Instant messaging has quickly become one of the most popular past times for kids (and adults) of all ages. These days kids look forward to the time when they get home from school and can go send instant messages (IMs) to their friends instead of calling them. But instant messaging also has its very own cryptic way of conversing. There are dozens of common acronyms that kids use to save time typing…and some of these acronyms are less than appropriate. If you, as a parent, aren’t aware of what these acronyms stand for, you will have no idea what kinds of things your child is talking about with his/her friends. So this article will endeavor to teach you some of the most common IM acronyms and what they mean.
One reason that you, as a parent should know what acronyms stand for is that you should always be informed as to what your child is up to. Not that you shouldn’t trust your child, but you should realize that if you don’t know what the acronyms stand for, you could hear an entire conversation between 2 kids and not have any idea of what they’re talking about. Even worse is when your child starts to talk like s/he instant messages. Then you’ve really got to either figure out what they’re saying or put a stop to it. Plus, you should always know who your child is talking to online. And if you notice that the person instant messaging your child doesn’t seem to know how to properly use im acronyms, you may become suspicious of that person. Be sure to monitor whatever your child does online.
Here are some less than appropriate acronyms that you should know about (you can use your imagination to figure out what the profane words stand for) or ones that simply refer to you!
DI= d*** it
HS= holy s***
LMAO= laughing my a** off
POS= parent over shoulder
WTF what the f***
It’s especially important to know the meaning of these acronyms because you don’t want your child swearing when you’re not around or even excessively talking in secret about things that you’re not supposed to find out (why else would they put a “parent over shoulder” acronym?). So be smart. Learn your acronyms.