Abbreviations Commonly Used on IRC

 

afk away from the keyboard
bbl be back later
bbs be back shortly
brb be right back
bbiab be back in a bit
bbiaf be back in a few
btw by the way
ctc care to chat?
cya see ya
FAQ Frequently Asked Questions
focl falling off chair laughing
fwiw for what it's worth
fyi for your information
gmta Great Minds Think Alike
ic I see
imo in my opinion
imho in my humble opinion
iow in other words
irl in real life
j/k just kidding
lnts long time no see
l8r later
lol laughing out loud
mil mother-in-law
n/p no problem - np also used
oic Oh, I see
otoh on the other hand
ppl people
re RE hi or RE hello
rofl rolling on floor laughing
roflmao rolling on floor laughing my a$$ off
SAHM stay at home mom
slm Muslim greeting
tafn that's all for now
ttyl talk (type) to you later
ttys talk (type) to you soon
wb welcome back
wfm works for me
wtg way to go
WYSIWYG what you see is what you get



Typically, these abbreviations are used in lower case. When you see them in UPPER CASE, it usually means the person is SHOUTING. Generally, we prefer the soft tones, but there are times when you might use upper case. For example, when something is funny, you might say "lol nickname" but if it was a bit more funny than usual, you might say "LOL nickname".