noun Internet Slang

shadowban

· noun · internet

Quietly throttling an account's visibility without telling them.

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Definitions

1

When a platform silently restricts how many people see your posts — your replies don't surface, your hashtags don't show, your follower count stalls — without ever telling you it's happening. Officially denied, constantly alleged.

“My reach tanked overnight; I'm convinced I got shadowbanned for that one Israel reply.”
by community
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2

Verb form: to apply such a restriction.

“TikTok will shadowban you for saying certain words out loud — that's why everyone types 'unalive.'”
by community
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shadowban In A Sentence

My reach tanked overnight; I'm convinced I got shadowbanned for that one Israel reply.
TikTok will shadowban you for saying certain words out loud — that's why everyone types 'unalive.'

Origin & Usage

Coined on early web forums (mid-2000s) as 'hellbanning,' it migrated to social platforms as 'shadowban' once users suspected Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok of invisibly demoting them.

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