The cool thing about language is that it is constantly evolving and in the advent of technology, more interesting “words” have come up. If you are a little clueless about all the LOLs and the BRBs you see (or hear) nowadays, here is a little guide to help you a bit:

LOL: Laughing Out Loud. Obviously, when somebody says something funny and you audibly laugh. One of it’s variation is ROFL, which means Rolling On the Floor Laughing.

BRB: Be Right Back. When somebody has to go away for a bit (like a short trip to the bathroom).

AFK: Away From Keyboard. Just like BRB, it means the person is currently elsewhere and will not be available for immediate response for a while. This is usually put as a “status” in instant messenger clients.

TTYL: Talk To You Later. Used when the other person will have to do something else and will have to continue the conversation later.

BTW: By The Way. As it is used – a signal for a change of topic.

IMHO: In My Humble Opinion. Just a little show of politeness especially when conversing or debating with multiple people.

IDK: I Don’t Know. Which means exactly as is.

ASL: Age Sex Location. Usually used when chatting and you’ve started a conversation with someone you meet for the first time.

IRL: In Real Life. Switching to what happens outside cyberspace.

STFU. Shut the F*** Up. You use this if your head starts to ache with all these net speak.