plugged-in

If you’re plugged-in, you’re in the know, in touch with what is going on, and very well-informed. You can also be so plugged in to a task, usually a technological one, to the point where you shut everything else out.

The expression plugged-in comes from the image of an electronic device being plugged in to a socket or circuit. People have been doing and saying this since the beginning of electricity (the early 1900s).

In the 1960s, being plugged-in meant you were knowledgeable about the goings-on of the day. It’s likely the imagery was promoted by the popularization of television, including the heyday of 30-minute nightly network news and hit TV shows like the futuristic Jetsons.

By the 2000s, plugged-in expanded its sense to “hip” and “fashionable,” used for someone who has their finger on the cultural pulse.

It also started narrowing in the 2000s. Like a kid with headphones plugged in to a gaming console, plugged-in came to characterize someone so focused on a task that they tune everything else out around them.

Of course, plugged in is widely used to refer to some piece of electronics plugged in to a socket or circuit, like a lamp or computer cable.

As an expression, plugged-in is used to describe someone who’s involved in or knowledgeable about some matter, from World Cup stats to hyperlocal community concerns to politics.

I'm plugged in tonight and have always been plugged into #Bennelong on what matters to the community. #ServingBennelong #auspol pic.twitter.com/nGDyP7Jd1g

— John Alexander (@JAforBennelong) November 22, 2017

LRT: I know sometimes it seems like I'm plugged in 24/7, but let me tell you: nothing on my phone is authorized to give push notifications.

— Alexandra Erin (@AlexandraErin) November 6, 2017

The “in-the-know” meaning of plugged-in has inspired a sub-sense of the phrase.

Keep thinking y’all plugged in. pic.twitter.com/qAqb4vGjdi

— STAR ⭐️ (@Me_No_Love_YOU) June 27, 2018

It’s common to see adults worried that the kids these days are too plugged-in, especially when it comes to their personal technology. If you find that you’re too plugged-in, you should unplug. That modification of the phrase gets lobbed out by self-help advice columnists and health brands a lot.

Go ahead, unplug for a few moments. #mindfulexercises pic.twitter.com/pl8sszMUxn

— Headspace (@Headspace) June 28, 2018

More examples of plugged-in:

“Every day this week—heading into the start of free agency at 12:01 a.m. ET July 1—Bleacher Report will look at every angle of LeBron James’ upcoming decision with reports and features from our most plugged-in NBA reporters.”
—Bleacher Report, June, 2018

This content is not meant to be a formal definition of this term. Rather, it is an informal summary that seeks to provide supplemental information and context important to know or keep in mind about the term’s history, meaning, and usage.