Have you been ‘benched’? The lastest term in millennial dating

Ah, 21st Century dating.

What ever happened to simply calling and texting? Now, all we have is 'ghosting' and 'breadcrumbing', and it's not all that great. It can be hard to keep up with Internet dating trends these days, and sometimes you don't even know that you've been 'ghosted' until you read about the term in Cosmo two months later. But the latest in the long line of millennial dating terms is 'benching'... and we're not going to lie, it's pretty crappy. 'Benching' is when you start chatting to a person on social media, be it Tinder, Facebook, Twitter or whatever social network takes your fancy. Everything is going well so you agree to meet up for a date. The day comes, and for whatever reason your date cancels on you - however, they still make an effort to keep in touch. Then, you make plans for another date, but they cancel again last minute. If dates fail to materialise two or three times, then you'll know you've definitely been 'benched'. But why do people do it? Well, according to Indy100, the bencher wants to remain in contact with you in case one day they want to meet up... and they keep you interested by still texting you so your attention doesn't go elsewhere. Basically, they don't want to put the effort in to meet you, but don't want you going off with anyone else either. Kinda cruel, huh?