Many people use shorthand to speed up their typing. Shorthand is simply an online form of acronyms or
abbreviations. Here is a list of the most commons acronymns you are likely to run into in email, IMs, chats
and message boards:
AFK = Away From Keyboard
BAK = Back At Keyboard
BRB = Be Right Back
BTW = By The Way
GMTA = Great Minds Think Alike
IMHO = In My Humble Opinion
LOL = Laugh Out Loud
OIC = Oh, I See
ROFL = Rolling On Floor, Laughing
TTFN = Ta-Ta For Now
WTG = Way To Go
Depending on where you are online and what fonts are being used, you may encounter differents sets of
smileys. While no one set of emoticons is necessarily complete, this list should cover most of the traditional
smileys. It is also important to note that most smileys comes in two forms: with a nose and without. Just
remember to tilt your head to the left to view them properly. :)
0:) or 0:-) = Angel
:II or :-II = Angry
:@ or :-@ = Angry or screaming
>:-( = Angry, annoyed
|-I = Asleep
;)=) or ;-)=)= Big grin
:1 or :-1 = Bland face
:o or :-o = Bored
:c or :-c = Bummed out
:'( or :'-)= Crying/sad
:> or :-> = Devilish grin
:6 or :-6 = Eating something sour
}) or }-) = Evil
:] or :-] = Friendly
:( or :-( = Frowning
:/ or :-/ = Frustrated
8) or 8-) = Glasses
:D or :-D = Grinning
{ } = Hug
:*) or :-*) = Kiss
:x or :-x = Kissing
:))) or :-))) = Laughing or double chin
:.) or :.-) = Laughing tears
:$ or :-$ = Mouth wired shut
:X or :-X = Mute
:l or :-I = Not talking
:Y or :-Y = Quiet aside
:[ or :-[ = Real downer
:< or :-< = Sad
:> or:-> = Sarcastic
B) or B-) = Shades
=:) or =:-) = Shocked
:Z or :-Z = Sleeping
:) or :-) = Smiling
:O or :-O = Surprised
:() or :-() = Talking
:P or :-P = Tongue out
:& or :-& = Tongue-tied
I) or I-) = Trekkie
:^( = Unhappy, looking away
;) or ;-)= Winking
:} or :-} = Wry smile
Let's start with the Basic Smiley's:<BR>
<BR>
:)
Your basic smilie. This smilie is used to inflect a sarcastic or joking statement<BR>
since we can't hear voice inflection via modem <BR>
;)
Winky smilie. User just made a flirtatious and/or sarcastic remark. <BR>
More of a "don't hit me for what I just said" smilie.<BR>
:(
Frowning smilie. User did not like that last statement or is upset or depressed<BR>
about something.<BR>
:I
Indifferent smilie. Better than a Frowning smilie but not quite as good as a <BR>
happy smilie<BR>
:>
User just made a really biting sarcastic remark. Worse than a :-).<BR>
>:>
User just made a really devilish remark.<BR>
>;>
Winky and devil combined. A very lewd remark was just made. <BR>
Also the odd looking smilie ^ _ ^<BR>
<BR>
Here are some somewhat less common ones ( They are still pretty basic ): <BR>
<BR>
(:
User is left handed<BR>
%)
User has been staring at a green screen for 15 hours straight
<BR>
:*)
User is drunk
<BR>
E:)
User is a Ham radio operator<BR>
:9
User is licking his/her lips
<BR>
8)
User is wearing sunglasses<BR>
B:)
User is wearing his/her sunglasses on his/her head<BR>
B)
User wears horn-rimmed glasses <BR>
::)
User wears normal glasses <BR>
:E
User is a bucktoothed vampire<BR>
:F
User is a bucktoothed vampire with one tooth missing<BR>
:7
User just made a wry statement<BR>
:'(
User is crying
<BR>
:')
User is so happy, she/he is crying
<BR>
:@
User is screaming
<BR>
:#
User wears braces<BR>
:)
User has a broken nose, or user's nose is sliding off of his/her face.<BR>
:v)
User has a crooked nose.<BR>
:<)
User is stuck up<BR>
:&
User is tongue tied.<BR>
=:)
User is a hosehead<BR>
-:)
User is a punk rocker
<BR>
-:(
(real punk rockers don't smile)
<BR>
+-:-)
User is the Pope or holds some other religious office
<BR>
':)
User shaved one of his eyebrows off this morning
<BR>
,:)
Same thing...other side
<BR>
I
O
User is asleep
User is yawning/snoring<BR>
<BR>
Note: from here on down, remove the - (dashes) to arrive at the correct image
:-Q
:-?
O :-)
:-D
:-X
:-C
<-)
<-(
:-/
C=:-)
*<:-)
:-@
}:^#)
:-X
:-]
:-"
P-(
;^)
?-(
):-(
d:-)
:-7
):-)
8(:-)
([(
O:-)
:-<
:-?
%-6
I:)
<:-I
K:P
@:-)
:-0
:-:
User is a smoker<BR>
User smokes a pipe<BR>
User is an angel (at heart, at least)<BR>
User is laughing (at you!)<BR>
User's lips are sealed<BR>
User is really bummed<BR>
User is Chinese<BR>
User is Chinese and doesn't like these kind of jokes<BR>
User is skeptical<BR>
User is a chef<BR>
User is wearing a Santa Claus Hat<BR>
Screaming smiley
<BR>
Pointy nosed smile<BR>
A big wet kiss
<BR>
Smiley blockhead
<BR>
Whistling smiley<BR>
Pirate smiley<BR>
Smirking smiley
<BR>
Black eye <BR>
Nordic smiley
<BR>
Baseball smiley<BR>
Smirking smiley<BR>
Impish smiley<BR>
Mickey mouse <BR>
Robocop<BR>
Angel smiley
<BR>
Walrus smiley
<BR>
Smiley smokes a pipe
<BR>
User is braindead<BR>
User is an egghead<BR>
User is a dunce<BR>
User is wearing one of those propeller beenies. ( Hats with propellers. ) <BR>
User is wearing a turban<BR>
No Yelling! (Quiet Lab)<BR>
User is a mutant<BR>
User in invisible<BR>
,-)
Winking smilie<BR>
X-(
User just died, although you may not see this too often.<BR>
8 :-)
User is a wizard<BR>
C=>;*)) User is a drunk, devilish chef with double chin <BR>
:-$
User is a banker<BR>
8-)
User is a swimmer<BR>
:-q
User is trying to touch his/her tongue to his/her nose<BR>
:-e
User is disappointed<BR>
:-i
User is uncertain<BR>
:-p
User is sticking his/her tongue out (at you!)<BR>
:-u
User is a blockhead<BR>
:-j
User is half-smiling<BR>
:-o
User is in suspense<BR>
(::[ ]::) User wears a bandage, or has been hurt.<BR>
:)
Small smiley
<BR>
<:-l
Dunce smiley<BR>
:=)
Orangutan smiley<BR>
>:->
Devilish smiley<BR>
>:-l
Klingon smiley<BR>
(:-(
Very unhappy smiley
<BR>
,-}
Wry and winking smiley <BR>
8-O
Omigod
<BR>
'-)
Winking smiley
<BR>
[:-)
Smiley wearing a walkman<BR>
[:]
Robot smiley<BR>
{:-)
Smiley wears a toupee<BR>
:->
Sarcastic smiley
<BR>
:-e
Disappointed smiley<BR>
:(
Sad-turtle smiley<BR>
:-}X
Bow tie-wearing smiley
<BR>
:-{
Mustache
<BR>
:-C
Real unhappy smiley<BR>
:-{}
Smiley wears lipstick
<BR>
:-t
Pouting smiley
<BR>
:-W
Speak with forked tongue<BR>
:-!
Foot in mouth
<BR>
:---)
You lie like pinnochio<BR>
=:-)
Smiley is a punk
<BR>
=:-(
Real punk never smiles<BR>
8<:-)
Smiley is a wizard<BR>
]-I
Smiley wearing sunglasses (cool, therefore no smile, only a smirk!)<BR>
BI
A frog<BR>
@@@:) Marge Simpson.<BR>
~(: O A baby is crying, or user is a cry baby.<BR>
(||]
User is hungry for a burger.<BR>
[:]
User is a robot, but don't worry they wont take over the world.<BR>
8:-)
User is a little girl.<BR>
:-{)
User has a mustache.<BR>
:-*
User ate something sour.<BR>
:-)~
User just drooled.<BR>
:-~~~) User has a cold, yet is still happy.<BR>
(8-o
Mr. Bill<BR>
*:o)
Look everybody its Bozo the Clown!<BR>
3:]
Pet Smiley. It is wise to stay on its good side or else you will get this........<BR>
3:[
A Mean Pet Smiley.<BR>
[:-)
User is wearing a walkman.<BR>
<BR>
Now for some smaller Smiley's for the little people out there:<BR>
<BR>
:)
Smaller smiley. <BR>
:]
Gleep...a friendly smiley who will gladly be your friend. <BR>
=)
Variation on a theme... <BR>
:}
What should we call these? (what?) <BR>
:)
Happy. <BR>
:>
What? <BR>
:@
What? <BR>
:I
Hmmm... <BR>
:[
Real Downer. <BR>
:O
Yelling. <BR>
:,(
Crying. <BR>
[]
Hugs and ... <BR>
:*
Kisses. <BR>
|I
Asleep. <BR>
^o
Snoring.<BR>
<BR>
Here are some larger Smiley's,that will be a bit harder to remember, we call them Mega Smiley's:<BR>
<BR>
C=}>;*{)) A drunk, devilish chef with a toupee in an updraft, a mustache, and a double chin. <BR>
}:^#}) Updrafted bushy-mustached pointy nosed smiley with a double-chin.<BR>
<BR>
A great way to express your feelings on the Internet is by using these Emotional Smiley's.<BR>
<BR>
|-)
hee hee <BR>
|-D
ho ho <BR>
:->
hey hey <BR>
:-(
boo hoo <BR>
:-I
hmmm <BR>
:-O
oops <BR>
<BR>
NOTE: On many Smiley's you can use = instead of : for example :) can be =).<BR>
<BR>
Smileys that have been sent to us:<BR>
<BR>
};^)'
devil<BR>
:c)
pig head<BR>
<:-)
dunce<BR>
@-->-->-rose<BR>
:@)
babe the pig (Oink)<BR>
==:>)
rabbit<BR>
:-)..
drooler<BR>
=:-O
yeow!<BR>
:-o
yo!<BR>
&:-/
Elvis<BR>
<3
heart<BR>
: =)
Blushing<BR>
:-@
smiley for french kisses (Ooh La La)<BR>
:-}
This is a smiley face with one tooth.<BR>
@ , /<BR>
@'\
This is a face with glasses and a mustache. (check out his<BR>
nostrils!) ( More of an e-mail, instant message, newsgroup smiley <BR>
than a chatroom)<BR>
@-)
This is cyclops.<BR>
:-<)
Another face with a mustache.(smiling)<BR>
:-<
A mustache man without a smile.<BR>
`-`
This is an in between face.<BR>
{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{:) Bart Simpson's mother<BR>
&:)
Ronald Regan or Elvis (or both)<BR>
|:o(|)
Sender gave us no name so, lets just call this a person<BR>
ê¿~
wink<BR>
=^O
my oh my look at the time -----> :::::(<):::::: <BR>
;-)
Girl flirting<BR>
@;^I)
Elvis Presly<BR>
*<|:-)
Robin Hood<BR>
<|:-)
User is a witch<BR>
8D{
A nameless smiley, maybe a frog or something.<BR>
[:-|
smiley with a flattop<BR>
:-( E)
smiley at the dentist with his top front teeth knocked out<BR>
:-.)
smiley with a beauty mark<BR>
:-)>
smiley with a goatee<BR>
:-)=
drinking through a straw, or vampire smiley, you decide<BR>
:,"(
crying alot<BR>
~(:-)
smiley with a ponytail<BR>
N N N |-)
sleeping soundly<BR>
Y:-)
smiley with a cowlick<BR>
2:-)
Elvis<BR>
2:-9
Elvis curling his lip<BR>
(----:-)
smiley with an umbrella<BR>
-_=:-(
smiley without an umbrella<BR>
*._\
Picasso smiley<BR>
:-(*)
smiley eating<BR>
%
smiley looking up (watch out for birds!)<BR>
:>
bird<BR>
:>~
bird eating a worm<BR>
:-* ` ` ` `
smiley spitting off the top of a tall building<BR>
(_8^(|)
Homer Simpson<BR>
@--{---{---A rose <BR>
=O) or :O)
Someone with a big nose, possibly a clown. And many of you can now<BR>
make the nose red thanks to AOL4.0.<BR>
X~P
Dead Smiley, i guess if you wanted to tell someone you're dead, <BR>
don't ask us how thats possible. <BR>
ö¿ö
eyes and nose ö= Alt + 148 ¿= Alt + 168<BR>
2U2 = To You, Too
AAMOF = As A Matter Of Fact
AFAIK = As Far As I Know
AFAIC = As Far As I'm Concerned
AFAICT = As Far As I Can Tell
AFK = Away From Keyboard
ASAP = As Soon As Possible
BAK = Back At Keyboard
BBL = Be Back Later
BITMT = But In The Meantime
BOT = Back On Topic
BRB = Be Right Back
BTW = By the way
C4N = Ciao For Now
CRS = Can't Remember "Stuff"
CU = See You
CUL(8R) = See You Later
CWOT = Complete Waste Of Time
CYA = See Ya
DITYID = Did I Tell You I'm Distressed?
DIY = Do It Yourself
EOD = End Of Discussion
EZ = Easy
F2F = Face To Face
FAQ = Frequently Asked Questions
FBOW = For Better Or Worse
FOAF = Friend Of A Friend
FOCL = Falling Off Chair Laughing
FWIW = For What It's Worth
FYA = For Your Amusement
FYI = For Your Information
/ga = Go Ahead
GAL = Get A Life
GBTW = Get Back To Work
GFC = Going For Coffee
GFETE = Grinning From Ear To Ear
GMTA = Great Minds Think Alike
GR&D = Grinning, Running & Ducking
GTG = Got To Go
GTGTTBR = Got To Go To The Bathroom
GTRM = Going To Read Mail
HAND = Have A Nice Day
HHOK = Ha Ha Only Kidding
HTH = Hope This Helps
IAC = In Any Case
IAE = In Any Event
IC = I See
IDGI = I Don't Get It
IMCO = In My Considered Opinion
IMHO = In My Humble Opinion
IMNSHO = in My Not So Humble Opinion
IMO = In My Opinion
IMPE = In My Previous/Personal Experience
IMVHO = In My Very Humble Opinion
IOTTMCO = Intuitively Obvious To The Most Casual Observer
IOW = In Other Words
IRL = In Real Life
ISP = Internet Service Provider
IYKWIM = If You Know What I Mean
JIC = Just In Case
J/K = Just kidding
KISS = Keep It Simple Stupid
L8TR = Later
LD = Later Dude
LOL = Laughing Out Loud
LTNS = Long Time No See
MorF = Male or Female, or person who asks that question
MTCW = My Two Cents Worth
NRN = No Reply Necessary
ONNA = Oh No, Not Again!
OTOH = On The Other Hand
OTTOMH = Off The Top Of My Head
OIC = Oh I See
OTF = On The Floor
OLL = Online Love
PCMCIA = People Can't Memorize Computer Industry Acronyms
PLS = Please
PU = That Stinks!
REHI = Hello Again (re-Hi!)
ROFL = Rolling On Floor Laughing
ROTF = Rolling On The Floor
ROTFL = Rolling On The Floor Laughing
RSN = Real Soon Now
RTDox = Read The Documentation/Directions
RTFM = Read The Frickin' Manual
RUOK = Are You OK?
SNAFU = Situation Normal; All Fouled Up
SO = Significant Other
SOL = Smiling Out Loud (or You're Out of Luck)
TANSTAAFL = There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch
TAFN = That's All For Now
TEOTWAWKI - The End Of The World As We Know It
THX = Thanks
TIA = Thanks In Advance
TLK2UL8R = Talk to you later
TMK = To My Knowledge
TOS = Terms Of Service
TPTB = The Powers That Be
TSWC = Tell Someone Who Cares
TTBOMK = To The Best Of My Knowledge
TTFN = Ta-Ta For Now
TTYL(8R) = Talk To You Later
TWIMC = To Whom It May Concern
Txs = Thanks
URL = Web Page Address
w/b = Welcome Back
w/o = Without
WRT = With Regard To
WTG = Way To Go
WU? = What's Up?
WWW = World Wide Web
WYSIWYG = What You See Is What You Get
Y2K = Year 2000
YGIAGAM = Your Guess Is As Good As Mine
YGWYPF = You Get What You Pay For
YMMV = Your Mileage May Vary
ZZZ = Sleeping
You'll notice that different chat communities can develop different 'dialects' or accents. If you see an
acronym or smiley used, you can figure it's pretty safe to use it yourself. If you use acronyms and the
majority of people in the room don't seem to understand, it's probably not something commonly used in that
community.
Some chats on AOL use protocol. That means that rather than having an open chat where everyone talks at
once, a host leads the chat. If you have a question, you type
?
If you have a comment, you use
!
Then you wait for the host to acknowledge you. It's also common to send a
/ga
For "go ahead" into the room indicating that you've finished with your question or comment.
Not all smileys are used to express emotions. Sometimes, people have too much free time on their hands
and create emoticons for the famous and the simply bizarre. You may never find a use for the following
smileys, but they are too ingenious to ignore:
_O-) = Aquanaut
:=8) = Baboon
@:-] = Baby
=:-) = Bad hair day
(:-) = Bald
:o) = Boxer's nose
*:o) = Bozo the Clown
:-{#} = Braces
:-E = Bucktoothed Vampire
:-F = Bucktoothed Vampire with one tooth missing
cl:-= = Charlie Chaplin
C=:-) = Chef
%-) = Cross-eyed
O-) = Cyclops
#-) = Dead
<:-) = Dunce's hat
}:-> = The Devil
:-[ = Dracula
:-3 = Has eaten a lemon
<<<<(:-) = Hat salesman
(-: = Left-handed smiley
8:-) = Little girl
:-{} = Lipstick
:-.) = Madonna or Marilyn Monroe
(8-o = Mr. Bill
:<) or :-{ = Moustache
.-) = One-eyed
:@) = Pig
:-? = Pipe smoker
P-) = Pirate
K:P = Propeller beenie
=:-I = Punk Rocker
[:] = Robot
*<-:-{{{ = Santa
*<;{o> = Santa
(:)-) = Scuba-diving
.^) = Side view
:-Q = Smoking
?-( = Sorry, I don't know what went wrong
%-) = Stared too long at monitor
B:-) = Sunglasses on head
8-) = Swimmer
=|:-)= = Uncle Sam or Abe Lincoln
X-) = Unconscious
[:-) = Wearing a Walkman
{:-) = Wig
To get foreign characters, hold ALT and type the number using the numeric keypad.
French Characters
à
ç
é
è
ù
133
135 Ç 128
130 É 144
138
151
German Characters
ä
ö
ü
ß
132 Ä 142
148 Ö 153
129 Ü 154
225
Spanish Characters
é 130
á 160
í 161
ó 162
ú 163
ñ 164
Ñ 165
¿ 168
¡ 173
ü 129
Other Useful Characters
w 119
x 120
y 121
z 122
{ 123
| 124
} 125
~ 126
Ç 128
ü 129
é 130
â 131
ä 132
à 133
å 134
ç 135
ê 136
ë 137
è 138
ï 139
î 140
ì 141
Ä 142
Å 143
É 144
æ 145
Æ 146
ô 147
ö 148
ò 149
û 150
ù 151
ÿ 152
Ö 153
Ü 154
¢ 155
£ 156
¥ 157
P 158
ƒ 159
á 160
í 161
ó 162
ú 163
ñ 164
Ñ 165
ª 166
º 167
¿ 168
_ 169
¬ 170
½ 171
¼ 172
¡ 173
« 174
» 175
ß 225