“Slide into DMs” Meaning Explained

If you have been on the internet long enough, then you may have heard the term “slide into DMs” multiple times, either on posts, memes, or people just using it casually. But if you struggle to understand what it means, then you’re in the right place. We will break this phrase down for you and also help you learn different situations where you can use it.

What Does “DMs” Refer To?

Let us take a quick detour and first understand the meaning of DMs before we start sliding into them. DMs are an abbreviation of Direct Messages. This is usually a tab or a page on a social media platform like Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter (Now X), or TikTok. Here, you can text someone directly if you want to have a one-on-one conversation with them.

What Does “Slide Into DMs” Mean?

“Slide into DMs” is a pretty common internet slang that usually refers to sending a private message to someone whom you may or may not know. The intent is to start a romantic or intimate conversation with them. It’s considered a bold or flirty thing to do when you are interested in someone. The DMs or Direct Messages let you have a private and more personal conversation with said person.

It’s the online equivalent of approaching someone you want to talk to in real life. But the stakes are quite low online. The other person can turn you down or block you if they are not interested.

Origins of “Slide into DM”

The origins of this phrase is unknown. But according to Know Your Meme, its first could be as old as November 2013, more than a decade ago. This term was prominent for Twitter and Facebook back then. Later on, people started using it for other social media platforms, including Vine and Instagram.

In January 2014, M-boy released his single called “Slide into your DMs” and since then, the slang started gaining more traction after that point as it was added to Urban Dictionary in March 2014, and the search results grew increasingly after that point. People also started using them in hashtags like #SlideIntoYourDMsLike. More than 500 posts at the time used this hashtag.

Sliding into the DMs: Over the Years

The term has become so common that it is used in more ways than one. Thanks to platforms like LinkedIn, you may see people use “Slide into DM” when approaching a possible job recruiter. You can even use it to initiate a business collaboration. Or when you want to start a conversation with anyone, even if you are not romantically interested in them.

Your friends can use it casually, like “slide into my DMs and let me know when you are planning for the trip”. I’d say the slang has become so common that it is usually appropriate to use in most casual conversations these days. Another variation of this term is “Sliding into the Inbox” sending an email to someone with a possible opportunity.

Different Use Cases for “Slide into DMs”

To help you better understand how you use this term online, we have provided 15 different examples for different scenarios. Take a look at them below.

• Casual Flirting: “After seeing her profile, I finally slid into her DM to ask her out for coffee”.
• Networking: “I slid into the industry leader’s DMs to discuss potential collaboration opportunities”.
• Customer Support: “If you’re experiencing issues, feel free to slide into our DMs for help”.
• Fan Interaction: “As a huge fan of your work, I slid into your DMs to tell you how much I appreciate your art.”
• Business Proposal: “He slid into the investor’s DMs with a detailed pitch for his startup”.
• Job Inquiry: “She slid into the company’s DMs to ask if they were hiring”.
• Reconnecting with an Old Friend: “After so many years, she slid into his DMs to reconnect and catch up”.
• Contest Winner Announcement: “We slid into your DMs to let you know you’ve won our contest”.
• Apology: “He slid into her DMs to apologize for the misunderstanding they had”.
• Promotion: “I slid into the DMs of my followers to promote my latest YouTube video”.

The phrase can be used in a lot of situations, ranging from professional to personal. However, given this is a slang term, it is best used casually.

That’s all there is to know about the slang term “Slide into DMs”. It goes without saying that you should be respectful of the other person to not offend them. This slang has taken several forms over the years and is now something quite common that you would see thrown around in online, and even real-life conversations as social media has become the go-to way to start an interaction with someone.

If this article helped you learn something new and found it to be helpful, then let us know in the comments below.