virtue signaling
/ˈvɝː.tʃuː ˈsɪɡ.nəl.ɪŋ/
CommonPublicly expressing moral values to look good rather than out of genuine conviction.
Inherently an accusation. You cannot virtue-signal yourself; you accuse others of it. The term assumes you can read someone's internal motivation and find it insincere.
Real-world examples4 examples
| # | Example | What it means | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Putting a flag in your bio is just virtue signaling if you don't actually do anything. | Symbolic gestures without action are performative, not meaningful. | x, 2023 |
| 02 | Every company posts a rainbow logo in June and then funds anti-LGBTQ politicians. | Corporate support is performative when actions contradict the messaging. | reddit, 2024 |
| 03 | Not everything is virtue signaling. Sometimes people just care. | Pushing back on the cynical assumption that all public morality is fake. | tiktok, 2024 |
| 04 | He donated $10 and posted about it 5 times. Classic virtue signaling. | The public display is disproportionate to the actual effort. | x, 2023 |
Use it when
- Accusing someone of performative morality with no follow-through.
- Criticizing a brand for shallow social messaging.
- Calling out someone who posts about causes but takes no real action.
Do not use it when
- Someone is genuinely advocating for a cause they act on.
- You disagree with someone's values and want to dismiss them.
- You mean literal signaling or communication theory.
Variations and related forms
Virtue signaling vs woke
virtue signaling
Virtue signaling accuses someone of insincere performance of values.
VS
woke
Woke describes the values themselves, whether sincere or not.
Origin and context
Originated in evolutionary biology and political commentary. Entered mainstream political discourse around 2015-2016 as a way to accuse opponents of insincere moral posturing.
- First seen
- mid-2010s
- Confidence
- medium
Cite this page
Use this stable URL to reference the entry.
https://slang.fyi/virtue-signalingUpdated: 2026-08-25License: CC BY 4.0