Definition

1. Noun:
   • Generation X: A demographic cohort following the post-World War II baby boom generation, typically defined as individuals born from the early-to-mid 1960s to the early 1980s. The term often characterizes this group as independent, resourceful, and skeptical of institutions.

Examples of Usage

• Noun:
  • Many members of Gen X are now in leadership positions in the workplace.
  • The marketing campaign is specifically targeted at Gen X consumers.
  • As a member of Gen X, she remembers the rise of personal computers and the internet.

Advanced Usage

• "Gen X sensibility": Refers to attitudes or tastes perceived as typical of this generation, such as cynicism, pragmatism, or nostalgia for late 20th-century culture.

  • The film's dark humor and ironic tone reflect a distinct Gen X sensibility.

• "Gen X-er" or "X-er": A common informal term for a member of Generation X.

  • He's a typical Gen X-er, valuing work-life balance and self-reliance.

Variants and Related Words

• Generation X: The full term, often used interchangeably with "Gen X."
• Xennial: A micro-generation at the cusp of Gen X and Millennials, typically born in the late 1970s to early 1980s.
• Baby Boomer: The generation preceding Gen X.
• Millennial: The generation following Gen X.

Synonyms

• Thirteenth Generation: A less common synonym, referencing this cohort as the thirteenth generation since American independence.
• Latchkey Generation: A descriptive term highlighting the phenomenon of many Gen X children returning from school to an empty home.

Related Idioms and Phrases

• "Slacker" stereotype: A cultural cliché, now often viewed as outdated, that portrayed Gen X as apathetic and disengaged. This is not an idiom using the exact term "Gen X" but is a strongly associated concept.
  • The movie characters, with their disaffected attitudes, embodied the "slacker" stereotype often wrongly applied to all of Gen X.

Noun

1. the generation following the baby boom (especially Americans and Canadians born in the 1960s and 1970s)