Gen Z

noun

ˈjen-ˈzē 

: generation z

Gen Z is as nuanced and complex as every generation before them … In fact, they are considered to be the most diverse and multicultural generation ever.

—Andrew Kelly and Guy Cierzan

Gen Z is incredibly media savvy, so the challenge for marketers is trying to connect with an audience that already knows every marketing trick in the book.

—Chirag Kulkarni

—often used before another noun

Gen Z activists are using social media to start movements and gather the momentum they need to make positive changes in the world.

—Savanna Smith

—often hyphenated in such use

Gen-Z students/consumers

Gen Zer

ˈjen-ˈzē-ər 

noun

or Gen-Zer

plural Gen Zers or Gen-Zers

… even the oldest Gen Zer was just a tween when the iPhone was released in 2007.

—Ryan Kelly

Though many tend to lump them together, millennials and Gen Zers are two very different cohorts.

—Chad Recchia

Examples of Gen Z in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Here's how Gen Z is fixing their attention spans. —Nicole Fallert, USA Today, 18 Mar. 2026

For example, one weekend session saw Cheyenne Hunt, executive director of Gen Z for Change, and Washington Post staffer Dylan Wells discuss how the public consumes news. —Karoline Leonard, Austin American Statesman, 18 Mar. 2026

The crowded field of 15 Democrats running for the seat spanned three generations, from Gen X to Gen Z, and with so many candidates on the ballot, the winner might need only a relatively small percentage to move on to the general election. —Todd Feurer, CBS News, 17 Mar. 2026

To start, Gen Z has fewer economic opportunities than our parents. —Ariel David, Baltimore Sun, 16 Mar. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1996, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for Gen Z

• bens
• cleanse
• dens
• gens
• glens
• hens
• jens
• pens
• tens
• wrens
• zens
• cheyennes