Guides
What Does 'Wabi Sabi' Mean On TikTok? The Viral Slang Term And 'King Of The Hill' Memes Explained
An old episode of the animated series King of the Hill has inspired one of the most wholesome TikTok memes of the year.
The trend has brought the term "wabi sabi" into the limelight as users embrace their most wabi sabi features for the whole world to see.
But what does "wabi sabi" mean, and how is the 16th-century Japanese slang term being used in memes? Here's what you need to know.
@el.michelle3 So happy
What Does 'Wabi Sabi' Mean?
"Wabi sabi" is a Japanese term and aesthetic credited to Sen no Rikyū, a 16th-century Japanese tea master. The idea behind wabi sabi is to accept and embrace imperfections, with "wabi" referring to a "humble lifestyle" and "sabi" referring to the "beauty of age." Essentially, wabi sabi can be used to describe something as beautiful despite its flaws.
One of the most notable uses of the term comes from season seven, episode six of King of the Hill, titled "The Son Also Roses."
In the episode, the character Bobby Hill describes an off-center rose that he and his dad Hank are growing as having wabi sabi, explaining the term to his father.
In late October 2025, this scene was reposted on TikTok as the intro to an edit of professional basketball player Kyrie Irving, acting as the starting point for the wabi sabi memes that went on to spread widely on the platform this month.
@footy.io0 Wabi sabi #fyp #mixtape #kyrieirving @raysrare ♬ original sound – LUX
How Is 'Wabi Sabi' Used In Memes?
Lip dub memes using the King of the Hill "wabi sabi" scene became notably popularized on TikTok throughout November 2025, sparked largely by a video by TikToker @p3rsussy, who uploaded a video using the sound to show pride in her "wabi sabi" teeth.
The original sound for her video was used over 100,000 times in the next week as more and more people embraced the idea of wabi sabi and used it in examples of their own.
As a meme, the original sound is mostly being used by TikTokers to embrace their imperfections by showing off a flaw on their body and insisting it has wabi sabi.
The trend acts as a massive contrast to another prevalent TikTok trend making the rounds lately, known as the "Flip the Camera Trend," which is mostly being used to make fun of people's looks.
This contrast has been pointed out by several TikTokers, who are trying to spread wabi sabi to the masses one video at a time.
@p3rsussy I heart my wabi sabi
What Are Some More 'Wabi Sabi' Memes?
@more.dejankat it’s got wabi sabi 🥰 #curlyhair ♬ original sound – Persussy
@watchout4audrey a chipped tooth got a memory
@zacharyhall__ 1 step forward, 3 steps backwards #fyp #fypシ #wabisabi #viral #healing ♬ original sound – Persussy
@eleciathediva like im genuinely struggling😭 #relatable #fyp #wabisabi #trend #girls ♬ original sound – Persussy
For the full history of Wabi Sabi, be sure to check out Know Your Meme's encyclopedia entry for more information.
