Copium meaning: The origin of one of Twitch chat’s most bizarre emotes

Kaavya Karthikeyan

Kaavya Karthikeyan

Copium meaning explained: Understand what the word ‘copium’ means in Twitch chat, where it comes from and how to use it.

What is the meaning of copium? Copium is a fictional drug that helps someone in coping with bad news or results. A combination of the words coping and opium. In Twitch Chat it is a popular emote used when a streamer or team is facing adversity.

For example your favourite streamer is trying to clutch a round in VALORANT or CS:GO. They keep going, saying they'll do better next round. This is the perfect time for a copium emote.

Things don't always go your way, so sometimes you need a bit of copium
Things don't always go your way, so sometimes you need a bit of copium

Copium meaning: What does it actually mean?

Copium is a meme phrase which is defined by Urban Dictionary as:

‘A metaphorical opiate inhaled when faced with loss, failure, or defeat, especially in sports, politics, and other tribal settings.

Copium meaning according to Urban Dictionary

The term copium is usually used in a satirical context as a meme on platforms such as Reddit, Twitch, or Twitter.

You would mostly see it used by online personalities like streamers, YouTubers, and the like. It's a meme term that describes a fictional drug that someone might consume after suffering a loss, defeat, or disappointment. Not to be confused with MonkaS.

Examples of good times to drop a copium emote in chat

  • A player in a loser's interviews shows irrational optimism
  • If your favourite team looks destined for failure or elimination
  • If a streamer tells chat he is going to do better next round

Where did the term 'copium' come from?

The word copium is a portmanteau word, or one made by combining two other words. In the case of copium, it comes from cope and opium. The term is usually depicted as a Pepe the Frog meme that has the character hooked up to a tank filled with Copium.

The first known usage of the term copium was way back in 2003, when Keak da Sneak released an album of the same name in the United States. In 2018, the word made a resurgence on 4chan and was also very popular on Reddit.

Copium got adopted into Twitch chat when Twitch user COUNCIL uploaded it as a FrankerFaceZ emote. 

Copium vs Hopium: what's the difference?

Hopium combines 'hope' and 'opium.' It is usually used to make fun of someone being irrationally optimistic. Copium is used when someone has to try and cope with something, such as multiple bad games, while hopium is still continuing to try again and keep playing.

Both phrases are being used not just in different games but also in other arenas such as politics, finance, and more.