Blog Archives

Pls, thx, FAQ: the most common English abbreviations

Now that we increasingly use mobile phones and applications to talk in real time (such as Whatsapp, Line, Facebook Messenger or Twitter), the use of abbreviations has become as essential as it is necessary, whether for business or for personal reasons. personal. Surely you have used postscripts (PS) or have read Frequently Asked Questions under the heading of FAQ, but do you know why the acronym ASAP is used so much? Or why funny comments are often followed by LOL? To solve your doubts, we propose a list with the most frequent English abbreviations and acronyms.

In a more formal or professional setting:

Mr.: sir. It is used for adult men.

Mrs.: Señora in Spanish, used for married women (it is an abbreviation for Misses)

Miss: young lady, for unmarried women (not an abbreviation).

Ms: for both married and unmarried women (not an abbreviation). In the 1970s, this term began to be used because it was considered that the marital status of women was not a reason to make a distinction.

PS: it's our postdata, short for post script.

PM / AM: they adopt it from the Latin, post and ante meridiem, we use them to talk about before or after noon.

ASAP: as soon as possible. Very widespread in work contexts, in Spanish it would be "as soon as possible".

FYI: for your information. Also very common among workers; in our language, “for your information”.

FAQs: Frequently Asked Questions. It is present in the menus of many web pages. It means "frequently asked questions" and is used to answer the most common questions from users about products or services. It can also be found as “Q&A” (Questions & Answers, “questions and answers”).

AKA: as known as. In Spanish "known as".

In a more informal context (such as social networks or chats):

FA (#FA): means Follow Always, “always follow”. Hashtag used on Twitter as a more intensive alternative to our next acronym.

FF (#FF): Follow Friday. It is a very consolidated Twitter tradition. It consists of recommending the most interesting accounts on Fridays of each week to follow them or to take a look at their recent activity.

GTG: got to go, “I have to go”. A common way to end a conversation in chats that is also often used on Twitter.

HTH: hope that helps

JK: just kidding, “just kidding”

LOL: Laughing Out Loud, which could be translated as "laughing out loud" or "laughing out loud".

NSFW: Not Suitable For Work, “not appropriate at work”. This abbreviation tells us that accessing content may not be convenient if we are at work.

OMG: a common exclamation in series and movies, "Oh, My God!" ("Oh my God!")

OMW: on my way, "I'm on my way", very common in chats or WhatsApp.

Pls: traditional abbreviation for “please”, “por favor”. Sometimes “plz” is used instead.

Thx: thanks, “thank you”. Used in chat conversations and status updates. It includes the "X" since, due to phonetic similarity, it replaces the consonant group "nks".

XOXO: Hugs and kisses, "kisses and hugs".

We close this post with an “HTH” and with a famous phrase by Nelson Mandela that reminds us that, after all, we are the ones who keep language alive and kicking: “If you speak to a man in a language he understands, that goes to your head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart.”