What it doesn't mean
Almost certainly not. Wikipedia calls it a false etymology, probably a backronym invented after the word spread. Bae is a shortened form of 'babe' or 'baby'.
Danish 'bæ' does mean poo, and the two are sometimes linked, but Wiktionary calls that link incorrect. The English pet name comes from 'babe'.
What it really means
Bae is one of the shortest words ever to make a Word of the Year shortlist, and one of the quickest to go out of fashion afterwards.
It is a pet name, a shortened form of babe or baby, used for a partner or someone you love. Cambridge Dictionary marks it as informal and mainly US. Wikipedia notes an early documented use in JoJo's 2004 song "Leave (Get Out)", and the word spread through hip-hop, R&B and social media in the years that followed.
Then came 2014. Memes such as "Bae caught me slippin'" (people posting photos of themselves pretending to be asleep, supposedly taken by their partners) and "cooking for bae" spread across social media. Pharrell Williams put the word in a single. In November Oxford Dictionaries announced its Word of the Year, vape, with bae on the shortlist.
The brands arrived at the same time. Companies began tweeting about "bae" to sound young, and The Verge criticised the trend as an appropriation of urban youth culture. A word that has become ad copy rarely keeps its appeal for the people who started it.
Along the way the word picked up a popular false story: that bae stands for "before anyone else". It almost certainly doesn't. Wikipedia calls it a false etymology, probably a backronym: an expansion invented to fit the letters after the word was already common. The real origin is simpler and older: babe, said quickly.
Today bae lingers as a pet name between some couples, and as a marker of the mid-2010s. As slang, its moment has passed.
Where it comes from
shortened from 'babe' or 'baby'
A clipped pet name, not an acronym. The 'before anyone else' expansion was probably invented after the word caught on.
- 2004
An early documented use appears in JoJo's song 'Leave (Get Out)'.
- 2014
Memes such as 'Bae caught me slippin'' spread, Pharrell Williams releases a single with the word, and brands start using it in their social-media posts.
- November 2014
Oxford Dictionaries' Word of the Year goes to 'vape'; 'bae' is on the shortlist.
In real life
- 'Can't come out tonight, cooking dinner for bae' — 2014 in one sentence.
- A snack brand posting 'Bae, these chips are amazing' was, by late 2014, exactly why the word started to feel over.
- 'Love you, bae' — still heard between some couples, now with a slightly retro ring.
Questions
Q01What does bae mean?
A term of endearment for a partner or someone you love, like 'babe' or 'baby'. Cambridge Dictionary defines it as someone you love, a boyfriend or girlfriend.
Q02Does bae stand for 'before anyone else'?
Almost certainly not. Wikipedia calls it a false etymology, probably a backronym: a meaning invented to fit the letters after the word had already spread. Bae comes from 'babe' or 'baby'.
Q03When was bae popular?
Around 2014. It was on the shortlist for Oxford Dictionaries' Word of the Year that year, which went to 'vape'.
Q04Do people still say bae?
Some couples do, but as slang it has faded, and it now sounds tied to the mid-2010s.
Sources
- Bae (word) — Wikipedia (JoJo 2004; 2014 memes; Oxford 2014 shortlist; backronym; brand use).
- bae — Wiktionary (shortened from babe/baby; 'before anyone else' backronym; Danish bæ).
- bae — Cambridge Dictionary (someone you love; mainly US, informal).
- 'Vape' is Oxford's 2014 word of the year — CNN (18 November 2014).