Demure Meaning Slang TikTok: Explained

First it was Steeze. Now social media users and celebrities are embracing a demure fall.

Flaunting choices and styles that are “very demure” is TikTok’s latest trend. It’s all about being mindful, very cutesy and most importantly — not doing too much.

The trend exploded on TikTok this month after an Aug. 2 video from creator Jools Lebron went viral. In the clip, Lebron demonstrates how she styles her hair and does her makeup for work. “Very demure,” she dubs the look.

@joolieannie #fyp #demure @OAKCHA @Paul | Fragrance Influencer ♬ original sound – Jools Lebron

Lebron posted another video three days later, this time on how to be “demure and modest and respectful at the work place,” which raked in more than 17 million views and nearly 2 million likes, leading her to reach more than 1.4 million followers on TikTok.

“See how I look very presentable? The way I came to the interview is the way I go to the job,” she says in the Aug. 5 TikTok. “I’m very modest, I’m very mindful.”

She’s since gone on to post dozens of videos explaining how to be demure, mindful and cutesy in any situation — from doing choreography to attending a drag show — sending social media users into a craze of “demurity.”

According to TikTok analytics, interest in posts tagged #demure has spiked since Aug. 7, with more than 27,000 videos posted with the hashtag in the past seven days in the U.S., and 78,000 videos posted with the hashtag overall.

And the term has now gone beyond TikTok; memes using the word demure have gone viral on X, with one X user declaring “demure” to be the word of the week. Their post got more than 590,000 views and more than 18,000 likes.

Celebrities and brands also quickly jumped on the trend. Lindsay Lohan and Jamie Lee Curtis posted from the set of the “Freaky Friday” sequel about being “demure” and “mindful.” Taylor Swift’s “Eras Tour” backup dancer Kameron Saunders poked fun at a recent fall by calling his recovery “veryyyy demure.” And Netflix posted a “Gilmore Girls” clip of Rory being described as “the demurest” as she ordered a club soda.

@jamieleecurtis #freakierfriday@lindsaylohan ♬ original sound – jamieleecurtis

Here’s what to know about the trend, which has led thousands of TikTokers — and beyond — on a quest to be very mindful, very cutesty and very demure.

What is ‘demure’?

At its most basic definition, demure is “affectedly modest, reserved, or serious,” according to Merriam-Webster.

But on TikTok, being demure is a play on pick-me girls, or a girl who claims she “isn’t like the other girls,” and also appears to be poking fun at the “clean girl” aesthetic.

The “clean girl” trend, also known as “vanilla girl,” is all about being effortless, and is often associated with having a natural and minimal look, journaling and meditating.

Lebron posted her first “demure” video on Aug. 2 after posting product reviews and “get ready with me” content for several years. She’s since posted dozens of examples of “demurity” in many different situations over the past few weeks.