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WTF, OMG, YOLO… What do all those acronyms mean in English?

WTF, OMG, FML, LMAO, LOL …what the heck are all those acronyms in English?

Have you ever had the feeling that your children, your nephews or kids in general speak another language? Indeed, languages ​​change from generation to generation, but the Internet's own jargon has generated a very curious phenomenon: communicating with acronyms, acronyms or abbreviations in English to save space and write less. If it is not explained to one, it is impossible to understand oneself with these expressions.

English acronyms: Internet slang

The mechanism of English slang on the Internet is the same: acronyms and contractions that synthesize sentences. These are expressions widely used by young people, but as these young people cease to be so and as the media tries to seduce the millennials of yore, they begin to be seen everywhere.

OMG (Oh my God)

Oh my God. Easy. There are variants like OMFG (Oh my fucking God) or ZOMG, which is precisely designed to make fun of those who use OMG all the time.

WTF (What the fuck?)

But what the f***? Other variants. WTH (What the hell)

FML (Fuck my life)

f*** life. In Spanish it is ADV (disgust of life). In English it could be admitted that a non-vulgar usage would be Fix my life. It's time to get on it!

Example: I've been practicing English for months with a game app and I haven't improved anything. MLF

LOL (Laughing out loud)

Laughing loud. It can lead to lulz and is used to indicate fun or that something has made us laugh. Replaceable by laughter emoticons or variants such as LMAO (Laughing my ass off): breaking my ass.
EXAMPLE: I am learning English with videos and there are some that are very LOL.

A meme is a minimal unit of information. Something that is repeated in communication, by mimicry. If biology has genes , culture works with memes. However, the best known expression of memes are those of recurring jokes based on pop culture characters or internal jokes of certain groups. In this category there are four fundamental acronyms in the English slang of the Internet

FTW (For the win)

Guarantee of success, how to learn English online with BrainLang.

YOLO (You only live once)

You only live once. That apart from being a Brown sugar song or a 2.0 version of carpe diem, it is also used as an expression to encourage oneself to try something stupid.

TGIF (Thank God it’s Friday)

Thank God it's Friday. Is it necessary to develop this? How many times have we not said it in Spanish? Well, in fast English it's TGIF.

TFW (That feel when…)

That feeling when … It is an expression that is always completed with another, usually very descriptive and concrete things that it seems that no one had thought of before.
Example: TFW I have to practice English with videos for children because I can't find anything for my level.

JK (Just kidding)

I was kidding. Ideal to clarify possible misunderstandings.

POS (Parent over shoulder)

Mom/dad looking over my shoulder. This one is just great. If you ever read this in a chat with your children… They know you are spying on them! Stop doing it or be more discreet. Be careful because POS in certain contexts also means piece of shit (piece of my****).

English acronyms for office

It is very likely that all this did not start in chats and SMS messages, but in office e-mails, because there is a whole parallel language in the form of acronyms like...

OOO (Out of office)

Out of the office, to leave as an automatic response in the e-mail or to write quickly from the mobile if you can't sit down to answer calmly.

FYI (For your information)

For your information, those emails that are sent so that someone is aware

TLDR (Too long, didn’t read)

Too long, I haven't read it. These acronyms make us suspect that the pissed off office worker who was already pointing out ways with his emails may end up inventing the acronyms that today make up the slang or colloquial language of the Internet.

ASAP(As soon as possible)

“Can you get this in ASAP?” (as soon as possible) says your boss's email. Depending on the project, this may or may not cause you to panic – but in any case, you don't have much time to think.

NSFW (Not safe for work)

Not safe for work. Usually next to a link as a warning that what you will find behind it is not something you want to be caught seeing in the office.
Example: I send you the photos of the office Christmas dinner. Beware they are NSFW

Acronyms in English for when they touch your morale

You always have to have Internet expressions on hand to tell your interlocutor that a boil is missing and if things get tense you can have a good repertoire of insults in English on hand . If you don't have space or don't want to write, you can use these…

GTFO (Get the fuck out)

Get out the f***ing time.

STFU (Shut the fuck up)

Shut the fuck up.

MYOB (Mind your own business)

Mind your own business.

The truth is that on the Internet two do not argue if one searches for it on Google. The most diplomatic thing is to refer to the sources or try to get the other party out of their mistake. Always have on hand:

STFW (Search the fucking web)

Search it on the internet. With their corresponding alternatives LMGTFY (Let me Google that for you) : Let me Google that for you.

RTM (Reboot the machine): Reboots the machine. If you are a computer scientist or have your notions, many friends and acquaintances may ask you for help with their problems. And if you are a computer user or have notions, you will also know that restarting the computer solves everything.

Example:
Can you help me configure this…
RTM!

Memorizing English vocabulary is not easy

Learning all these expressions is meaningless if you don't intend to use them. Younger users use them almost daily and that is why they dominate them. However, perhaps you prefer to focus on vocabulary that is useful to you. BrainLang is based precisely on this principle: listen to content in English on a daily basis and without memorizing it, you will end up internalizing new words.

In the meantime, to continue practicing and discovering useful resources like this post, install BrainLang's app to learn English online and carry your training in your pocket! Learn English by listening, without studying, anywhere, anytime. You have free daily and weekly content, songs, articles, video stories, tips and much more... What are you waiting for to try your first two free training sessions ? FTW.