What does opp mean?

“Opp” is short for opposition: someone who is against you. It comes from African American Vernacular English and Chicago drill music, where the word had real weight. Online it is now used for anything from a rival team to the colleague who books meetings at five.

Alive Everyone knows it. Mostly used as a joke now. Checked 22 Oct 2026 · 3 sources

  1. Thriving
  2. Alive
  3. Fading
  4. Endangered
  5. Extinct

How alive it is, from brand new to gone. Our editorial read, checked by hand.

HE TOOK THE LAST SLICE HE IS AN OPP NOW
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Who made it

Black speakers, and specifically the Chicago drill scene, where “opps” meant rival crews. Its wider spread from 2016 followed drill’s rise, a scene Chief Keef helped pioneer.

Where it came from

AAVE and street language first, then drill lyrics, then Twitter and TikTok.

Who usually gets left out

The stakes. In the scene it came from, an opp was a genuine danger. The version where your friend is your opp for taking the last slice borrows the word and leaves the risk behind.

What opp means

An opp is a rival, an enemy, someone not on your side. “Opps” is the plural and the more common form. The tone depends entirely on who is speaking: in some contexts it is a genuine warning, and online it is usually a joke about a minor betrayal.

This is a word worth knowing the weight of. Using it lightly is normal now, but it did not start light.

What it meant in drill
What it means when your brother eats your chips
The joke in two panels.

Where it came from

It is a shortening of opposition, rooted in African American Vernacular English. The earliest known recorded use of the short form is Chief Keef’s 2011 Chicago drill track “John Madden”. Rappers and street communities used it for rival groups.

Use in rap stayed limited until around 2016, when the Chicago drill scene went national and the word travelled with it. Later rappers spread it further.

When it was first seen

  • 2011: earliest known recorded use of “opp”, in Chief Keef’s Chicago drill track “John Madden”.
  • 2016 onwards: drill’s rise pushes it into mainstream rap and then Twitter.
  • By 2020: firmly part of general online vocabulary, mostly as a joke.

How it spread

The vector was music and then group chats. A one-syllable word for “person I am against” is useful, and the internet is built on small conflicts.

It spread fastest as an exaggeration: calling a friend an opp is funny precisely because the word is too strong for the situation.

Variations

Opps: the usual plural. Opp behaviour: an act of betrayal. Number one opp: the ranking. Opp-coded: giving off enemy energy.

Is it still in use?

Opp is settled rather than trending: everyone knows it, and it is used mostly in jokes. The tell we watch for is brands using it, which is where a word from this scene stops being funny fastest.

Our read: alive.

Similar words

SussuspicionClock itcalling someone outCrash outAAVE roots
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Questions people ask

What does opp mean?

It is short for “opposition”: a rival or enemy. “Opps” is the plural. Online it is usually a joke about someone who annoyed you.

Where does opp come from?

African American Vernacular English and Chicago drill music. Its earliest known recorded use is Chief Keef’s 2011 drill track “John Madden”, and it spread widely from about 2016 as drill went mainstream.

Is it rude to call someone an opp?

Between friends it is a joke. Said seriously, in the context it came from, it is a real accusation. Know which one you are doing.

Does opp mean police?

Not as its main meaning. Opp means opposition: a rival or enemy. “OPP” in capitals is also the Ontario Provincial Police in Canada, an unrelated abbreviation.

Sources

  1. Know Your Meme, “Opp / Opps”knowyourmeme.com
  2. Yahoo Lifestyle, on the slang meanings of OP and OPPyahoo.com
  3. Reporting on Chicago drill and its vocabulary (2016 onwards)

Checked 22 Oct 2026. The “still in use” verdict is our editorial read, updated by hand, from the Ask page. Spotted an error? Tell us and we will fix it.

Cite this page

Phylum Digital. “What does opp mean?” https://phylumdigital.com/meme-opp.html. Checked 22 October 2026.

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