GG

What does GG mean?

GG is short for good game. It is the typed version of a handshake: when a match ends, players drop "gg" in chat to say the game was fair and they have no hard feelings. Wikipedia's glossary of video game terms describes it as the parting words exchanged at the end of a competitive match. Dictionary.com lists "good game" among the abbreviation's meanings and notes it is used at the end of online matches as a sign of sportsmanship.

Over 25-plus years the two letters have picked up a few extra jobs:

• "It's over." Used as a noun or adjective, GG means a situation is lost. "Ref just gave them a penalty in the 90th minute. GG." Wiktionary records this sense of a loss or game over, and an announcer in the 2014 Dota 2 documentary Free to Play calls a team wipe with "This is GG."
• Sarcastic GG. After a clumsy mistake, "gg" means "nice going." Know Your Meme notes the sarcastic use on message boards for foolish or self-defeating moves.
• GGs. The plural, usually after a series of games or a long session with friends: "ggs, same time tomorrow?"

Other meanings. Away from games, GG can stand for Governor General or, in the UK, Girl Guides. In Singapore's informal English, "GG" or "GG liao" means doomed, a meaning Wiktionary records in forum posts back to 2007. In some online arguments it is also shorthand for Gamergate, the 2014 harassment campaign, which has nothing to do with sportsmanship.

Examples

• Fortnite duo: "gg, that final circle was pure chaos"
• Chess app, after a loss: "gg. I left my queen hanging on move 12"
• Discord, end of the night: "ggs everyone, I'm logging off"
• Group chat: "phone at 1%, no charger, two hours from home. gg"
• Parent overhears: "if she checks the homework today it's gg for me"
• Ranked match, mid-game: "they took every objective. gg, go next"
• At work: "the projector died five minutes into the client pitch. gg"

In games, "gg" usually sits alone as the last message of a match. In everyday speech it lands at the end of a sentence describing a disaster, like a punchline. Teens say it out loud as a two-syllable word, "jee-jee."

Where did GG come from?

• 1999: Know Your Meme points to an October 1999 Internet Chess Club article on online etiquette that mentions GG, and notes that some chess players were sore losers about receiving it.
• Late 1990s to 2001: The abbreviation spreads through PC multiplayer games such as Quake, Half-Life, StarCraft and Command & Conquer. It appears in a Half-Life FAQ by 2000 and a Diablo II terminology guide in 2001, according to the same Know Your Meme entry.
• StarCraft era: South Korean professional StarCraft players made GG part of the ritual. The losing player typed it as a closing statement, and the winner was expected to type it back.
• 2003: GG gets its first Urban Dictionary definition in January.
• 2010 onward: The opposite, "BG" for "bad game," spreads in League of Legends, World of Warcraft, StarCraft II and Call of Duty.
• April 2012: Google's "Zerg Rush" search Easter egg, a nod to StarCraft, put a GG on the screen at the end of the game.

GG, GG WP, GLHF and GG EZ

The letters around GG change its meaning a lot, so this is worth getting right.

Is GG rude?

Plain GG is one of the politest things a player can type. It is the gaming equivalent of shaking hands after a football match, and it is fine in any classroom or school club.

The trouble comes from timing and add-ons. Typing "gg" halfway through a team game tells teammates you have given up, and it can start arguments. "GG EZ" is deliberately insulting. And a sarcastic "gg" aimed at a classmate who tripped is mean in the same way "nice one" can be. If a child is typing plain "gg" after matches, that is a good sign, not a worrying one.

How to reply to GG

• An opponent types "gg" after the match: "gg wp, that last round was close"
• Your teen says "it's gg" about a test tomorrow: "Not gg yet. You still have tonight. Want me to quiz you?"
• A coworker messages "gg" after a launch goes wrong: "Painful, but fixable. Let's list what broke before the 3 p.m. call."

Is GG still used in 2026?

Yes. GG is one of the oldest pieces of gaming slang still in daily use, and it has never really faded. It shows up in esports broadcasts, kids' Roblox chats and adult group texts alike. The everyday "it's over" sense overlaps with cooked, and the cocky follow-up to a loss is usually skill issue. For the rest of the vocabulary, see the gaming slang dictionary.