What does “dat way” mean?

In agreement, aligned, affiliated — 'we on the same page.'

Entry · catalog no. 1808

dat way

/ /dæt weɪ/ /DAT-way

phrase · Atlanta, Georgia · 2010s

✓ Verified

An affirmation of alignment or affiliation — that we're on the same page, on the same side, headed the same direction. Also a literal 'over there.'

“You already know we go dat way.”

Origin & Attribution

Atlanta slang, put on the map by Migos with their 2016 single 'Dat Way.' Beyond pointing a direction, it signals solidarity — agreement, loyalty, being of the same set. A Black Atlanta coinage that traveled with the city's outsized influence on rap.

mid-2010s

Current in Atlanta speech

2016

Migos release 'Dat Way'

2010s

Spreads through Atlanta's reach in rap

Region of origin

West

Midwest

N.East

South

The South

Atlanta, Georgia · 2010s

Spoken by

Atlanta rap and the surrounding scene

$DATWAYThe Record · cultural traction

▲ Steady

10 yrs

ahead of the mainstream

55/100

peak cultural energy

Introduced to English by the culture — logged here before the mainstream caught on.

Cultural usage — the recordMainstream search interest

First used

2016

in the culture

Cultural energy indexed from documented usage, search interest, and citation frequency. The recorded date is the archive’s permanent point of record.

Hear it spoken

By region — how it actually sounds

@nolakid

New Orleans, LA

@htxdri

Houston, TX

Contribute your pronunciation

Citations & Sources

■

Migos, 'Dat Way' — 2016

recording · cited

■

Documented Atlanta slang

reference

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