When it comes to the way we communicate with each other, it’s obvious the Internet influenced some major changes: Email superseded snail mail, Facebook pretty much swallowed the idea of calling someone and wishing them a happy birthday, our job hunts are conducted through LinkedIn…

It’s slightly less in-your-face, but the Internet is also shifting the words we use to speak to one another, not just the way we choose to communicate. Our obsession with the Internet even influences the simple act of talking – out loud, in real life (IRL, if you prefer). Certain acronyms, neologisms, and abbreviations have infiltrated everyday speech – if I say something like “OMG, WTF, why did this happen?,” most people would know what I’m talking about. Since people often communicate online and through text messages, truncated turns of phrase and space-saving emoticons are now mainstream.

Here are some popular abbreviations in both Polish and English:

2U2 – To You Too – Wzajemnie

4 – For – Dla

4U – For you – Dla ciebie/Dla was

ABT – About – Mniej więcej, w przybliżeniu

ATM – At the moment – W tym momencie

BBL – Be back later – Bedę później

ADN – Any day now – Na dniach

AKA – Also known as – Znane (-y/-a) także jako

ASAP – As soon as possible – Tak szybko jak to jest możliwe

BION – Believe it or not – Choć trudno w to uwierzyć

BRB – Be right back – Zaraz wracam

EOM – End of message – Koniec wiadomości

IOU – I owe you – jestem ci winien przysługę

J/K – Just kidding – Tylko żartuję

IMO – In my opinion – Moim zdaniem

LOL – Laughing out loud – śmiać się głośno

NRN – Not right now – Nie teraz

TBH – To be honest – Szczerze mówiąc

THX – Thanks – Dzięki

Do następnego razu… (Till next time…)