awkward silence
/ˈɔːkwəd ˈsaɪləns/
Very CommonA pause in conversation that both people feel uncomfortable about and nobody knows how to break.
Online it gets referenced ironically, as a relatable shared experience rather than a personal failure.
Real-world examples4 examples
| # | Example | What it means | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | made a joke and just got... awkward silence. wanted to walk into traffic. | The joke did not land and the resulting silence made them feel terrible. | x, 2024 |
| 02 | first date and we hit an awkward silence 10 minutes in. peaked too early with the conversation topics. | They ran out of things to talk about very quickly. | reddit, 2023 |
| 03 | nothing like an awkward silence in a zoom call where nobody knows if they're muted | The remote call setting adds extra confusion to an already uncomfortable pause. | x, 2023 |
| 04 | my superpower is filling awkward silences with something even more awkward | They always make an uncomfortable pause worse when they try to fix it. | tiktok, 2024 |
Use it when
- A conversation dies and both people notice and nobody fills it.
- A joke lands badly and is followed by total silence.
- A first date hits a wall and neither person knows what to say.
- An online conversation or voice call goes quiet in a weird way.
Do not use it when
- You mean a comfortable silence between close friends.Use “comfortable silence” instead.
- You mean a deliberate pause for emphasis.
Origin and context
Common phrase in English that predates internet slang. Online culture reframed it as a shared relatable experience rather than a personal failing.
- First seen
- pre-2010
- Confidence
- high
Cite this page
Use this stable URL to reference the entry.
https://slang.fyi/awkward-silenceUpdated: 2026-08-29License: CC BY 4.0