What Is an Ick on TikTok?

Have you ever heard a user on TikTok – or someone outside of the app – talking about “getting the ick”?

This term has become broadly used as a way of describing that feeling you get when someone you were interested in suddenly does something that turns you off.

It derives from several pop culture references that talk about characters and individuals feeling “icky” when they come across certain red flags in a potential partner – with Friends, Sex and the City, and Love Island all major influences in the rise of ‘ick’ as a term.

What Does ‘ick’ Mean?

In short, an ‘ick’ is a gut feeling that someone gets when someone does something that turns them off.

It’s likened by many to a desire to flee when someone happens – and is intrinsically used as a protective method to prevent falling for someone who isn’t a good match. So much so that therapists and dating specialists often refer to the ‘ick’, not as a bad thing, but rather as a good thing and something that our brain engage to protect us.

So, how does it apply to TikTok?

‘ick’ on TikTok

Despite being a widely used term away from the app, ‘ick’ has solidified itself as a term that also exists within the TikTok sphere – used to underpin any opinion or belief that others do not agree with.

While an ‘ick’ outside of social media is a gut feeling, on TikTok specifically it can be anything that a creator or used doesn’t agree with. There are countless videos and posts online of influencers and creators sharing their own ‘icks’ – from the way others eat to the way they vote, walk, or dress.

What’s more, on TikTok an ‘ick’ is not just reserved for relationships but also to friends and to those who creators have never met. An ‘ick’ has become, on TikTok, a way of describing something that someone doesn’t like.

It’s as simple as that.

Can you think of any ‘icks’ that would put you off someone or something?