cancelled, rhinestones are mandatory, and the only direction is more. Yassified mode is what someone enters when they decide today is the day they will not be basic: the dramatic outfit, the bold makeup, the energy of someone who has chosen chaos and sparkle over practicality. It's a conscious gear-shift into unapologetic extra-ness, often announced pre-event so everyone in the group chat knows what's coming.
- yassify75%
(figuratively, sometimes, derogatory) To present (something) as fashionable and glamorous, often by removing or disguising aspects which are considered unappealing.
- yassify74%
(transitive, Internet slang) To apply several beauty filters to (a picture or video of someone), typically making the subject look more made-up, potentially more feminine, and often unrecognizable.
- yassified check74%
A gleeful assessment of how thoroughly something or someone has been transformed into a maximalist, high-glam, unapologetically extra version of themselves. The yassified check is the before-and-after moment: you hold up the original, hold up the result, and confirm whether the yass has been properly delivered. It's equal parts critique and celebration — sometimes a real compliment, sometimes a tongue-in-cheek roast of something that maybe didn't need to be quite so rhinestoned. The internet runs on these moments.