Text abbreviations every parent should know

If there is one thing that never changes through the ages it has to be the language of the youth! I swear to you it's like I have entered a…

If there is one thing that never changes through the ages it has to be the language of the youth! I swear to you it's like I have entered a parallel universe when I hear a group of kids talking to each other! I am far from ancient but can now admit that I am no longer down with the youth and their lingo, but luckily for you, I have discovered the meaning behind many of the abbreviations that they use, with thanks to Google and also my amazing wife for translating the below handy list.

This is a list of as many abbreviations as I could find on the internet.

Affection and romantic rejection

11:11 — make a wish

143 — I love you (derives from the number of letters used to spell each word)

bae — before anyone else (refers to a favourite person), also a shortened form of babe or baby

BFF — best friends forever

curve (someone) — reject their romantic interest or advances in a subtle or kind way

fimh — forever in my heart

ghost — when someone disappears, stops calling, stops texting

ily — I love you

imu — I miss you

wywh — wish you were here

Laughter

jk — just kidding

lol — laughing out loud

rofl — rolling on the floor laughing

lmao — laughing my a** off

tntl — trying not to laugh

Miscellaneous reactions

awks — awkward

aymm — are you my mother?

bet — sure, yes

bop — good song

cap — lie

cwot — complete waste of time

dead — I think this is hilarious

f — my condolences

facts — I agree

flex — show off

ftw — for the win

gmta — great minds think alike

hundo p — 100% agree

idc — I don’t care

ifyp — I feel your pain

low-key — modest, not showy (adjective)

mood — I feel the same way, relatable feeling

o7 — salute (emoticon, paying respect)

omdb — over my dead body

omg — oh my God!

qq or q_q — crying (emoticon)

slaps — excellent

smh — shaking my head (meaning, that’s so dumb)

srsly — seriously

ssdd — same stuff, different day

sus — suspicious / suspect / questionable / dishonest

Opinions, warnings and disclaimers

afaik — as far as I know

diy — do it yourself

dm — direct message

fwiw — for what it’s worth

fyi — for your information

icymi — in case you missed it

idk — I don’t know

ifykyk — if you know you know

imho — in my humble opinion

imo — in my opinion

jsyk — just so you know

nbd — no big deal

ngl — not gonna lie

nsfw — not suitable for work (signals nudity, violence or other potentially offensive material)

pov — point of view

rbtl — read between the lines

tbh — to be honest

tia — thanks in advance

tldr or tl;dr — too long (lazy) didn’t read

tw — trigger warning (indicates content that can possibly cause emotional harm)

ygtr — you got that right

ymmv — your mileage (experience) may vary

ynk — you never know

Warnings about parents being nearby

3o3 — mom

9 — parent around

99 — parent gone

aitr — adult in the room

cd9 — parents around (code 9)

kpc — keeping parents clueless

m/pos — mother/parent over shoulder

pa / pa911 — parent alert

pah — parent at home

pal — parents are listening

paw — parents are watching

pbb — parent behind back

pir — parent in the room

Notifications, wishes, greetings, closings

afk — away from keyboard

atm — at the moment

brb — be right back

g2g or gtg — got to go

gl — good luck

irl — in real life

l8 — late

lmk — let me know

omw — on my way

ruok — are you OK

spill the tea — tell me the gossip

ttyl — talk to you later

w8 — wait

wya — where you at?

wyd — what you doing?

yktv — you know the vibe

Signaling humor or sarcasm (followed by a situation, a gif or a meme)

hifw — how I feel when

mfw — my face when

mrw — my reaction when

tfw — that feeling when

til — today I learned

I will add to this list over time as I learn more of this new language in use by the cool kids of today.

On a serious note though this is another great reason to ensure that you have good communication in place with your child if you don’t recognise some of the language they are using then just have a chat with them about it and show an interest.

The use of these abbreviations shouldn’t generally cause you any concerns apart from the section on warning when parents are around that one might be worth a further chat.

If you know of any secret abbreviations or language to add to the list please drop me an email at cybersafetyguy@gmail.com