This word, literally meaning "be horizontal," refers to someone's intellect. To describe someone as SaS is certainly insulting, as in SaS DIvI' HoD ("The Federation captain is shallow"---that is, literally, "The Federation captain is horizontal"; DIvI', "federation"; HoD, "captain").

This slang expression has apparently been in use for quite a while and is fairly common. Indeed, for this usage of the term, there is no known standard equivalent.

A slang word with a meaning similar to SaS is natlh (literally, "consume, use up"). The opposite meaning---that is, "profound, thorough" and "good"---is often expressed by the slang verbs chong (literally, "be vertical") and qu' (literally, "be fierce").

SaS is also used as an exclamation to express disapproval, comparable to the standard Do'Ha' ("unfortunate"). For example, upon hearing that a ship has been destroyed, one may say simply SaS (literally, "horizontal" but suggesting "That's bad, that's unfortunate").