for the lulz

English

Alternative forms

• for the lols, for the lolz

Etymology

First online uses appear around 2006 on 4chan.

Pronunciation

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Prepositional phrase

for the lulz

1. (chiefly Internet slang) For kicks, for personal amusement, especially schadenfreude.
   • 2012, Will Gragido, Daniel Molina, John Pirc, Nick Selby, Blackhatonomics: An Inside Look at the Economics of Cybercrime, Newnes, →ISBN, page 29:

     Still others are looking for a cause; perhaps this is the most dangerous of all, as their desire to be a part of something can have serious repercussions. And still others are in it all for the lulz.

   • 2014, Lev Grossman, The Magician's Land, Random House, →ISBN, page 47:

     […] fairies thought all this military stuff was pretty silly, but they went along with it for the same reason that fairies ever did anything, namely, for the lulz.

   • 2015 October 23, Michael E. Miller, “Controversial blogger, infamous hacker team up to release remaining Planned Parenthood videos”, in Washington Post‎^[1], →ISSN:

     True to his equally controversial reputation, Johnson’s hacker accomplice, Auernheimer, said he mostly did it for the lulz.

   • 2017, Chris Brookmyre, Want You Gone, Hachette UK, →ISBN:

     We're hackers on steroids. Our motivation is twofold. We do it because we can. We do it for the lulz.

   • For more quotations using this term, see Citations:for the lulz.

Translations

for kicks — see for kicks