Term for a trendy generation x'er, circa early 1990s, who was into skater, tie-dye revival, coffee house lounge, or slacker-poet counter-cultures. Created by combining the skater term "rad" (short for "radical," and meaning essentially "cool") with the suffix -nik, as in "beatnik." Now quite passe.
Chad is just a sad 38 year old radnik who relives his youth with occasional amusement park bungee jumps, and his videotape collection of "Melrose Place" episodes and Ethan Hawke movies, and Nirvana CDs.
by A. Hick July 23, 2006