Remember when you used to say “GPOY” all the time when you could relate to a post on Tumblr? What about when you spammed your chat boxes with “FTW”s or “OTL”s? We may not be using these Internet slangs anymore, but it’s great to look back at these then-popular terms and reminisce simpler times — when all we did at home was talk to friends over Yahoo! Messenger (RIP) and scroll endlessly through our Tumblr dashboards. Here are just 8 of the social media acronyms long forgotten:
g2g
What it means: got to go
Sending “g2g” always meant the end of a conversation. There was no guarantee they’ll see whatever message you’ll send afterwards within the day, and it marked how busy they’ll be doing things outside the digital realm — playing with neighbors, running errands with family, or generally spending the rest of the day outdoors.
Now, with everyone connected 24/7, there’s never any need to send “g2g” when chatting with friends online anymore because you’re not really leaving the digital space at all.
AFK
What it means: away from keyboard
Used interchangeably with “brb,” saying “afk” meant that you were leaving your computer or laptop on to do something else for a short while (chores, homework, eat dinner). But just like how “g2g” ceased to exist, there was no need to use “afk” anymore now that we have our phones to connect us 24/7.
GPOY
What it means: gratuitous picture of yourself
This was Tumblr-speak for the more modern term “me” when seeing something you could relate to. It was also used as a caption when posting selfies untile “selfie” became a more popular term.
“facepalm” and “headdesk”
What it means: An expression that shows frustration, exasperation, or general disbelief
Visual images and gestures of facepalms and headdesks are still widely used Internet memes, but the words themselves, often enclosed in asterisks, brackets, and parentheses, or preceded by a forward slash, have long been forgotten as Internet slang.
BAMF
What it means: badass motherfucker
Meant to describe someone so cool and badass — no questions about it.
FTW
What it means: for the win
We often used this before to describe something, someone, or a situation as great and amazing, or to show support, or to get hyped up for victory during online games and competitions.
OTL
What it means: a person down on all fours to show dejection or failure
This emoticon was used in situations that upset you so much or make you feel so helpless that you want to go down on your knees and start crying. At times, it was also used as an expression of bowing or worship, as in “I’m not worthy! OTL”
ROFL
What it means: rolling on the floor laughing
Raise your hand if you’ve ever typed “ROFL” in chat messages when you find something so funny, it isn’t enough to just send a mere “LOL.” Nowadays, we’re okay with just sending “LOL”s and varying lengths of “haha.”
What other acronyms and emoticons did you use before? Share them with us below!
