THE English language has hit a bizarre crossroads, as we litter our social media messages with abbreviations that resemble a letter chart on the wall at Specsavers.
But what does it all mean? Here’s a look at just one of the most commonly-used acronyms used on social media today.
What does ngl mean?
Ngl is an abbreviation for the phrase “not gonna lie.”
It’s usually used at the beginning of a sentence to indicate honesty.
It can be used in many ways – to share your honest opinion, to insult someone, or to open up your emotions.
However it is mostly simply used to share your opinion.
You could say, “Ngl, I hate ketchup,” or “NGL, this exam is way too hard.”
But Ngl can also be used as a way to flatter or insult someone.
Essentially Ngl is used exactly how you would use the phrase “not gonna lie” in real life.
Where did the abbreviation come from?
It is not known exactly when or who began using the abbreviation.
It is thought that “not gonna lie” morphed into NGL around 2009-2010.
It was roughly this time that the word was added to the Urban Dictionary.
What other abbreviations do people use on social media?
LOL – “Laugh out loud”, or “lots of love” for those higher up the age ladder, is certainly one of the most common abbreviations.
Interestingly, its former meaning can differ in loudness of laughter, depending on the number of Os you use.
LMAO – “Laugh my ass off” is quite self-explanatory, and is an extremely popular choice of abbreviation when showing amusement.
It could be argued LMAO shows a higher degree of humour than LOL, and its ability to be adapted to LMFAO shows a greater flexibility in meaning (you can guess what the F stands for).
YOLO – An abbreviation that does make many people keel over slightly out of cringe – “you only live once” looks rather well placed in an American frat party surrounded by red plastic cups.
Use it in the local boozer on a Friday night, however, and you’ll receive a slightly icier reception.
ASAP – this one is pretty well known. The fact that one would even think to abbreviate “as soon as possible” down to ASAP is a very good indication of the little time its creator had.
FML – this ruder abbreviation stands for “F**k my life”. It works well when someone is completely out of ideas and in need of some self-pity – which, in the year of 2020 is probably quite often.
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