Acronyms

SMH, TLDR, FOMO — every shorthand, spelled out.

Texting and workplace shorthand has quietly become its own language. SMH, TLDR, RSVP, FOMO, DEI — these clusters of letters save time once you know them, and read like static noise if you don’t. Some are older than the internet (RSVP comes from French), some were born in forum posts, and some carry meanings that shift depending on whether you are texting a friend or emailing a client. Our acronym entries spell out each abbreviation, explain where it came from, and — most importantly — when it fits the situation and when it doesn’t. Because using the right shorthand at the wrong moment is its own kind of miscommunication, and looking it up should take ten seconds, not a search through five forum threads.

Entries

• DEI

  Diversity, equity and inclusion — the workplace framework acronym that became a political flashpoint.

• FOMO

  Fear of missing out — the ache of watching a moment happen without you.

• RSVP

  Répondez s'il vous plaît — respond, if you please: the invitation's headcount request.

• SMH

  Shaking my head — the texter's shorthand for mild disappointment or disapproval.

• TLDR

  Too long; didn't read — the internet's one-line summary, or its polite shove.