Name: Nina He
Just as the trend of emojis started back in 1982, their era is ending in 2023 as teens switch from using emojis to abbreviations. Abbreviations like LOL, which stands for Laugh Out Loud, BRB, which stands for Be Right Back, and BC, which means because, have been part of the texting world for a long time, but abbreviations are becoming more advanced. Maybe they will take over emojis, once and for all?
More advanced abbreviations are ILYSM, which stands for I Love You So Much, FTW, which stands for For The Win, and OFC, Of Course, MISSU, Miss You So Much, are flooding the texting world. But why?
Lyn Stone, Lifelong Literacy clinical director, said the shift to abbreviations is not just to text faster, but to also “show more than just an emotion” when texting.
“Emojis have been expanded slightly to also replace words, which is handy when you have character limits. But either way, they’re fairly one-dimensional* and constrained,” Stone said. “Abbreviated words—and abbreviated phrases like ‘BTW’ and ‘IMHO’—have slightly more depth to them and can communicate abstract concepts beyond simple objects, actions or feelings.”
We Are Social chief executive officer Suzie Shaw said they’ve seen a remarkable rise in teens using abbreviations and acronyms in their texts. Shaw also said that this is highly inspired by Tik-Tok, a popular social media app.
“In contrast to emojis, abbreviations can be more efficient in expressing whole sentences and have very specific and widely understood meaning compared to emojis, which risk being misinterpreted,” Shaw said. For example, Boomers and Millennials may use the thumbs-up emoji as a sign of good, yes, Gen Z might use it as a sarcastically, saying ‘good job’ on something you cleary did a bad job on.
“Acronyms are becoming more and more obscure*, such as “IJBOL” (I just burst out laughing) or ‘NGMI’ (not gonna make it). So popular are some of the abbreviations that they’ve transcended text into spoken word. Although, they’re not necessarily understood by those older, including parents of teens.”
Zac Nowytarger, who’s 12-years-old, said, “Emojis have gotten older and even though abbreviated words don’t show much emotion in a text, emojis aren’t really used so there’s no point keeping them around. It’s quicker to write abbreviated words rather than having to spend more time writing the full words, even if it’s a couple of letters shorter.”
Perhaps abbreviated texts are really going to take over emojis. But will emojis make one last stand?
Just as the trend of emojis started back in 1982, their era is ending in 2023 as teens switch from using emojis to abbreviations. Abbreviations like LOL, which stands for Laugh Out Loud, BRB, which stands for Be Right Back, and BC, which means because, have been part of the texting world for a long time, but abbreviations are becoming more advanced. Maybe they will take over emojis, once and for all?
More advanced abbreviations are ILYSM, which stands for I Love You So Much, FTW, which stands for For The Win, and OFC, Of Course, MISSU, Miss You So Much, are flooding the texting world. But why?
Lyn Stone, Lifelong Literacy clinical director, said the shift to abbreviations is not just to text faster, but to also “show more than just an emotion” when texting.
“Emojis have been expanded slightly to also replace words, which is handy when you have character limits. But either way, they’re fairly one-dimensional* and constrained,” Stone said. “Abbreviated words—and abbreviated phrases like ‘BTW’ and ‘IMHO’—have slightly more depth to them and can communicate abstract concepts beyond simple objects, actions or feelings.”
We Are Social chief executive officer Suzie Shaw said they’ve seen a remarkable rise in teens using abbreviations and acronyms in their texts. Shaw also said that this is highly inspired by Tik-Tok, a popular social media app.
“In contrast to emojis, abbreviations can be more efficient in expressing whole sentences and have very specific and widely understood meaning compared to emojis, which risk being misinterpreted,” Shaw said. For example, Boomers and Millennials may use the thumbs-up emoji as a sign of good, yes, Gen Z might use it as a sarcastically, saying ‘good job’ on something you cleary did a bad job on.
“Acronyms are becoming more and more obscure*, such as “IJBOL” (I just burst out laughing) or ‘NGMI’ (not gonna make it). So popular are some of the abbreviations that they’ve transcended text into spoken word. Although, they’re not necessarily understood by those older, including parents of teens.”
Zac Nowytarger, who’s 12-years-old, said, “Emojis have gotten older and even though abbreviated words don’t show much emotion in a text, emojis aren’t really used so there’s no point keeping them around. It’s quicker to write abbreviated words rather than having to spend more time writing the full words, even if it’s a couple of letters shorter.”
Perhaps abbreviated texts are really going to take over emojis. But will emojis make one last stand?
