Posted on 2/27/2013

LOL, OMG, IDK, TTYL and BRB. Internet slang has been around since the good old days of AIM chat and feature phones. You’ve probably seen a few of these and used them yourself – and if you’re a parent of a texting teenager, perhaps you’re all too familiar. But just as you think you’ve learned them all, there’s a whole new wave of modern internet slang that leaves most of us confused again.

Here’s a modern internet slang guide to help you get up to speed:

YOLO – You only live once (This mentality has been popular amongst teens and college kids since the beginning of time – and now, they have an acronym for it.)
FOMO – Fear of missing out (Similar to YOLO, FOMO has been recently popular, especially amongst people in their early twenties.)
OOMF – One of my friends/followers (For referencing those loyal Twitter followers or Facebook friends)
TMB – Tweet me back (A short way to ask for a response from your Twitter followers)
OH – Overheard (Often used at conferences or other events when quoting what someone else said – for example, “OH at the Oscars:…”)
IIRC – If I remember correctly (Is it just us, or are people becoming more forgetful nowadays?)
SMH – Shaking my head (Not a new one, but definitely common)
TL; DR – Too long; Didn’t read (What a friend might say to you if your message, text, or article you forwarded is too long for their attention span to handle)
IRL – In real life (…because now that we are online so often, apparently we need to specify when we’re referring to life away from the computer)
AFK – Away from keyboard (You could also say BRB – be right back – to make it easier for everyone.)
HMU – Hit me up (Use this when you want someone to contact you or follow up in some way – phone, text, e-mail, Twitter, Facebook, etc.)
IMHO – In my honest opinion. Or, in my humble opinion. (This can be an annoying one. At this point, you might as well own up and say ‘IMBO’ – in my biased opinion.)
DFTT – Don’t feed the trolls (As in, internet trollers)
BISLY – But I Still Love You (Have any of your kids texted you this?)

We Asked You

Last week, we asked you about your favorite, and least favorite, internet acronyms. Which ones do you actually use? Which ones do you find annoying? Here are some of your best responses:

Regarding best/worst acronyms, #YOLO. Oh my. It has to stop. It represents Gen E (generation entitled)… Makes me cringe 🙂 –John ‏@johncolucci

LOL since 1999 … I guess the most successful is LMFAO –Ricar

I had to look up three different acronyms in Urban Dictionary last week. And I’m a MILLENNIAL. – Valerie @vdlr

The two I remember off the top of my head: MBN and ikr – Valerie @vdlr

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