# Stank Memes Stank Memes is internet slang for low-quality or bad memes, positioned as the opposite of dank memes. The term surfaced in October 2015 through a Facebook DuckTales parody and a Reddit thread, then hit peak visibility in 2019 when Elon Musk bought the domain stankmemes.com. ## Origin On October 1st, 2015, the Barnie Sandlers Facebook page posted a DuckTales theme parody containing the line "always making good and never stank memes," which is the earliest documented appearance of the term[1]. Later that month, on October 25th, 2015, Redditor TheLatestTrend asked /r/dankmemes "What's the opposite of a dank meme?" and a commenter answered "Dank memes are dank (Good) / Stank memes are stank (Bad)," locking in the definition the community would run with[3]. - **Platform:** Facebook / Reddit (viral spread) - **Creator:** Unknown - **Date:** 2015 ## Overview Stank Memes is a slang label for bad or low-effort memes, deliberately set up as the inverse of the dank memes category[1]. Where a dank meme is prized for being weird, layered or fresh, a stank meme is the tossed-off, stale, or crudely made version, and the word gets used both as an insult and as self-deprecating tag for junk posts[2]. The term rarely names one visual format. It attaches to whatever the poster wants to mock, from lazy image macros to overloaded MLG-style edits[1]. A running gag is to build a meme that is obviously bad on purpose, then label it stank, which flips the diss into the joke itself. Urban Dictionary entries stretched the phrase further, listing traits like clout-chasing animation-meme fandoms and cliche comeback lines as stank behavior, showing how the word drifted from meme quality into general online cringe shorthand[2]. ## How to Use People typically use "stank memes" as a put-down for weak, stale, or try-hard content, or ironically to label a meme they made bad on purpose. It also works as a category tag, the negative counterpart to calling something a dank meme. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### What is Stank Memes? Stank Memes is internet slang for bad or low-quality memes, treated as the opposite of dank memes[1]. ### Where did Stank Memes come from? The phrase first appeared in an October 1st, 2015 DuckTales theme parody from the Barnie Sandlers Facebook page, then got its good-versus-bad definition in an October 25th, 2015 /r/dankmemes thread[3]. ### What does Stank Memes mean? It labels memes that are stale, lazy, or badly made, and gets used as both a genuine insult and an ironic self-tag for junk posts[2]. ### How do you use Stank Memes? People drop it on posts they think are weak, or slap it on intentionally bad edits like the MLG parody style YouTuber MLG Stalin used in 2016[1]. ### Is Stank Memes still popular? The term is a classic bit of dank-meme-era slang; its highest-profile moment came when Elon Musk bought stankmemes.com in February 2019, drawing over 140,000 likes and Mashable coverage[5]. ## References 1. [https://mashable.com/article/elon-musk-buys-stankmemes/#CnAKIMwbUgq5]() 2. [https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Stank%20Memes]() 3. [https://www.reddit.com/r/dankmemes/comments/3q57ys/meta_whats_the_opposite_of_a_dank_meme/cwckbqb/]() 4. [https://www.reddit.com/r/BillAndPhil/comments/544q4w/classifications/]() 5. [https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/stank-memes]() --- Source: https://meme.com/memes/stank-memes Published by meme.com — The Internet Meme Library