Gen X

noun

ˈjen-ˈeks 

: generation x

Gen X managed to stretch adolescence beyond all previous limits: Its members started becoming adults earlier and finished becoming adults later.

—Jean M. Twenge

—often used before another noun

a Gen X celebrity

—often hyphenated in such use

… 'The Blair Witch Project,' a stealth blockbuster with clever Internet marketing and so much Gen-X appeal that it's spooking Hollywood.

—Newsweek

Gen Xer

ˈjen-ˈek-sər 

noun

or Gen-Xer

plural Gen Xers or Gen-Xers

… only about 56 percent of high-school seniors in 2015 went out on dates; for Boomers and Gen Xers, the number was about 85 percent.

—Jean M. Twenge

Like many Gen-Xers, I remember childhood as an uncomplicated time when the only thing you had to worry about was being home by dark.

—Bethany Young Hardy

Examples of Gen X in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

After decades of being overlooked in favor of younger cohorts like Millennials and Gen Z, Gen X women are finally coming into focus for many brands. — Kathryn Hopkins, Footwear News, 23 June 2026

Fortune‘s Sasha Rogelberg reported in May on new research from the National Bureau of Economic Research showing that Gen X workers who retire early pay a steep cognitive price for it. — Jon Sabes, Fortune, 7 June 2026

Kids and teens are more into snapping quick selfies than setting up a camera on a tripod and then racing against a 10-second timer to get into a group photo—that seems like something that's nostalgic for Gen X and millennials. — Jim Fisher, PC Magazine, 2 June 2026

The fun ballerina sneaker styles in colorful hues have driven a devoted following from Gen Z that spans all the way through to their Gen X parents. — Kaitlin Clapinski, InStyle, 30 May 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1992, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for Gen X

• becks
• checks
• czechs
• decks
• dex
• ex
• flecks
• flex
• hex
• lex
• necks
• pecks