Could your txtspk be a turnoff? Find out with our quiz.

Warning: This graphic requires JavaScript. for the best experience. Opinion Yan Wu Could your txtspk be a turnoff? Find out with our quiz. Illustration by Yan Wu/The Washington Post; iStock APost colleague reports that his mother, seeing a recent Facebook post about a friend's pet dying, replied 'lol.' She meant 'lots of love.' That was how she learned what LOL actually means. A mistake like this in 2026 might surprise those who speak — or think they speak — fluent textese. The first known use of LOL to mean 'laughing out loud' appeared in the newsletter FidoNews back in 1989, and the Oxford English Dictionary formally recognized it in 2011. But this well-intentioned mom is clearly far from alone: variations of 'LOL meaning' get Googled about 16,800 times a month in the United States, according to an analysis of this year's search data by Unscramblerer.com. TBH ('to be honest,' Googled 85,500 times a month), there are loads of acronyms more obscure than LOL, and they zing between phones and on social media. But a large number of recipients have no idea what they mean. What's more, many people find them off-putting — the exact opposite of the fun, friendly vibe that's usually intended. Here's how the disconnect can play out: You send a message intended to be casual, breezy, efficient, cool. But something else is conveyed on the receiving end. The problem isn't just confusion — though there is that, LOL — it's also the interpretation: Text acronyms can communicate lack of effort, which speaks to sincerity and quality. There is science to back this up. Conversations filled with acronyms tend to fizzle faster. Researchers at Stanford and the University of Toronto analyzed more than 200,000 conversations on the dating app Tinder from 686 users and found a clear pattern: Acronyms signal low effort. As a result, senders appear less sincere, leading to fewer replies, shorter responses and lower engagement. It didn't matter whether the parties knew each other well, how long the messages were or how many abbreviations they contained. The cluelessness was particularly striking: The researchers found that 84 percent of message senders believed recipients didn't mind abbreviations. Even on the chat app Discord, a land of true internet natives, abbreviations reduced the likelihood of a reply. Maybe artificial intelligence will change things? AI tools make full-length replies easier, so perhaps abbreviations will come to signal 'Hey, real human here!' Eileen Zhang, one of the Stanford researchers who studied the insincerity effect, has her doubts. 'If spelling out a phrase becomes nearly effortless,' she said, 'then choosing the shortcut may stand out more, not less.' Still not convinced that txtspk can be a problem? See if our quiz leaves you SYH ('shaking your head, ' Googled 1,100 times per month, according to Unscramblerer.) You received the message below. Pick the correct meaning. 1 of 10 What is your OTP? What do you think the sender means? One-time password One true passion One true pairing 2 of 10 Sorry, we can't invite you to dinner What do you think the sender means? Not for sale No funny stuff New friends 3 of 10 We are all celebrating! WYD What do you think the sender means? What are you doing? Watch your dog Where are you drinking? 4 of 10 I told my friend about you … WYLL? What do you think the sender means? Would you let loose? What do you look like? Why did you leave late? 5 of 10 We've been talking all day … WYF What do you think the sender means? What did you find? Where are you from? When will you finish? 6 of 10 HMU when you get home What do you think the sender means? Help me understand Hit me up Hear my update 7 of 10 I didn't expect that, ICL What do you think the sender means? I can't lie I can learn I choose love 8 of 10 My cat is LOML What do you think the sender means? Last on my list Love of my life Living out my life 9 of 10 IIRC, the meeting is at 3 p.m. What do you think the sender means? I'm in a real crisis Internal Information Review Committee If I remember correctly 10 of 10 He is DTM What do you think the sender means? Date of the month Down to meet Doing too much 0 of 10 Your score: You need to answer every question to see your result.