special snowflake

In real, traceable use. Part of the curated seed collection; community review is coming.

Meaning · English

Synonym of snowflake (“someone who believes they are particularly unique and special; someone hypersensitive to insult or offense, especially a young person with politically correct sensibilities”).

Register: slang

Where it’s used: Used American English

Examples

The special snowflake is a whining millennial who protests instead of getting a "real job" and cries sexism because she's upset men don’t find her attractive enough.

Usage example from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-30)

Sources & notes

Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-30 via kaikki.org).

Common questions

What does “special snowflake” mean?

Synonym of snowflake (“someone who believes they are particularly unique and special; someone hypersensitive to insult or offense, especially a young person with politically correct sensibilities”).

Is “special snowflake” formal or informal?

special snowflake is generally slang.