What Is the Stonks Meme? Origin, Meaning & How to Use It
Learn what the Stonks meme means, where it came from, and how to use it. Create your own Stonks meme at justmeme.wtf.
The Stonks meme features "Meme Man" (a poorly rendered 3D head) standing in front of a stock market chart with an upward arrow. Despite making a terrible financial decision, the character declares "stonks" as if they have achieved great financial wisdom.
"Stonks" is a deliberate misspelling of "stocks" that emphasizes the absurdity. The meme first appeared around 2017 on various meme communities and became widely popular by 2019.
What It Means
The Stonks meme is used ironically to celebrate bad financial decisions or to mock situations where someone thinks they are being smart but clearly are not. The humor comes from the gap between the confident declaration of "stonks" and the obviously poor choice being made.
Variations
The meme has spawned a reverse version called "Not Stonks" or "Stinks," showing the chart going down. There is also "Helth" (health), "Mafs" (math), "Smort" (smart), and many other deliberately misspelled versions using the same Meme Man character.
Connection to Crypto and Finance Culture
The Stonks meme became especially popular in cryptocurrency and stock trading communities on Reddit (particularly r/wallstreetbets). It is used to joke about YOLO trades, diamond hands, and the general chaos of retail investing.