Abbreviations in texting – the texting lingo Word Formation in English Andrijana Taseva April, 2016

What are abbreviations? Abbreviations are shortenings of words or phrases. There are two types of abbreviations: Acronyms and initialisms. Acronyms are abbreviations that are pronounced as words. Initialisms are abbreviations that are pronounced one letter at a time.

How do we all feel about the use of abbreviations in texting and online communication?

Abbreviations are used due to the fact that the number of characters in messages is limited. The widely spread use of abbreviations in texting results in a so called “new language” or texting lingo. This texting lingo is changing every second because young people, who are the majority of the users, invent new abbreviations all the time, for their own purposes.

The consequences of the constant changes in abbreviations and their use are many misunderstandings. Adults tend to have a problem with understanding and using abbreviations. *I apologize for the usage of the n-word. These are all authentic messages.

The most common text and chat abbreviations: ASAP - As Soon As Possible (acronym) tmrw – Tomorrow F2F - Face To Face GF - Girlfriend ETA - Estimated Time of Arrival B4 - Before B4N - Bye For Now FYI - For Your Information IMHO - In My Honest Opinion ROFL - Rolling On the Floor Laughing BION - Believe It Or Not BRT - Be Right There Y - Why? LMK - Let Me Know THX - Thanks MMA - Meet Me At

BTW - By The Way B/C – Because C U L8R - See You Later Def – Definitely BF – Boyfriend BFF - Best Friend Forever AML - All My Love GTG / G2G - Got To Go GR8 – Great IDK - I Don’t Know IDC - I Don’t Care ILY / ILU - I Love You

TTYL - Talk To You Later TMI - Too Much Information CYE - Check Your Email PCM - Please Call Me LYLAB - Love You Like A Brother LYLAS - Love You Like A Sister IYKWIM - If You Know What I Mean XOXO - Hugs and Kisses JK - Just Kidding AAMOF - As a matter of fact

This texting lingo is a trend among young people This texting lingo is a trend among young people. It saves them time and characters, and assures privacy as well. Abbreviations containing numbers are usually referred to as ‘bingo’, in a derogatory way. If one wants to keep up, one must check the meanings of the new abbreviations almost every day.

I am on social media, chatting and texting every day, but still, I was not aware of half of the abbreviations I found for the purposes of my presentation.

What about you. Do you think abbreviations are cool or not What about you? Do you think abbreviations are cool or not? Can you keep track of what they mean? Do you use them while texting?