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Updated:03/08/2008

Internet Slang

So many times I have seen various 'slang' used with funky abbreviations in Email and other Internet messaging. These are presented to help sort out all the various short-cuts and abbreviations that you may encounter. Not complete by any means so email us if you have additions: Internet-Slang@msc-inc.net.

224 --- "today, tomorrow, forever"
2B - "to be"
2B||!2B -- "to be or not to be"; from the C Programming Language logic operation 'OR'("||") and 'NOT'("!").
2TM --- "to the max"
4 - "for"
4ever --- "forever"
ACK --- "acknowledged"; used frequently in discussion boards, tech-speak
AFAIC --- "as far as I'm concerned", or "as far as I care", or "as far as I can..."
AFAICS --- "as far as I can see"
AFAICT --- "as far as I can tell"
AFAIK --- "as far as I know"
AFAIR --- "as far as I recall", or "as far as I remember"
AFC --- "away from computer"
AFK --- "away from keyboard"
AICMFP -- "and I claim my five pounds"
AIUI --- "as I understand it"
AKA --- "also known as"
ASAP --- "as soon as possible"
ASL --- "age, sex, location"; used to request general info about a fellow user. Also used as an introductory phrase, usually when that info is expected up-front.
ATM --- "at the moment"
B2B --- "business to business"; ecommerce used by businesses to interact with other businesses.
B4 --- "before"
B4N - "bye for now"
BBL --- "be back later"
BBS --- "be back soon", or "bulletin board system/service"
BC, b/c --- "because"
bf --- "boyfriend"
BFD --- "big fucking deal"
BFN --- "bye for now"
BRB --- "be right back"
BTW --- "by the way"
BW --- "bandwidth"
b/t --- "between"
CID --- "consider it done"
cu --- "see you"; used as a goodbye, commonly together with l8r, as in cul8r. See "cya".
CSL --- "can't stop laughing"
CWOT --- "complete waste of time";
cya --- "see you"; used as a goodbye (see "cu"). Also, "check(ing) your ass", as in taking some precautionary measure just for safety's sake.
CYS --- "check your settings"; a phrase often said by technical support staff of a certain Australian ISP.
C&V --- "chapter & verse"; used in newsgroups.
C|N>K --- "coffee through nose into keyboard"; a Unix-ism meaning, involving the Unix command line pipe (|) and redirect (>) characters.
DC'd --- "disconnected"
DGT --- "don't go there"
DL, d/l --- "download"; receiving data from a remote host. Usually functions as a noun or verb. Can sometimes mean "down-low", as taken from real-life usage.
DMY --- "don't mess yourself"; from an episode of The Simpsons.
DON --- "Denial-of-Normal"; Originally used on Slashdot (http://slashdot.org/articles/04/04/01/2241240.shtml?tid=126&tid=95)
DoS --- "Denial-of-Service"; a malicious attack on a computer system.
dun --- "don't"; commonly used by Singaporeans.
dunno --- "(I) don't know"
EG --- "evil grin", normally written *EG* or <EG> to separate it from the surrounding text.
EIL --- "explode into laughter"
EOM --- "end of message"
EQ --- Everquest, a popular MMPORPG
FAQ --- (formal) "Frequently Asked Question"
FE --- "fatal error"
FFS --- "for fuck's sake!"
FP --- "first post"; Originally used on Slashdot
FUD --- "fear, uncertainty and doubt"; purposeful spread of misinformation.
frag --- To kill or tear to pieces. Its origin comes from fragmentation.
FO --- "fuck off!"
FOAD --- "fuck off and die!"
FOAF --- "friend of a friend"; the dubious attribution given to urban legends
FTF or F2F --- "face to face"; referring to a meeting in the real world, not online. In role-playing terms, it is the offline predecessor to MMPORPGs and MUDs.
FTP --- "File Transfer Protocol"
FTTB --- "for the time being"
FU --- "fuck you"
FWIW --- "For what it's worth"
FXP --- "File eXchange Protocol"
FYI --- "for your information"
G --- "grin", normally written *G* or <G> to separate it from the surrounding text
G2G, GTG --- "got to go", also "good to go"; popularized in MMORPGs and MUDs.
G4Y, GFY --- "good for you", or "go fuck yourself"; the use of this acronym is ambiguous and not recommended.
GAGF --- "go and get fucked"
GAL --- "get a life"
gf --- "girl friend"
GG --- "good going" or "good game"; used sincerely in competitive and cooperative online games, or used sarcastically when someone has done something foolish. Also "genuine girl", used on chat sites to indicate that the user is female, rather than simply pretending to be.
GL --- "good luck"
GMTA --- "great minds think alike"
GJ --- "good job"
Gr8 --- "great", sometimes spelled gre8t even though it doesn't make the word any shorter.
GTH --- "go to hell"
GW --- "good work", often used sarcastically.
H8 --- "hate", or 'H1' to 'H9' to indicate how much a person hates something.
HAND --- "have a nice day"
HB --- "hurry back"
HF --- "have fun"
H/O --- "hold on"
HTH --- "hope this (or that) helps"
IANAL --- "I am not a lawyer"; usually used before a non-lawyer gives legal advice, as a humorous disclaimer.
IANARS --- "I am not a rocket scientist"
IC --- "I see", also "in character" in MMORPG or MUD settings.
ICYDK / ICYDN / ICUDK -- "in case you didn't know"
IDK --- "I don't know"
ID10T --- "idiot"; generally pronounced eye-dee-ten-tee, its meaning is not obvious until viewed in written form. Example: "We've got an ID10T error!"
IIRC --- "if I recall correctly"
IIUC --- "if I understand correctly"
IM --- "instant message", can be used as a noun ("Send an IM") or a verb ("I'll IM him"). Past tense is "IM'd" or "IMed".
IMO --- "in my opinion"
IMHO --- "in my humble opinion", or "in my honest opinion"
IMNSHO --- "in my not so humble opinion"
INMP --- "it's not my problem"
INTPFPOTM --- "I nominate this post for post of the month"; incredibly obscure.
IOH --- "I'm outta here"
IOW --- "in other words"
IRC --- "Internet Relay Chat"
IRL - "in real life"; often used in online games to refer to life outside of the game, see RL.
IRT --- "in reply to"
ISTR --- "I seem to recall"
IYDMMA --- "if you don't mind me asking"
JJ --- "just joking"
JK, J/K --- "just kidding"
JOOC --- "just out of curiosity"
K --- "OK"
KISS --- "keep it simple stupid"
L8 --- "late"
L8R --- "later"; as in "see you later", often used together with CU, as in CUL8R.
LD --- "link dead"; used in online games when a user has been disconnected, but their persona or character remains in the game.
LEET, L33T, 1337, 31337 --- "elite"
LIGAS --- "like I give a shit"
LMAO --- "laughing my ass off"
LOL --- "laughing out loud", or "lots of laughs"; as a reply to something amusing. Also "lots of love" (not as common).
Loxxen --- an altered form of LOL, with virtually the same meaning, but slightly enhanced.
LTNS --- "long time no see"
m8 --- "mate"; as in "buddy" or "pal", often used colloquially by "English" and "Australian" users and the like.
MOTD --- "Message of the Day"
MYOB --- "mind your own business"
N/A --- "not applicable"
NBD --- "no big deal"
NI --- "no idea"
NM or N/M --- "never mind" or "not much"
NOYB --- "none of your business"
NP --- "no problem"
NSFW --- "not safe for work"; indicates that a link should be avoided due to pornography or other content unsuitable for the workplace. Used by Fark and some message boards. See also SFW.
NT --- "no text"; used on Internet forums or Usenet to indicate that a post has no content. Also, "nice try"; used by gamers.
NVM --- "never mind"
--- "oh"
oic --- "oh, I see"
OMG --- Exclamation, "oh my God!"
OMFG --- Exclamation, "oh my fucking God!"
OMFL --- Exclamation, "oh my fucking lag!"
OOC --- "out-of-character"; usually in MMORPG or MUD settings when a player isn't acting out his/her part. Also, "out of curiosity".
OP --- Original Poster
OT --- "off topic"
OTOH --- "on the other hand"
P2P --- "Peer-to(2)-Peer". Also "pay-to-play" for games with subscription fees like Everquest or Dark Age of Camelot.
PEBKAC --- "Problem Exists Between Keyboard and Chair", referring to in human error. See PICNIC and ID10T.
PFO --- "please fuck off"
PITA --- "pain in the ass"
PICNIC --- "Problem In Chair, Not In Computer", referring to in human error. See PEBKAC and ID10T.
pls, plz --- "please"
PO, PO'd --- "piss off", or "pissed off"
POS --- "parents over shoulder"; warning, by kids, that parents may be watching. Also, "piece of shit".
POV --- "point of view"
R --- "are"
RD --- "Red Dwarf"
R8 --- "right"
RL --- "real life"; often used in online games to refer to life outside of the game, see IRL.
ROFL, ROTFL --- "rolling on the floor laughing"; as a reply to something extremely amusing.
ROFLMAO, ROTFLMAO --- "rolling on the floor laughing my ass off"; as a reply to something extremely amusing.
RTFA --- "read the fucking article"; applies mostly to Slashdot threads, for users who make comments on a story without having read it first.
RTFM --- "read the fucking manual" or "read the fine manual"; the frequent reply to a request for basic help from newbies who have not attempted to find the answer for themselves.
RTFP --- "read the fucking post"; derived from RTFA and also used on Slashdot.
RU --- "are you"
S --- "smile", usually written *S* or <S> to separate it from the surrounding text.
SCNR --- "sorry, could not resist."
SH --- "shit happens"
SO --- "significant other"; a termed encapsulating a girlfriend, boyfriend, or spouse.
SFW --- "safe for work"; material (pictures, webpages) that is safe for the office. Used by Fark. See also NSFW. Alternate meaning (which may not be appropriate in the office): "so fucking what?"
Smeg --- Meaning the same as "fuck" or "bugger" (popularized by Red Dwarf, a British TV sitcom).
STFU --- "shut the fuck up"
TBH --- "to be honest"
thanx. thnx, thnz, thx, thz --- "thanks"; this can be combined into 'kthx' (OK, thanks), 'plzkthx' (Please, OK, thanks), and 'kthxbye' (OK, thanks, goodbye).
TIA --- "thanks in advance"
TMAI --- "tell me about it"
TMI --- "too much information"
TPTB --- "the powers that be"
TTFN --- "ta ta for now"
TTYL --- "talk to you later"
TTYS --- "talk to you soon"
TY -- "thank you"
u --- "you"
ur --- "you're" or "your"
UL, u/l --- "upload"; sending data to a remote host.
VFM --- "value for money"
VWEG --- "very wicked evil grin"
w8 --- "wait"
WAI --- "what an idiot"
WB --- "welcome back"
WDUWTA --- "what do u wanna talk about?"
WEG --- "wicked evil grin"
WG --- "wicked grin"
WTF --- "what the fuck?"; Also "who the fuck?", "why the fuck?", etc. given the context.
WTG --- "way to go!"
WTH --- "what the heck?", or "what the hell?"
wut --- "what"
w/ --- "with"
w/e --- "whatever"
w/o --- "without"
WYSIWYG (pron. "wizzywig") --- "What you see is what you get". In the print industry, it means that printed output will look identical to its screen representation. More recently used to refer to the style of making webpages that arose through the use of HTML-generators such as MS Frontpage, Dreamweaver, etc. and implies that the output is usually crude and does not transfer well across all settings.
X>* --- definition of something [X] is better than everything [*]. Often [X] is a user's handle and [*] is an organization or another user. Sometimes crackers will use this as a boast and an insult when defacing a web site, meaning that they are better than the organization and/or the web sites administrators.
YHBT --- "you have been trolled"
YHL --- "you have lost"
YMMV --- "your mileage may vary"
YNK --- "you never know"
YW --- "you're welcome"
_|_ --- an offensive emoticon signifying the middle finger
<3 --- "love"; ASCII art for a heart, the less than symbol and the three resemble a heart tilted on its side.