Incels: A Guide

to Symbols and
Terminology
 2

Disclaimer

Please note that the opinions expressed in this document represent the views of Moonshot CVE
and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Government of Canada.

A French-language version of this guide will be released in the near future.

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Who is this guide for?

This guide is for frontline practitioners and social service workers, as well as individuals with an interest in the incel community. Moonshot is
conducting the first systematic, multi-platform study of the online incel ecosystem with financial support from Public Safety Canada’s Commu-
nity Resilience Fund, and in collaboration with the Canada Centre for Community Engagement and Prevention of Violence. Our project aims to
increase understanding and awareness of the phenomenon, and improve the capacity of Canadian practitioners to understand and interrupt
incel mobilization to violence.

This guide is the first step in that process. It provides a general introduction to incel terminology, logic and symbology, in order to help practi-
tioners understand the incel ecosystem. The prevalence and obscurity of incel-specific jargon and imagery can act as a barrier to understanding
incel ideology, conducting research, and designing interventions to support incels and prevent their mobilization to violence, which includes
attacks fueled by violent misogyny, interpersonal violence directed at women, suicidal ideation, and acts of self-harm.

Incels have developed their own coded and highly specialized language, and use it to communicate in online forums and spread their ideology.
This guide aims to demystify the jargon and symbols they employ: providing definitions, establishing context, and demonstrating how language
choices fit into their wider system of belief. By doing so, we hope to empower practitioners to accurately identify individuals who are involved
with the incel community, understand their unique frames of reference, and engage with them in an informed, skillful way.

What are incels?

Involuntary celibates (incels) are men who define themselves by their inability to form or access sexual relationships with women. They believe
this is the combined result of genetic factors, evolutionarily determined traits in women, and inequitable social structures. Incels are
predominantly interested in accessing sex with women1.

Incels believe genetic factors influence their physical appearance and/or cognitive and social abilities to the extent that they are
unattractive to women. Incels establish their unattractiveness through a range of measurements including their height, weight, bone structure,
distances between specific facial features, baldness, wrist size, position on the autism spectrum, and numerous other biologically-determined
features. These systems of measurement are taken from lookism theories, which draw heavily on eugenics to describe an archetypal man.

Incels believe that women are evolutionarily predetermined to seek out mates through a process called hypergamy. Hypergamy is
premised on the belief that women are more sexually selective, have a narrow view of attractiveness, and lower levels of promiscuity than
men. This means women deliberately seek out the most conventionally ‘attractive’ mate, reject less attractive men, and remain single when an
ideal mate is unavailable. Incels believe that prior to women gaining sexual and financial autonomy, hypergamy was restricted because of their
reliance on a husband for physical and material security. With the advancement of women’s rights, independence, and sexual freedoms, incels
believe women’s hypergamous behaviour now dominates the sexual marketplace: where women now select sexual relationships with a small
proportion of highly attractive men. Incels believe that 20% of men are now monopolising 80% of women for sexual relationships (the 80/20 Rule).

Interesting and Good-looking Female Hypergamy

Image taken from Incel Wiki, an incel-produced and moderated encyclopedia of incel terminology and theories. It depicts
changes in heterosexual relationships between 1955 and 2015, and highlights the 80/20 rule. According to incels, in both images
women have hypergamous behaviour, but due to their sexual liberation over the past 75 years, 80% are now free to pursue
sex with the most attractive 20% of men. Incels believe this leaves 80% of men without equal access to sexual relationships.

Image of “Blackops2cel”, an incel celebrity, depicted as a saint. The young man depicted does
not identify with the incel community, but his likeness is widely used by incels to illustrate the
physical features that they believe make them unattractive to women.

1955 2015
Boring and Ugly

1
There are some incels who would describe themselves as ‘gaycels’, or incels who advocate for sexual relationships with men as a solution to their lack of access to sex with women. These incels represent a minority within the mainstream incel community
and are often ignored or dismissed when engaging in online discussions. The majority of incel discussions focus on accessing heterosexual relationships with women.
 4

Incels believe mainstream society ignores or actively represses information about the genetic factors and evolutionary traits that impact
their ability to access sexual relationships. Those who do not subscribe to incels’ belief system are bluepilled. Mainstream beliefs about
sex, intimacy and dating are considered “bluepilled” because personality and emotional connection are believed to be as important as one’s
physical attractiveness in forming romantic or sexual relationships. Incels reject this and instead subscribe to the blackpill, which argues that
attractiveness is calculable and dictates success or failure in sexual and romantic relationships. Incels believe the blackpill is being ignored and
that the ‘MSM’ (mainstream media) is complicit. They believe their ‘genetic inferiority’ means mainstream society would prefer that they
were dead, and thereby excluded from the human gene pool through natural selection. Indeed, many incels believe that the suppression
or disregard of inceldom and blackpill research is a conspiracy to eradicate them.

An incel tweet referencing the COVID19 quarantine. It demonstrates a disgust

towards ‘normies’ for struggling to self-isolate during the pandemic, suggesting
this is business as usual for incels.
normies after two weeks of quarantine saying they can’t
stand it, want to die etc

incels have to live for decades without any contact or

intimacy with an opposite sex because all women hate
ugly men, we just get ignored or laughed at when we try

How do incels define themselves?

Incels define themselves in opposition to the archetypes of Chads, Staceys and Normies.

Chad A Chad is an archetypal white alpha male contrasting incels in both their physicality and
unlimited access to sex. Drawing on eugenics and white supremacism, Chads embody idealized
characteristics of Aryan men: tall, chiseled, square jawed, well-endowed, and possessing a full
head of hair. Incels believe that ‘hypergamous behaviour’ causes women to seek out Chads as
the most attractive and powerful sexual partners available. Chads thus monopolize sex with a
disportionate number of women. Incels believe that even women in monogamous relationships
with other men (often called betabux men) secretly engage in sexual relationships with Chads.
Chads are able to engage in “depraved” sexual acts with these women, who refuse to take part in
similar sexual behaviour with their beta male partners or incels. A common belief held by incels
is that all women engage in sexual behaviour in their early teens with Chads, and that finding a
virginal woman over the age of 18 is almost impossible.

A still from a YouTube video titled “GIGA CHAD”.

The incel community is racially diverse and is actively involved in discussions of race and race
According to the community, a “Gigachad” is a man
who is in the top 0.1% of men in terms of physical realism. The Chad is the most commonly referenced male archetype; however, there are other,
attractiveness. racialized ‘Chad’ figures: Tyrone, Chadpreet, Chaddam and Chang. All of these figures are
constructed through racist stereotypes.

Stacy A Stacy is the female counterpart to a Chad. She is a female archetype at the apex of the social
and sexual hierarchy. Stacys have their pick of sexual and romantic partners; for this reason,
they are hated by incels, and are a target for online vitriol, humiliation, and physical violence. A
typical Stacy will only date Chads.
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Beckys and Betas Beckys are the majority of the female population and are subordinate to Stacys. They are ‘average’
looking and have lower social status. According to incels, their SMV (or ‘Sexual Market Value’ - an
index of physical attractiveness) averages between three to seven out of 10. Like Stacys, Beckys want
to engage in sexual relationships with Chads. However, incels believe that Beckys settle for betabux
males after hitting ‘The Wall’ at 25 - the age that incels believe all women begin to lose their sexual
appeal. The primary difference between Stacys and Beckys is that incels view Stacys as hostile and
unattainable, whereas they feel that they are owed attention and sex from an inferior Becky.

The Becky The Stacy

An image on Twitter for an Incel Rights Campaign. Stacy and Becky

The statistic reads “98% of straight women are Images are from incels.wiki portraying a typical Stacy and Becky.
unwilling to date incel men because of bigotry
towards incels”.

Bluepill Based on the 1999 film The Matrix, the concept of ‘pills’ is prevalent across the Manosphere and
far-right. According to incels, a bluepilled male engages in conventional dating practices, unaware
of the ‘real’ society incels inhabit. Incels see ‘bluepilled’ attempts to improve attractiveness as
futile unless one’s physical appearance improves, as this is all women care about. An example
of this can be seen below.

Therapy is bluepilled, it don’t fix your face.

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have
any questions or concerns.

Image from r/Braincels, a banned incel subreddit. A response, pre-written by the incel subreddit moderators,
has been triggered by the keyword “therapy”. Its dismissiveness is indicative of incels’ approach to mental
health support: therapy is considered “bluepilled” because it is premised on the belief that the incel way of
thinking is flawed.

Redpill ‘Swallowing the redpill’ refers to a man waking up to the real world, where women are better off
than men, female oppression is a myth, and women actually desire traditional gender roles. If
a man is aware of these ‘truths’ of redpill ideology, he can manipulate women to his advantage
and access sex and power. The term ‘redpill’ is not exclusive to incels and is used by other parts
of the Manosphere, as well as the far-right and violent far-right.
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Blackpill Blackpill philosophy accepts the unequal society proposed by the redpill, but rejects the idea that
one can ‘game’ the system to their advantage. It interprets sexual rejection as a matter of female
prejudice, and that unattractive, genetically inferior men will never access sexual or romantic
relationships in the current dating and sexual milieu.

No amount of personality, charisma, or gymmaxxing (working out in the gym) can change a
blackpilled incel’s fate; their genetic inferiority is hopeless and inescapable. Incels who have
‘swallowed the blackpill’ often describe themselves as ‘doomed’, with no other option but to
Lay Down And Rot (LDAR).

The blackpill argues that because women are hardwired to prefer certain physical features, such
as strong jawlines and cheekbones, they will never have sex with incels. This ideology of nihilism
and despair captures many incels’ sense of being trapped in an unjust world. It begins to pose
a threat to society - especially women - when this philosophy encourages an entitlement to sex
and the ‘correction’ of the status quo. This entitlement allows incels to rationalize discrimination
and violence towards women, as they feel they are oppressed by a female-dominated society2.

Lookism Lookism is a theory of objective beauty that draws on eugenics and scientific racism. It is
grounded in both redpill and blackpill ideology. Incels engage with lookism terminology
either to rate physical attractiveness or discuss whether it effectively explains their lack of sexual
success. Lookism websites tend to focus on discussions of archetypal male beauty and methods
of ‘maximising’ these physical traits, rather than engaging in other incel-related topics such
as discussions of hypergamy. However, several lookism websites are clearly part of the incel
ecosystem, explicitly acknowledging incels or featuring incel-specific posts and discussions.

Many individuals define their inceldom through lookism: Incels often describe themselves by
identifying a physical feature they feel is the cause of their lack of sexual success, alongside the
suffix -cel. An “eyecel” is an incel who believes the appearance of their eyes fails to meet lookism
standards, while a “wristcel” believes their wrists are too small, often indicative of having a ‘small
frame’ which incels call being a “manlet”.

Eyecolorpill
Friday at 7:12AM

Replies: 10 Views: 200 Last Reply: April 4th 2020

Do you have incel hands? Measure your hand breadth!

Oct 11, 2015
Wristcel is brutal because there’s absolutely nothing you can do about it.
Replies: 95 Views: 17K Last Reply: April 4th 2020 Anything above the neck you can fix given enough resources (except for
having a low-IQ IT brain), but wristcel = over.

160 cm 16 year old, hgh?

Mar 9, 2020

Replies: 10 Views: 324 Last Reply: April 4th 2020

A list of threads on lookism.net, one of which is for incels discussing On the Reddit forum r/IncelsWithoutHate, users declare to a commenter that it is
“incel hands”. ‘over’ for them due to their having ‘tiny’ wrists.

2
This phenomenon is termed “aggrieved entitlement,” in which a certain demographic (usually a privileged one) is denied their expected privileges by “unseen forces larger and more powerful”. See Kimmel, Michael. Angry White Men: American Masculinity at
the End of an Era. New York: Nation Books, 2017.
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How do incels communicate?

As the previous section demonstrates, there is a flourishing vocabulary used by incel communities. While difficult to decode, it provides insights
into their ideology and values. We have collated key terms in the attached Glossary.

Incels’ unique in-group language incorporates dark, nihilistic humour similar to that found on 4chan and other platforms used by the far-right,
creating an environment of pessimism and hopelessness. At best, incels’ language choices merely reinforce their depressing milieu, but at worst
they encourage acts of ‘retribution’ against society, targeted violence against women, self-harm, suicidal ideation, and the celebration of tragedy
or violence where women or ‘normies’ have been harmed, on the basis of their gender, beliefs or access to sex.

Incel terminology is heavily policed and negotiated online, ensuring a high degree of uniformity and creating a worldview that reinforces the ‘us
vs. them’ dynamic within the incel ecosystem - perpetuating a shared sense of grievance, community and ideology.

Are incels violent?

Every incel has his own view about the legitimacy of violence, but common themes emerge across the ecosystem. When discussing instances of
violence in the media, for example, incels view attackers sympathetically if they believe their motives were incel-related. This does not always
translate to incels excusing or endorsing acts of violence, but it does present a highly sympathetic reading of them, and creates an environment
where violence as a response to inceldom is considered and debated as a viable option.

Incels engage with violence at three basic tiers: personal, interpersonal and societal. Personal violence is self-directed by incels through acts of
self-harm, suicidal ideation or suicide. Interpersonal violence is violence between an incel and another individual, including physical assaults or
murders targeting women, violence towards sex workers, and aggressive behaviour towards women in public. Societal violence is directed towards
society as a whole: this includes terror attacks or murders perpetrated by incels, as well as by individuals who do not identify as incels, but are
celebrated by the incel community for their actions.

Societal Violence There are incels who have engaged in societal violence, such as the Canadian terrorist Alek
Minassian, who committed the 2018 Toronto van attack. However, incels also discuss unrelated
terror attacks, questioning whether the perpetrator was motivated by inceldom, and debating
the merits of societal violence as a means to revel in the pain and suffering of ‘normies’. Both
types of violent actors are adopted into the incel ecosystem and celebrated: their attacks are
reviewed and compared in detail, the perpetrators are referred to by the honorific term ‘saint’,
and some incels commemorate their birthdays or the anniversary of their attacks.

Interpersonal Violence Incels share images, videos and stories of violence against women, either by third parties or other
incels, to celebrate violence committed against women or “normies”. Interpersonal violence by
incels tends to fall into three categories: violent criminal behavior - including violence against
women; actions to emotionally hurt or humiliate women; and actions to make women physically
uncomfortable and fearful. Interpersonal violent content is usually tagged on incel forums with the
terms “lifefuel”, “based” (not caring about being politically correct) or “”JFL” (Just Fucking Lol).

[LifeFuel] Angry incel punches pregnant Stacy in stomach

An angry balding incel decides to take mini-retribution on a Stacy carrying

Chad’s baby. He bravely and valiantly attempts to rid the world of a potential
This post references a type of lifefuel: the notion of chad bully, to save future incels from torment. I hereby anoint him a holy warrior
a pregnant woman being punched in the stomach monk of the church of inceldom.
to “save future incels from torment”. This is an
https://www.standard.co.uk/news/cri...r-on-busy-tube-station-platform-a3950336.html
example of incels becoming excited by the prospect
of interpersonal violence.
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Personal Violence Discussions of suicide and suicidal ideation are ubiquitous in the incel ecosystem. The majority
of violent discussions on incel forums are related to suicide. Many users reference suicide in
their avatars, username or taglines, and often post about their suicidal ideation. This is a serious
public health crisis: the term “rope” or “roping” is one of the most popular terms used to connote
suicide, and rope imagery can be seen in countless incel-generated images.

Incels often respond to each other’s suicidal ideation with encouragement to self-harm and
technical advice. This is the end result of the blackpill worldview: incels’ inalterable position
leaves them with no option but to commit suicide, since they cannot ascend (have sex). Incels
frequently respond to suicidal posts by blaming society, the media or ‘incel hunters’ (such the
Reddit community r/inceltears) for vilifying incels.

The comment section of a video from The Darkcel Podcast on YouTube. While the A post from the banned subreddit r/Braincels. The user leaves a suicide note on
creator states he “does not condone self-harm”, this podcast and its comments the subreddit, using the incel term “roping”. The top comment does not discourage
sections encourage and discuss methods of ‘roping’. this behaviour, but rather points the finger at r/inceltears, a subreddit dedicated
to ‘exposing’ incel behaviour online.

[Discussion] Who’s your favorite Incel Saint?

Responses to a suicide note on now banned subreddit r/Braincels. Users do not A poll from incels.co allowing incels to vote for their “favorite Incel Saint”. This
discourage the suicidal incel, and the single user who does object is admonished is a discussion point for the thread, allowing incels to bond over common
by other users, who claim that suicide “is the solution”. heroes in the comments section.
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Who do incels idolize?

Many incels lionize men who have committed societal violence either implicitly or explicitly as a result of being rejected by women. These men
are often glorified by being referred to or visually depicted as “saints”. The term ‘saint’ signals their dedication to incels, while ‘sainthood’ can
be achieved through martyrdom (violence).

Elliot
Rodger

Mosaic image of Elliot Rodger created with images of other misogynistic killers who the artist perceived
to have incel-related motives. The subjects were selected based on their lack of romantic and sexual
relationships, the targeting of women who had rejected them, and/or their general hatred of women.

One of the most popular “saints” in the incel ecosystem is Elliot Rodger, who murdered 6 people in Isla Vista, California in 2014 in an act of
‘retribution’ against women who had sexually rejected him. Rodger left behind a 107,000-word manifesto declaring the beginning of a ‘War
on Women’. While Rodger did not identify publicly as an incel, his sexual frustration and anger resonated with the online community. Incels
pay respect to Rodger through the honorific ‘saint’ and by incorporating his initials ‘ER’ into their usernames, profile taglines, and comments.
Following Alek Minassian’s Toronto attack, Minassian was referred to as “our hERo”. A legacy of Rodger’s attack is the incel phrase “go ER”, which
refers to committing mass murder, followed by suicide, as a result of sexual rejection. Incel communities often suggest this to members who
announce their intention to commit suicide.

The comments section from an Elliot Rodger tribute Youtube video. As

2 years ago demonstrated from the language used, Rodger is seen as a hero, with words
such as “Saint” illustrating viewers’ admiration of him.
He did it too, now girls fawn over him...
12

View 2 replies

6 months ago

I will never forget you, Saint Elliot. Your courage, strength and bravery has
never been seen before on this planet, and will never be seen again. There will
never be another incel like Saint Elliot. May God bless his immortal soul.
6

Marc
Lépine

Mosaic image of Marc Lépine created with images of other misogynistic killers perceived to have
incel motives.

Marc Lépine was a Canadian who murdered 14 women and wounded 10 others in a 1989 shooting in Montreal (known as the École Polytechnique
massacre or Montreal massacre). Lépine is considered an original incel killer and is called a “saint” by incels. Lépine receives their respect because
he specifically targeted women and avoided killing men. This is often referenced in incel debates where Lépine’s approach is contrasted with
Rodger’s, who killed several men in his attack. December 6th, the date of Lépine’s attack, is celebrated by incels.
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Alek
Minassian

Mosaic image of Alek Minassian created with images of other misogynistic killers perceived to have incel-
related motives.

Alek Minassian committed the 2018 Toronto van attack, murdering 10 people and injuring 16 by deliberately targeting pedestrians with a rental
van. In a post on Facebook prior to his attack, Minassian claimed “the incel rebellion has already begun” and paid respect to the “Supreme
Gentleman Elliot Rodger”. During a subsequent police interview, Minassian spoke of his embarrassment and anger at his failed interactions with
women, and indicated that he now “felt like he had accomplished his mission”.

Within the incel ecosystem Minassian is also regarded as a hero. Videos Alek Minassian
and news about his arrest are shared on incel forums; he is referred to 1 hr •

by the honorific “Saint” and popular incel YouTuber wrote a song about
Private (Recruit) Minassian Infantry 00010, wishing
Minassian’s murders. Discussions of Minassian’s attacks often include
to speak to Sgt 4chan please. C23249161. The Incel
references to the song ‘Alek Minassian’, whose chorus includes the
Rebellion has already begun! We will overthrow the
lyrics: “Runnin’ through these hoes like I’m Alek Minassian / Hoppin’
Chads and Stacys! All hail the Supreme Gentleman
in the whip and I’m motherfuckin’ crashin’ it / Up over the curb like
Elliot Rodger!
I’m Alek Minassian / Hoes suck my dick while I run over pedestrians”.
1

A post from Minassian’s Facebook profile which was uploaded prior to his attack in
2018. The militaristic terminology and reference to the “Incel Rebellion” have both
become part of incel discourse following his attack.

Scott
Beierle

Mosaic image of Scott Beierle created with images of other misogynistic killers perceived to have
incel motives.

Scott Beierle committed the 2018 Tallahassee shootings, in which he shot

six women, killing two, and attacked another man before killing himself.
These shootings occurred in a yoga studio, which Beierle specifically
targeted to kill women. Beierle posted videos to his YouTube channel
espousing racist and misogynist opinions; in one video, called Plight
of the Adolescent Male, Beierle discussed Elliot Rodger, and compared
Rodger’s feelings to his own.
A post from incels.co that refers to Scott Beierle as St Yogacel. The poster’s avatar
is of a Mark Hilburn, a convicted murderer who killed two people and injured
Despite Beierle’s lack of affiliation with the community - no evidence
seven others in 1993. The user’s profile picture at the time of the original post
exists that he engaged with incel forums and chat rooms - his attack was was of Scott Beierle.
motivated by violent misogyny and he referenced Rodger in his videos.
As a result, incels have adopted him into their canon, and nicknamed
him “St Yogacel”.
 11

Chris
Harper-Mercer

Chris Harper-Mercer was responsible for the 2015 Umpqua Community College shootings near Roseberg, Oregon. He fatally shot 10 people and
injured eight before committing suicide. Harper-Mercer wrote a six-page manifesto, stating that he had “no friends, no job, no girlfriend” and
was a virgin. He referred to Elliot Rodger as a person who was “elite”.

Harper-Mercer did not explicitly engage with incel forums; however, the night before the attack he is believed to have posted on the 4chan board
/r9k/, a forum popular with incels: “Some of you guys are alright. Don’t go to school tomorrow if you are in the northwest.” Since his attack,
members of the incel community have labelled him an “underrated incel” and discussed him as “not receiving enough recognition”.

Chris Harper Mercer Incel Hero

*Virgin
*Friendless
*Lived with his mother
*Had no job
*Misanthropic loner
*Praised Elliot Rodger as his hero
*Killed 9 Normalshits before himself
*Autism
A post on incels.co referring to Chris Harper-Mercer as an “Incel Hero”. The post
This guy was one of us (excluding the killing). He should be celebrated as an
Incel Saint with Elliot and Alek. All hail St Chris! lists a number of characteristics of Harper-Mercer, before concluding that “this
guy was one of us”.
 12

Are incels connected to

other violent extremists?
Incels are interested in the ideology and actions of extremist groups that offer access to sex or disrupt society through targeted violence. Incels
discuss the merits of both violent far-right groups and jihadists, which advocate for traditional gender roles or sexual slavery, as potential solutions
to their viriginity. Members of incel communities also celebrate violent extremist attacks, such as the Christchurch Mosque shootings, because
of the deaths and injuries inflicted on non-incel members of society, especially women.

Many incels appear to subscribe to violent far-right ideologies. Their choice of avatars, usernames and taglines incorporate violent-far right
symbols, and they share videos or manifestos related to violent-far right attacks and anti-Semitic conspiracy theories. Jihadist content is more
carefully policed by incel moderators; however, incel avatars referencing jihadist groups are still common.

From left to right:

This avatar depicts Pepe the Frog dressed in a

balaclava and wearing a headband with the
slogan of the Qassam Brigade, an armed faction
of Hamas.

This avatar is of Dylann Roof, an American white

supremacist responsible for the murder of nine
people in the 2015 Charleston church shooting.
Joined: Nov 11, 2018 Joined: May 2, 2018 Joined: Sep 26, 2019
Posts: 7,960 Posts: 11,137 Posts: 9,105
The avatar is Ed Kemper, an American serial killer
Reputation: 8,810 Online: 53d 22h 51m Online: 70d 16h 6m nicknamed the “Co-ed Killer” for targeting young
women.

Stormcels Stormcels are incels who openly self-identify with the violent far-right. The prefix ‘storm’
references Stormfront, the popular white supremacist website. Stormcels’ interactions with
other incels are illustrative of the unique environment of the incel ecosystem: they tend to hold
traditional far-right views about racial hierarchies and are reluctant to engage in sexual acts with
non-white women; however, stormcels’ ultimate allegiance appears to be towards other incels,
regardless of their race or religion, over white women. In fact, the incel ecosystem appears to be
a space where stormcels can question their own far-right ideological assumptions and engage
in reflective discussions about this ideology with non-white incels.

Jihadmaxxing Jihadmaxxing or taking the jihadpill refers to the suggestion that muslimcels, Muslim incels,
should join jihadist groups or engage in jihad in order to access sexual relationships. This is often
expressed facetiously, but when there are reports of terrorist attacks committed by Muslims or Arabs,
and if incels’ believe the motives are incel-related, they will describe the attacker as jihadmaxxing.

Post from incels.co with an icon featuring a still from an ISIS beheading video showing ‘Jihadi John,’ a
British ISIS fighter holding a knife. The bio reads "‫ "امر بالمعروف والنهي عن المنكر‬which means “enjoining the
good and forbidding evil,” a popular hadith used by jihadist groups to demonstrate legitmacy, but also a
popular hadith amongst Muslims.
 13

Glossary
2D>3D The belief that 2D ‘girlfriends’ - which are AI chatbots, female anime or video game characters - are better than 3D (real-life)
girlfriends.

80/20 Rule Also known as the Pareto principle, this rule is used to illustrate the distribution of effects or a power law, and predicts
that in many situations 80% of an outcome is produced by 20% of its causes. This is interpreted by the incel community in
the context of dating, and assumes that 80% of women have access to the top 20% of men in a society, meaning that the
‘bottom’ 80% of men are left with the remaining 20% of females between them.

AOC Age of consent.

Ascend To “ascend” is to leave inceldom and access sex with a woman. This sex must not be paid for (e.g. escortcels have not
ascended).

Atomic Blackpill Sometimes referred to as the Nuclear Blackpill. The Atomic blackpill is any fundamental proof that women are shallow
and are exclusively attracted to male physical traits. It includes ‘blackpill science’ experiments: for example, Tinder profile
screenshots showing flirtations between women and a conventionally attractive male profile, despite him having the phrase
“convicted three times for rape of a child” in his bio.

AWALT Acronym for “All Women Are Like That”. An assumption that all women are driven by the same essential ‘female nature’
which drives their (mating) behaviour.

Based The act of not caring about others’ opinions or being politically correct - incels are often praised for being ‘based’. The term
originally referred to someone addicted to smoking crack cocaine.

Beta Orbiter A Beta Orbiter is a man who spends a significant amount of time with a woman, feigning interest in her ideas and opinions,
in an effort to date her. This term is often used to describe men who follow female content producers on social media.

Betabux Any man who is not a Chad who is in a relationship with a woman. Women only settle for betabux either after they have hit
‘the Wall’, and can no longer access sex with Chads, or if they are secretly continuing to have sex with Chads while with a
betabux. Women seek out betabux men for financial support.

Blackpill The blackpill philosophy argues that an individual’s dating success is determined wholly by their physical attractiveness, and
is thus determined at birth. Therefore, men who are genetically inferior cannot access sexual and romantic relationships.

Bluepill According to incels, an individual who has ‘swallowed’ the Bluepill remains in a state of blissful ignorance, and has not yet
woken up to the fact that society discriminates against males, rather than females.

Bone smash theory The notion that bones grow when exposed to repeated trauma. This is a violent method of looksmaxxing used by incels to
change their physical appearance.

Catfishing Creating a fake social media profile for the purposes of abusing or defrauding an individual online.

Chad The archetypal alpha male believed to be favoured by society due to stereotypically Aryan good looks, genes, bone structure,
hair, and height.

Chaddam An Arab Chad.

Chadfishing A form of catfishing where incels create dating profiles using images of conventionally attractive men. It is usually used to
prove that women are more likely to interact with someone online if they are physically attracted to them.

Chadlite A term used to refer to a lower tier Chad.

Chadpreet An Indian Chad.

Chang An East Asian Chad.

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Cheerleader Effect The belief that women in groups appear more attractive than they would individually, like a group of cheerleaders.

Cock carousel The concept that women in their 20s ‘ride the cock carousel’, jumping from man to man, before settling down with a less
attractive male in their 30s.

Cucks From the word cuckold, cucks are men who are emasculated through their own behaviour, for example by following the
bluepill or wageslaving for a society that oppresses them.

Dogpill The incel belief that women are having sex with dogs and that they would prefer to do this over having sex with an incel.

Fapfuel Material used by incels to masturbate.

FBIcels A joke term referencing online incel communities’ possible surveillance by the FBI. ‘FBIcels’ refers to FBI agents posing as incels.

Femoid/Foid A shortened version of ‘femanoid’ - which is a combination of female and humanoid. A dehumanising term suggesting
women are not human.

Game Techniques used by pick-up artists (PUAs) to manipulate women into having sex.

Giga (prefix) A prefix describing something as the ‘ultimate’ version. When placed in front of ‘Chad’ or ‘Stacy’ it indicates ultimate physical
attractiveness, or the top 0.1% of men/women. When placed in front of lifefuel such as giga-lifefuel it indicates the ultimate
example of lifefuel for an incel.

Going ER Named after Elliot Rodger, this term is used by incels to describe or laud the act of committing mass murder, or muder-suicide.

Goy/Goyim Hebrew and Yiddish term for a non-Jewish person, synonymous with “gentile.” Used by far-right and occasionally incel
forum users to signify their non-Jewish ethnicity, reclaiming what they interpret to be a derogatory term used by the Jewish
community as a way of taking pride in the fact that they are not Jewish.

Gymmaxxing Going to the gym to improve once’s physical attractiveness in order to access sex.

Halo Effect The tendency to unconsciously view an attractive person as innocent, and assign them positive characteristics such as
honesty, talent and intelligence. Incels see this social bias demonstrated by the case of Jeremy Meeks, whose mugshot
was shared by the police in Stockton, California. Meeks’ photo went viral due to his good looks, and after completing his
sentence, he was offered a modelling contract.

High T High levels of testosterone.

High-tier According to incels, an individual with above average physical attractiveness.

Hypergamy The belief that women are evolutionarily predetermined to “marry up” by seeking out the most attractive alpha male.
Hypergamy is premised on the belief that women are more sexually selective, and will leave less suitable men for men who
are more physically attractive and have a better socioeconomic standing.

ITcucks Refers to members of the subreddit r/IncelTears who monitor incel forums and post screenshots of disturbing content on
Reddit for ridicule and admonishment.

JB Jail bait. A sexually desirable girl just below the age of consent. The girl is considered ‘bait’ because she is a temptation to
commit a crime by engaging in sex with an underage girl.

JBB “Just Be Black”: the suggestion that certain behaviours that allow you to access sex are only available if you are black (e.g.
thugmaxxing).

JBPill Jail Bait Pill. This is part of the ‘pill’ terminology and refers to accepting that “jail bait” is an anti-male concept that prevents
incels from accessing sex with ‘prime’ aged girls.
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JBW “Just Be White”: the suggestion that certain behaviours that allow you to access sex are only available if you are white (e.g.
SEAmaxxing).

JFL Just Fucking Lol. This can be used as a ‘tag’ on incel posts to describe the theme of the post, or as a comment. It is most
often used in relation to examples of ‘normies’ behaving in ways incels believe to be stereotypical, such as openly talking
about their preference for physically attractive people.

Jihadpill Accepting that the only way of accessing sexual and romantic relationships is by becoming a jihadist or comitting jihad.

Jihadmaxxing Accessing sexual and romantic relationships by becoming a jihadist.

KHHV Kissless, hugless, handholdless virgin.

Landwhale A term incels use to refer to an overweight woman.

LARP Stands for “Live Action Role Play”: when used by incels, it describes someone who is pretending to be someone they’re not.

LDAR Lay Down And Rot is a phrase claiming that self-development, positive behaviour or corrective actions (such as looksmaxxing)
are pointless, and that an individual’s situation cannot be improved. To LDAR is to give up on activities that are inconsistent
with a “rotting” lifestyle. Acceptable “rotting” behaviour includes browsing incel forums, watching pornography, withdrawing
from human contact and remaining in bed.

Lifefuel A term for something that encourages incels to continue living.

Looksmaxxing Any attempt made to improve one’s looks to reach their greatest aesthetic potential. This includes a number of methods of
self-improvement, such as going to the gym, getting a haircut, improving one’s style or taking steroids.

Low T Low levels of testosterone.

Low-tier According to an incel, a low-tier normie has below average physical attractiveness.

Maleleader Effect The opposite of the Cheerleader Effect. When the most attractive man in a group looks more appealing than if he was
alone, and his male companions appear less attractive.

Manlet A term used to describe a short man or man with a small physique.

Manosphere Term for the loose collection of online anti-feminist, misogynistic, pro-men communities. The four distinct areas of the
manosphere are the MRA, MGTOW, PUA and incel communities.

Marcel An incel who is married.

MGTOW A subsection of the manosphere which advocates that men withdraw from romantic relationships with women, including
(Men Going Their Own Way) refraining from having children other than through surrogacy, and enforce a strict gender hierarchy.

Mogs/Mogged An act of dominating someone by being more physically attractive. One can be mogged on a variety of physical characteristics
(e.g. “height mogged” or “wrist mogged”).

MoneyMaxx MoneyMaxxing refers to engaging in any activity that will earn money, in the hope that becoming wealthier will increase
your sexual market value (SMV), and in turn your dating success.

MRA (Men’s Rights Activists) A subsection of the manosphere focused on political and legal change that advances men’s interests, such as reducing
divorce settlements and child support payments, as solutions to their perceived oppression.

NEET Standing for “Not in Education, Employment or Training”. Living a NEET lifestyle is respected by incels because it represents
the act of removing oneself from an oppressive society.
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Nice guy/nice guy syndrome A label/term for men who believe they are entitled to relationships because they possess personality traits that make them
good partners.

Normie An individual who is not part of the incel community.

NPC Stands for Non-Player Character, referring to automated characters in video games who cannot be controlled. NPCs are
understood by gamers as basic, pre-programmed entities who can’t think for themselves, relying on preset coding and
graphics. For incels, NPC has become a term for individuals who are seen as part of ‘the system’, and believe in politically
correct or left-wing narratives and are not awake to the ‘truth’ of the world (see Redpill; Blackpill).

Omega A man who has trouble interacting with the female population and thus has ‘no prospect’ of a relationship.

Orbiter See Beta Orbiter.

PinkPill The female version of the incel blackpill. Although incels do not believe women can be part of their community, there is a
small group of women who believe that no matter how hard they try to fit society’s idea of a ‘perfect woman’ they will never
find a partner.

PSL rating A 10-point scale used to rate an individual on their physical attractiveness. PSL is an acronym of PUAhate, SlutHate and
Lookism - three defunct online forums where the PSL rating system was created and proliferated.

PUA (Pick-up Artists) A subsection of the manosphere that follows the redpill ideology. PUAs’ goal is to maximize the number of women they
have sex with through learning “game”, or techniques that manipulate women into having sex.

r/Braincels An alternative subreddit for r/incels, which was banned in 2017 for breaching Reddit policy. In 2019 r/Braincels was also banned.

Ragefuel Acts, events, or information that make incels angry.

Redpill Refers to an individual waking up to the real world. Those who subscribe to the redpill ideology argue that women are
markedly better off than men.

Roastie A term used to describe a woman who is sexually active. The slang originates from the idea that a woman’s genitals change
shape after having sex, sometimes to resemble roast beef.

Scientific Blackpill ‘Scientific’ evidence used by incels to support their ideology. This evidence is usually misinterpreted data from wider scientific
or economic studies, which is used by incels to explain women’s behaviour.

SEAMaxx/SEAMaxxing/ The attempt to improve one’s dating ability by travelling to Southeast Asia. This is based on the theory that native Southeast
South-East-Asia-Maxx Asian men are not desired by women, and that white men with ‘Nordic’ looks are preferred, therefore making it easier for a
white, Western man to access sex in Southeast Asia.

Sexual Marketplace The sexual marketplace is the modern-day dating world.

Simp A man who invests a significant amount of his time and money in a woman who isn’t romantically interested in him.

SMV An acronym for “Sexual Market Value”. This is a metric that measures an individual’s sexual desirability. According to the
incel community, this is the primary measure of an individual’s worth.

Soyboy Slang term used by incels (and others) to describe feminist and/or left-wing men who lack ‘necessary’ masculine qualities,
based on the myth is that if men drink dairy-free milk alternatives they become weak and feminine.

Soyciety An extension of the Soyboy, suggesting that society (usually the commenter’s) has losts its strength and integrity by pandering
to left-wing politics, feminism and LGBTQ+ inclusion.

StatusMaxx To StatusMaxx means to increase one’s social status, in efforts to increase their SMV and dating success. Some examples of
StatusMaxxing would include adopting a particularly impressive career, succeeding in athletics, or becoming famous.
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Sub 8 Law The incel belief that men with a PSL rating below 8 are unable to access sexual or romantic relationships.

Sub 9 Law The incel belief that men with a PSL rating below 9 are unable to access sexual or romantic relationships.

Suifuel Short for suicide fuel, suifuel is an idea or post that drives an incel further into self-hate, fuelling their desire to kill themselves.

The Wall The Wall, or the “agepill”, is the maximum age that a woman reaches before her SMV starts to decrease. According to incels
this age is 25.

TicTacs Used in the context of a woman overdosing on TicTacs, implying any attempt at suicide is just attention-seeking behaviour.

TikTokpill An example of incels keeping up with current trends, the TikTokpill claims that the social media platform TikTok is dominated
by Chads and Stacys.

Tyrone A black Chad.

Wagecuck A male who works, and therefore contributes to a society that is inherently oppressive to men. Incels who work describe
themselves as wagecucks.

Waifu An animated, fictional female character, usually from anime, that an individual has a romantic feeling for.

White Knight A man who rushes to a woman’s aid in any situation. He usually acts heroic or protective in order to feel better about himself.
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Incel types
The incel community use the suffix “-cel” to indicate the perceived deficiency that contributes to their inceldom. The stem of the word usually
alludes to an activity, physical feature, or interest of the incel in question. Below is a list of self-identified types of incel commonly referenced
within the community:

Acnecel An incel who believes acne is a primary factor contributing to his inceldom.

Baldcel An incel who cannot access sexual relationships due to baldness.

Blackops2cel An icon of the incel community, whose photo is regularly shared online to define what a ‘typical’ incel looks like. He is often
referred to as incels’ ‘Patron Saint’.

Clowncel An incel that identifies with the DC comics character “The Joker”. The 2019 film Joker received significant attention from the
incel community after media reports connected the character with their beliefs. By intentionally associating themselves with
“The Joker”, incels ridicule NPCs and mainstream society for what they see as an overreaction to the film, and its presumed
connection to incel violence.

Currycel An incel of South Asian descent.

Dickcel An incel with a penis below average length.

Escortcel An incel who visits an escort as a method of coping.

Fakecel Somebody who pretends to be an incel.

Femcels A woman who claims to be experiencing inceldom. According to incels, a woman cannot be an incel.

Gymcel An incel who exercises at the gym as a means of coping or looksmaxxing.

Heightcel An incel who attributes their inceldom due to their below average height.

Mentalcel An incel with mental health issues.

Muslimcel An incel who attributes their inceldom to their Islamic upbringing.

Nearcel Somebody who rarely has sex but does not qualify as an incel.

Oldcel An incel who believes that society sees them as no longer attractive due to their old age.

Poorcel An incel who attributes their inceldom to having little money.

Ricecel An incel who attributes their inceldom to their East or Southeast Asian ancestry.

Sandcel An incel who attributes their inceldom to their Middle Eastern heritage.

Stormcel A term used to refer to white supremacist incels, who freqeuent the neo-Nazi website Stormfront.

Stuttercel An incel who struggles to gain sexual or romantic attention due to a speech impediment.

Truecel The opposite of a fakecel: somebody who truly is an incel. This means that they have never had any form of physical contact
with the opposite sex.

Volcel An individual who voluntarily abstains from sex with others, therefore making them a “voluntary celibate”. This is often used
as an insult by incels to dismiss other forum users’ claims of inceldom. For example, a person who wouldn’t have sex with
his own sister might be accused of being a volcel.

Wizardcel An incel who is a virgin after the age of 30.

Wristcel An incel who attributes their inceldom to having smaller-than-average wrists.