Emoticons
Emoticons (emotional icons) are used to compensate for the inability to convey voice inflections, facial expressions, and bodily gestures in written communication. Some emoticons are better known as "smileys." Emoticons can be very effective toward avoiding misinterpretation of the writer's intents. While there are no standard definitions for the following emoticons, we have supplied their most usual meanings. Most emoticons will look like a face (eyes, nose, and mouth) when rotated 90 degree clockwise.
| :) or :-) | Expresses happiness, sarcasm, or joke |
| :( or :-( | Expresses unhappiness |
| :] or :-] | Expresses jovial happiness |
| :[ or :-[ | Expresses despondent unhappiness |
| :D or :-D | Expresses jovial happiness |
| :I or :-I | Expresses indifference |
| :-/ or :-\ | Indicates undicided, confused, or skeptical. Also :/ or :\. |
| :Q or :-Q | Expresses confusion |
| :S or :-S | Expresses incoherence or loss of words |
| :@ or :-@ | Expresses shock or screaming |
| :O or :-O | Indicates surprise, yelling or realization of an error ("uh oh!") |
Acronyms
| AAMOF | as a matter of fact |
| BBFN | bye bye for now |
| BFN | bye for now |
| BTW | by the way |
| BYKT | but you knew that |
| CMIIW | correct me if I'm wrong |
| EOL | end of lecture |
| FAQ | frequently asked question(s) |
| FITB | fill in the blank |
| FWIW | for what it's worth |
| FYI | for your information |
| HTH | hope this helps |
| IAC | in any case |
| IAE | in any event |
| ICL | in Christian love |
| IMCO | in my considered opinion |
| IMHO | in my humble opinion |
| IMNSHO | in my not so humble opinion |
| IMO | in my opinion |
| IOW | in other words |
| LOL | lots of luck or laughing out loud |
| MGB | may God bless |
| MHOTY | my hat's off to you |
| NRN | no reply necessary |
| OIC | oh, I see |
| OTOH | on the other hand |
| ROF | rolling on the floor |
| ROFL | rolling on the floor laughing |
| ROTFL | rolling on the floor laughing |
| RSN | real soon now |
| SITD | still in the dark |
| TIA | thanks in advance |
| TIC | tongue in cheek |
| TTYL | talk to you later |
| TYVM | thank you very much |
| WYSIWYG | what you see is what you get |
| <G> | Grinning |
| <J> | Joking |
| <L> | Laughing |
| <S> | Smiling |
| <Y> | Yawning |