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Slang file #018Here to stayHype & shade

What does glow-up mean?

Say itGLOH-up/ˈɡloʊ.ʌp/noun (verb: glow up)

A big, usually dramatic improvement, especially in how someone or something looks.

Written by the Second Language TeamWritten

A glow-up is a big, positive change, usually in how someone looks. Think of a before-and-after photo: braces and a bad haircut on the left, a confident adult on the right. You will see it under old photos, in beauty and fitness videos, and more and more for things, like a room or an app with a new design.

Say it GLOH-up, with the stress on “glow”. It is casual and kind, not rude, so it is fine with friends and family and okay in a light work chat. As a verb it is two words: someone glows up. You may also see it spelled glow up, glo-up, or glo up.

Word stats

How casual
Relaxed and friendly, and you see it mostly online. It is slang, so keep it out of essays.
OK at work
Fine for praising a new website in team chat. Be careful with comments about a coworker’s looks, and skip it in reports.
Grandma-safe
Nothing rude here. The worst case is Grandma asking why her new curtains are “glowing.”
Cringe risk
Low. People have said it for about ten years, so it sounds normal, not try-hard.
Freshness
About as many people look it up as last year. Steady, not fading.

Spotted in the wild

Instagram comments · throwback photo
  1. jess.makesme at 14 vs me now. the braces had to go 😂
  2. dani_kthe GLOW-UP 😍
  3. Youok this is a serious glow-up
  4. jess.makesthank u lol puberty was a journey

What it means here: Jess looks very different now, and much better than at 14. Her friends are praising the change.

Group chat · Sunday afternoon
  1. Samfinally painted my room and bought plants 🪴 [photo]
  2. Anayour room had a whole glow-up
  3. Youwait is that a hotel??
  4. Sam100 dollars and one very long day

What it means here: The room looks much better after the changes. Things can have a glow-up too, not just people.

Work chat · #design
  1. Priyathe new homepage is live!
  2. Youhuge glow-up from the old one, nice work
  3. Tomthe old one was from 2012, so it wasn’t hard 😅

What it means here: Friendly praise for a big improvement to a website. Good in a team chat, too casual for a report.

How to use it

  • have / get a glow-upShe had a total glow-up after high school.
  • give something a glow-upWe gave the old café menu a glow-up.
  • glow up (verb)He really glowed up this year.
  • a hair / skin / fashion glow-upI’m planning a skin glow-up this summer: water, sleep, and sunscreen.
  • the glow-up is realNew haircut, new job, new apartment. The glow-up is real.

Don’t say it like this

  • Sounds offShe glow-upped a lot.

    Say thisShe glowed up a lot.

    As a verb it is two words, and “glow” takes the -ed: glowed up. The hyphen is for the noun: a glow-up.

  • Sounds offHer face glowed up when she saw the cake.

    Say thisHer face lit up when she saw the cake.

    A glow-up is a big change that lasts. For a quick happy look, English says “light up.”

  • Sounds offWow, you had such a glow-up! You looked so tired before.

    Say thisWow, you look great!

    Glow-up already says the “before” was worse. Saying it again, especially to someone you do not know well, turns praise into an insult.

  • Sounds offAnnual report: Revenue had a glow-up in 2025.

    Say thisAnnual report: Revenue grew strongly in 2025.

    It is slang. Some playful business articles use it, but formal writing needs plain words.

glow-up or not?

Is each of these glow-up? Pick an answer to find out.

  1. Your cousin had messy hair and old hoodies at 15. At 22, she has sharp style and lots of confidence.

  2. Your friend got a haircut, and honestly it looks about the same.

  3. A slow, ugly app gets a new design, and suddenly everyone loves using it.

  4. Your coworker smiles for one second when the pizza arrives.

The glow-up family

  • makeoverA planned change to how someone or something looks.The glow-up’s faster cousin. Usually arrives with a TV crew.
  • level upTo get better at something or move to a higher stage, like in a video game.A glow-up for your skills instead of your selfies.
  • looksmaxxingTrying very hard to make yourself as good-looking as possible.Same goal as a glow-up, but with a spreadsheet.

Where it came from

  1. 2013Merriam-Webster says the term appeared in the 2010s, with notable early examples in African American English hip-hop lyrics. One is Chief Keef’s 2013 song “Gotta Glo Up One Day,” where glo up means gaining money and status, not looks. Who said it first is still unclear [1].
  2. About 2015Merriam-Webster dates the first known use of glow-up in the “better looks” meaning to about 2015. It says the verb is probably a blend of “glow” and “grow up” [2].
  3. September 2026Merriam-Webster adds glow-up to its dictionary, along with looksmaxxing, in a batch of 1,400 new words and meanings. NBC News says the dictionary itself got a “glow-up” [3].
  4. TodayGlow-ups are everywhere: under throwback photos, in skincare videos, and in every team chat where someone redesigned the website.

Glow-up, makeover, or level up?

All three are about getting better, but they are not the same.

WordWhat changesHow long it takes
Glow-upMostly how someone or something looks, often with more confidence tooUsually months or years
MakeoverHow someone or something looks, changed on purposeOften one day or one project
Level upA skill, a job, or your life in generalAny time; it is one step higher

A makeover is something you plan. A glow-up often happens slowly. A TV show can give you a makeover in one afternoon. A glow-up is more like the difference between your school photo and you today.

One warning: a glow-up means the “before” was worse. Your best friend will laugh at “your glow-up is unreal.” A coworker you barely know may hear “you used to look bad.” With people you do not know well, a simple “you look great” is safer.

Sources

  1. GLOW-UP Slang MeaningMerriam-Webster
  2. GLOW-UP Definition & MeaningMerriam-Webster
  3. Merriam-Webster gives its dictionary a 'glow-up' with 1,400 new words and definitionsNBC News, September 16, 2026

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