The language of teenagers is always a bit of a mystery. Every generation of parents is bewildered by the vocabulary young people use when conversing with each other. Teenagers these days, though, are doing a lot of communication in writing – something we (the old folk) certainly weren’t doing at that age.
As a result, there has evolved a kind of sub-language – a code that’s not exactly secret, but all the same, a mystery to those who aren’t part of the teen scene. It’s text talk.
Disclaimer
PCSimple does not condone peeking, snooping, sneaking, spying, or prying. We are not in favour of reading other people’s diaries, emails, and text messages. In fact, over the years, we have written at length on the subject of data privacy and cybersecurity.
However, in the interests of keeping the children of Britain safe, there must be a caveat to our ideology. So, if you ever feel the need to find out what your little angels are up to, please do refer to this long (albeit incomplete) list of acronyms and slang when deciphering your children’s text messages.
Acronyms
Here are some text talk acronyms of up to four letters:
AF as f**k
GTG got to go
ISO in search of
ASL age, sex, location
FOMO fear of missing out
FWB friends with benefits
GOAT greatest of all time
NP no problem
OMG oh my god
OMFG oh my f**king god
STFU shut the f**k up
TBH to be honest
V very
WYA where you at?
WYD what you doing?
BFN bye for now
Some text-talk acronyms are longer, or not quite so straightforward:
FINSTA fake Instagram account
PMOYS put me on your Snapchat
LMP like my picture (invitation to ‘like’ a picture posted on social media)
ROTFLMAO rolling on the floor, laughing my arse off
SMH shaking my head (as in, “I don’t believe it” or, “that’s so stupid”)
SMDH shaking my damned head
IYKYK if you know, you know (reference to an inside joke)
More complex text talk
Some of the teen code is more subtle than a plain old acronym:
Thirsty desperate for sexual attention (we’ve all been there)
Tea gossip shared among friends (bit old-ladyish, if you ask me.)
Thicc having a sexy, curvy body (a deliberate misspelling of thick)
Squad close friendship group
Stan overzealous or obsessive fan (portmanteau of ‘stalker’ and ‘fan’)
(the word Stan might come from the song Stan, by Eminem (in 2000), about an obsessed fan)
Snack attractive person (i.e. good enough to eat)
Smash to have casual sex
Skeet to ejaculate
Ship relationship
Same I can relate (as in, “same here”)
Salty bitter of cranky
OFC of course
Gucci something good or cool
Ghosting ending a relationship by abruptly cutting off all communication
Fire amazing
Bet you bet!
Bih bitch
Basic boring or conventional person (aka PCSimple team)
Body count the number of people someone has had sex with
Cappin’ lying (origins unclear – something to do with mining)
No cap no lie
Cursed creepy or unsettling
Daddy an attractive older man who conveys power or dominance
Ded finding something funny or embarrassing (“that has me ded.”)
Dope cool or awesome
DTF down to f**k (willing to have sex, but it’s not a priority)
Fam friends
Facts emphatic way to acknowledge the truth in a statement (i.e. “that’s a fact”)
FBOI a boy or man just looking for sex
To all parents
Hopefully we’ve given you some insight into the language of youth. If you ever have to decode a teen message, please refer to this list. It might help.
For computer diagnosis, services, repairs, and sales, email info@pcsimple.co.uk or give us a call on 01263 823812.
To all teenagers
For goodness sake, keep your phones locked up. In fact, we advise using multi-factor authentication (MFA). Trust nobody, because if they’ve read this blog, the old folk are now almost as down with the kids as we are, at PCSimple.
BFN!
Article produced for and on behalf of PCSimple Ltd by Hazel @ Folio Copywriting.