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From OMG to YOLO, the 10 acronyms Gen Z consider 'old'

Laura Hampson
·2-min read
Young teenage cool multiethnic group of gen z high school college students standing on white wall background holding mobile cell phones looking at smartphones using apps. Social media concept
Gen Z think acronyms like OMG and YOLO make you look old. (Getty Images) (insta_photos via Getty Images)

If you have used acronyms like ‘YOLO’, ‘OMG’, or ‘LMAO’ anytime recently, you may want to think twice before using them again.

This is because these are just some of the acronyms Gen Z consider to be ‘old’.

These findings come from a recent survey of 2,000 Brits that looked to uncover which acronyms were popular, and which were outdated or old-fashioned.

YOLO, or you only live once, was deemed to be the most outdated acronym, with 49% of Gen Zs agreeing that it makes you sound old.

This was following by LMAO (laugh my a** off) at 35%, GTG (got to go) at 34%, LOL (laugh out loud) at 32%, and ROFL (rolling on the floor laughing) at 31%.

The other acronyms deemed old by 12 to 28-year-olds included TTYL (talk to you later), BRB (be right back), TGIF (thank God it’s Friday), FOMO (fear of missing out), and OMG/OMFG (oh my God/oh my f***ing God), in the survey conducted by Currys.

10 acronyms deemed ‘old’ by Gen Z

  1. YOLO

  2. LMAO

  3. GTG

  4. LOL

  5. ROFL

  6. TTYL

  7. BRB

  8. TGIF

  9. FOMO

  10. OMG/OMFG

On the other hand, they survey also uncovered that most Brits don’t understand acronyms that are popular among Gen Z-ers today.

Smiling hipster teen girl with pink hair holding smart phone chatting in social media, watching video content, texting messages, playing games, using mobile apps, surfing internet sit in bed at home.
Most Brits don't understand Gen Z acronyms like ISTG. (Getty Images) (insta_photos via Getty Images)

Only 3% of respondents understood what TNTL (try not to laugh) meant, while only 4% knew the meaning of LBR (let’s be real), and 7% could tell you what SNM (say no more) meant.

10 little-understood Gen Z acronyms

  1. TNTL

  2. LBR

  3. SNM

  4. ICL

  5. ISTG

  6. ASL

  7. BFFR

  8. AF

  9. GG

  10. HMU

  11. HRU

  12. WYS

Other little-understood Gen Z acronyms included ICL (I can’t lie), ISTG (I swear to God), ASL (as hell), BFFR (be for f***ing real), AF (as f***), GG (good game), HMU (hit me up), HRU (how are you?), and WYS (what you saying?).

This could be why 38% of the people surveyed thought that acronyms should be exclusively used by people aged under 25…

Gen Z: Read more