The Secret Language of Teens: 100 Text and Social Media Acronyms

If you've ever glanced at your teen's conversations over text or you've seen how she chats on social media, there's a good chance that you sometimes have no idea what she's talking about. Social media acronyms and abbreviations can feel like another whole language.

But it's important to learn what some of that shorthand means. Monitoring your teen's online activity won't be helpful if you can't understand what your teen is saying. You might allow unhealthy conversations to take place right in front of you.

While you don't want to spy on your teen, it is important to stay up-to-date on your teen's social media and smartphone activity. Educate yourself about the most common social media acronyms and slang so you can be aware of the conversations your teen is having.

Social Media and Text Acronyms to Know

Here are the most common social media acronyms teens are using to communicate with one another:

1. 143 - I love you
2. 2DAY - Today
3. 4EAE - Forever and ever
4. ADN - Any day now
5. AFAIK - As far as I know
6. AFK - Away from keyboard
7. ASL - Age/sex/location
8. ATM - At the moment
9. BFN - Bye for now
10. BOL - Be on later
11. BRB - Be right back
12. BTW - By the way
13. CTN - Can’t talk now
14. DWBH - Don’t worry, be happy
15. F2F or FTF - Face to face
16. FWB - Friends with benefits
17. FYEO - For your eyes only
18. GAL – Get a life
19. GB - Goodbye
20. GLHF - Good luck, have fun
21. GTG - Got to go
22. GYPO - Get your pants off
23. HAK - Hugs and kisses
24. HAND - Have a nice day
25. HTH - Hope this helps / Happy to help
26. HW - Homework
27. IDK - I don’t know
28. IIRC - If I remember correctly
29. IKR - I know, right?
30. ILY / ILU - I love you
31. IM - Instant message
32. IMHO - In my honest opinion / In my humble opinion
33. IMO - In my opinion
34. IRL - In real life
35. IWSN - I want sex now
36. IU2U - It’s up to you
37. IYKWIM - If you know what I mean
38. J/K - Just kidding
39. J4F - Just for fun
40. JIC - Just in case
41. JSYK - Just so you know
42. KFY - Kiss for you
43. KPC - Keeping parents clueless
44. L8 - Late
45. LMBO - Laughing my butt off
46. LMIRL – Let’s meet in real life
47. LMK - Let me know
48. LOL - Laugh out loud
49. LSR - Loser
50. MIRL - Meet in real life
51. MOS - Mom over shoulder
52. NAGI - Not a good idea
53. NIFOC - Nude in front of computer
54. NM - Nevermind
55. NMU - Not much, you?
56. NP - No problem
57. NTS - Note to self
58. OIC - Oh I see
59. OMG - Oh my God
60. ORLY - Oh, really?
61. OT - Off topic
62. OTP - On the phone
63. P911 - Parent alert
64. PAW - Parents are watching
65. PCM - Please call me
66. PIR - Parent in room
67. PLS or PLZ - Please
68. PPL - People
69. POS - Parents over shoulder
70. PTB - Please text back
71. QQ - Crying. This abbreviation produces an emoticon in text. It’s often used sarcastically.
72. RAK - Random act of kindness
73. RL - Real life
74. ROFL - Rolling on the floor laughing
75. RT - Retweet
76. RUOK - Are you okay?
77. SMH - Shaking my head
78. SOS - Someone over shoulder
79. SRSLY - Seriously
80. SSDD - Same stuff, different day
81. SWAK - Sealed with a kiss
82. SWYP - So, what’s your problem?
83. SYS - See you soon
84. TBC - To be continued
85. TDTM -Talk dirty to me
86. TIME - Tears in my eyes
87. WYCM - Will you call me?
88. TMI - Too much information
89. TMRW - Tomorrow
90. TTYL - Talk to you later
91. TY or TU - Thank you
92. VSF - Very sad face
93. WB - Welcome back
94. WTH - What the heck?
95. WTPA - Where the party at?
96. WYCM - Will you call me?
97. YGM - You’ve got mail
98. YOLO - You only live once
99. YW - You’re welcome
100. . ZOMG - Oh my God (sarcastic)

Set Healthy Limits

Understanding the online language of teens is just one step in ensuring online safety. Create social media policies and establish cellphone rules that will reduce your teen's risk of engaging in unhealthy behavior, like sexting.

Educate your teen about the dangers of online activity. Ongoing conversations about the dangers, combined with regular monitoring, will increase the chances that your teen will stay safe on social media and the internet at large.