What does Meme mean?
A meme is a piece of culture — usually an image, video or phrase — that spreads by being copied and altered.
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Slang. Also written memes, meme format.
Where it comes from
Coined by Richard Dawkins in The Selfish Gene (1976) to describe an idea that propagates through a culture the way a gene propagates through a population. The internet sense narrowed it to the copied-and-altered image format, which is a fraction of what the word originally covered.
How it is actually used
On social platforms a meme is a recognisable template that people fill with their own situation, and the humour depends on the audience already knowing the template. That is what separates a meme from an ordinary funny image: the format carries meaning before any words are added. Formats have short lives, and a brand using one after it has peaked is the single most recognisable form of trying too hard.
Examples
- "this meme format is already dead"
- "send me the meme"
- "it became a meme within hours"
Can a brand use it? Depends on context
The risk is timing rather than the format. Using a meme two weeks after it peaked reads as out of touch, and the audience most likely to notice is the one you were trying to reach. Also check the origin — some formats come from communities a brand should not be borrowing from.
Related terms
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a meme?
A piece of culture that spreads by being copied and modified — most commonly a recognisable image or video template that people fill with their own context. The shared recognition of the template is what makes it work.
Where does the word meme come from?
Richard Dawkins coined it in 1976 to describe how ideas propagate through a culture, by analogy with genes. The internet usage is a much narrower version of that idea.
Should brands use memes?
Only while a format is current, and only if the origin is something you can comfortably be associated with. A meme used late is the clearest possible signal that an account is not really part of the conversation it is joining.
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