A Parent's Guide to Understanding Online Acronyms

What are they typing?

Have you ever glanced at the computer screen when your child was chatting online with a friend, and found that you couldn't understand what was being said? It may look to you like they're just typing jumbles of letters. Maybe video games and television have turned your child's brain into paste, you think, or maybe you're having a stroke. In fact, what you're seeing are acronyms for common phrases - a kind of Web shorthand. Understanding the abbreviations that your kids are using online is helpful in two ways: It helps you converse with them over text, IM, and e-mail, and it also helps you decipher what they're saying to friends. Most chat abbreviations are harmless. But did you know that kids have several ways to tell their friends that you've just walked into the room? Chances are your kids aren't hiding anything important from you - they just want their privacy. Nevertheless, it's a good idea to learn the lingo so that you can be aware of your child's online activities. Following are some of the more common acronyms kids use.

LOL - Laughing out loud
ROFL - Rolling on floor laughing
JK - Just kidding Kids use these to let their friends know that they appreciate their jokes, that they are joking themselves, or that a comment of their own was intended in good humor. GF - Girlfriend
BF - Boyfriend
BFF - Best friend forever Whereas some online acronyms are used interchangeably with their spelled-out forms, dollars to donuts you will never see anybody under the age of 18 type the words "boyfriend" or "girlfriend." Before long, "GF" and "BF" will have entries in the Oxford dictionary. BRB - Be right back
AFK - Away from keyboard
BAK - Back at keyboard Self-explanatory, no? IMO - In my opinion
IMHO - In my humble opinion Because it's so difficult to understand somebody's tone when communicating by neutral text, it's often necessary to include qualifiers. These abbreviations indicate that the user isn't trying to be confrontational. OMG - Oh my God
WTH - What the hell
Abbreviating these common expressions of frustration or disdain takes some of the sting out. (You will no doubt encounter a more adult version of "WTH" - "WTF.") PIR - Parent in room
POS - Parent over shoulder
PRW - Parents are watching You'll see even more variations on these three ("MOS" or "DOS," depending on which parent you are), but they're all warning signs that your child is sending to her friend. She's telling her friend to step lightly, or to halt the conversation altogether. Exactly what she's trying to hide may be difficult to ascertain. She could be talking to a friend who frequently uses profanity, or perhaps they're gossiping about the latest classroom love triangle.

A/S/L - Age/Sex/Location "A/S/L" is one of the oldest chat abbreviations. It's efficient, boiling down a trio of questions into just three letters. Why should this send up a red flag if you see it on your child's screen? Because merely asking it indicates that your child is chatting with a stranger, and strangers aren't necessarily being honest about their A, S, or L. One of the fun things about the Internet is that it allows people to make connections they wouldn't otherwise have. But if your child is meeting people online, it's important for you to have a conversation with him about online safety.

 RL - Real life
IRL - In real life
LMIRL - Let's meet in real life Like "A/S/L," "LMIRL" indicates that your child is talking to a stranger. In this case, it's clear that your child intends to meet up with this person offline. Here's a situation where you may need to put aside concerns about invading your child's privacy and ask, point-blank, whom he's talking to. MORE
AAK - Asleep at the keyboard
AAR8 - At any rate
AFAIK - As far as I know
AFK - Away from keyboard
ASAP - As soon as possible
A/S/L - Age/Sex/Location
ATM - At the moment
ATW - Around the web
B - Back
B4N - Bye for now
BBS - Be back soon
BC - Because
BF - Boyfriend
BFF - Best friend forever
BFN - Bye for now
BG - Big grin
BMG - Be my guest
BOTOH - But on the other hand
BRB - Be right back
BTDT - Been there, done that
BTW - By the way
CD9 - Code 9: Parents nearby
CSL - Can't stop laughing
COZ - Because
CU - See you
CUL or CUL8R - See you later
DOS - Dad over shoulder
DQMOT - Don't quote me on this
EZ - Easy
EG - Evil grin
F2F - Face to face
FAQ - Frequently asked questions
FWIW - For what it's worth
FYI - For your information
G2G - Got to go
GAL - Get a life
GF - Girlfriend
GG - Gotta go
GGN - Gotta go now
GL - Good luck
GR8 - Great
GTG - Got to go
GW - Good work
H8 - Hate
HAK - Hugs and kisses
IC - I see
IDC - I don't care
IDK - I don't know
ILY - I love you
IM - Instant message
IMHO - In my humble opinion
IMNSHO - In my not so humble opinion
IMO - In my opinion
IOW - In other words
IRL - In real life
JK - Just kidding
K - Okay
L8 - Late
L8R - Later
LOL - Laughing out loud
MIRL - Meet in real life
MorF - Male or female
MOS - Mom over shoulder
NE - Any
NBD - No big deal
NP - No problem
OIC - Oh, I see
OMG - Oh my God
OTP - On the phone
P911 - Parent emergency
PAW - Parents are watching
PIR - Parent in room
PLS - Please
PLZ - Please
POS - Parent over shoulder
POV - Point of view
PRW - Parents are watching
Q - Question
ROFL - Rolling on floor laughing
ROTFL - Rolling on the floor laughing
RL - Real life
RUOK - Are you okay?
SIT - Stay in touch
SOZ - Sorry
SYS - See you soon
S2R - Send to receive
TAFN - That's all for now
TBH - To be honest
THX - Thanks
TTFN - Ta ta for now
TTYL - Talk to you later
TY - Thank you
U - You
U2 - You too
WE - Whatever
WTG - Way to go
WTH - What the hell
WU - What's up?
XO - Hugs and kisses
Y - Why?
YT - You there?