You may be a proper grammarian who wants little to do with the popular shortcut to communicating devised with the expanding use of technology for transmitting messages. Whether you like it or not, in today’s day and age, it’s simply how much communication is accomplished.

Of course, face-to-face communication is usually best and even phone and hand-written notes are better than texting. Sometimes, however, texted messages may be useful, such as reminding a child to complete a household chore, or sometimes to share deeper thoughts. Texting is a reality that we will encounter in daily life, and much confusion can be averted if you can be somewhat informed.

Knowing the meanings of these coded communications can give enjoyment and humor in the communication, but can also alert the reader to potential problems or threats.

Below is a list of some of the more routine communications that one might see to help the novice know how to respond.

Routine Abbreviations

Single numeric symbols:

• @- at
• 2- to two, too
• Ex – I’m going 2 work. Bring 2 CD’s. It’s 2 hot out. May be used as part of another word also- 2nite, 2day
• 4- for, four, or as a portion of a word as b4.
• Ex- Wait 4 me. Let’s meet @ 4:15, or as part of another word- forever.
• 8- ate.
• 9- parent is watching. One of the ‘Red Flags mentioned previously

Combination letters or letters and numbers:

• 10Q- thank you
• 2g2bt-too good to be true
• ?4U-question for youa
• A3- anytime, anywhere, any place
• Abt- about
• Adbb-All done
• Afc- away from computer
• Asap- As soon as possible
• B- be or bee
• B4- before
• B4n- Bye for ow
• b/c or bc or bcoz- because
• bf/gf- boyfriend/girlfriend
• bff- best friends forever
• bif- before I forget
• brb- be right back
• brt-be right there
• btdt-been there done that
• btw- by the way
• c- see
• cm- call me
• csl- can’t stop laughing
• cul/cul8r- see you later
• cya- see ya
• dk-don’t know
• dm- direct message (also pm- private message) Can be used on social media, to
  indicate private communication, rather than in the public platform.  DM and PM can be used as a noun (I sent you a PM) or as a verb-(I’ll DM you when class is over)
• Dnbl8- don’t be late
• FF- friends forever
• Fofl- falling on the floor laughing
• G2g/gtg- got to go (may be accompanied by ttyl- talk to you later)
• g4i- go for it
• Gab- getting a beer
• Gas-gotta second?
• Gr8-great
• Gratz- congratulations
• Gtg and gtgb- got to go and got to go, bye
• Hagd- have a great day
• H&k-hugs and kisses
• Hugz-hugs
• Idk-I don’t know, in a stand alone statement or with more explanation (idk why he went there)
• Ikr- I know, right?
• ILY- I love you
• IM- Instant message, used the same as PM or DM
• Ima/Imma/I’ma- I’m going to
• Imo/imho- in my opinion/ in my humble opinion
• J2lyk/j2luk- Just to let you know
• Jk or j/k- Just kidding
• K or OK- Okay
• Kiss- keep it simple, stupid
• L8r- later
• Lmao- Laughing my a** off.
• LOL/ lol- Laughing out loud, with caps implying more intensity
• MF- What you would expect it means
• Msg- message
• Mtf- more to follow
• n- in or slang for and
• n1- nice one
• np/no prob- no problem
• OIC-Oh, I see
• Orly? Oh really?
• OMG-Oh my gosh/ Oh my God
• Peeps- people
• Pita- Pain in the a**
• Pls/plz- please
• r- are
• ROTFL- Rolling of the floor laughing (FOTFL may also be used-falling on the foor laughing)
• Sec- wait second
• Sok- it’s OK
• Soz or sry- Sorry
• Sup- what’s up?
• Syl- See you later
• T@yl-Talk at you later
• Ta- Thanks again
• TC- Take care
• Thx- thanks
• TMI- Too much information
• Tom/2mrow- tomorrow
• TOY- Thinking of you
• Ttfn- Ta-ta for now
• Ttyl- Talk to you later
• Ttyt- Talk to you tomorrow
• U- you
• U8- You ate?
• Ur- Your/ you’re
• W8- wait
• W/ -With
• W/O- Without
• WTH- What the H***
• WTF- What the F***
• WRU- Where are you?
• Xoxo- Hugs and kisses
• Yf-Wife