Text language
SMS language or Textese (also known as txtese, chatspeak, txt, textspeak, txtspk, txtk, texting language, or txt talk) is a term for the abbreviations and slang most commonly used due to the necessary brevity of mobile phone text messaging, though it is used on the Internet, including e-mail and instant messaging. It uses pictures and single letters, or numbers to represent whole words (e.g, "i <3 u" which uses the pictogram of a heart for "love", and the letter "u" replaces "you").
For words which have no common abbreviation, users most commonly remove the vowels from a word, and the reader is forced to interpret a string of consonants by re-adding the vowels (e.g., "dictionary" becomes "dctnry", or "keyboard" becomes "kybrd").
Take a look at the following text messages. Can you interpret them?
1) Plz cn u call me wn ur free?
2) D u thnk meetg wil go ahd – Jo’s sck?
3) Cnt w8 4 2nght – lukin 4wd 2 c in u? LOL x
4) Pete 4got key 4 offce! Stck in corridor w8tin 4 hlp! LOL
5) Cnt gt ther 4 7.Mt u l8tr – 8 at yrs?
6) R u goin 2moro? Wot tme?
7) OMG, 4got 2 bk tckts. Plz cn u? BTW, Anne nt goin nw -just nd 3. Ta
8) Stk at wk tl 7- pk kids up 6pm plz
9) Wot r u up 2?
10) Hpy Bday! Av a gr8 dy. X
11) Plz bk conf rm 4 meetg nxt Tues 110.30am – 8 ppl, t n cffee, flip cht etc. Confm wn dn.
12) Wer r u? U r l8! We r w8tn 4 u.
13) Wot dyt is apnin wiv Su n Dve? Nt spkn n e mor!
14) Nt goin 2 prty 2nght – nt feelin gud. Spk l8tr
How do you think you got on? Check your answers here.