‘Txt’ speak evolution baffles today’s parents but makes teenagers 'LOL'

Research has found that more than 86pc of mums and dads are baffled by the text speak used by modern day teenagers, as old abbreviations such as ‘Gr8’, ‘L8r’ and ‘Bbz’ are rarely used in 2015.

‘Bae’, a shortened version of babe, is the term the majority of parents struggled with most as well as abbreviated terms such as ‘Lmk’ (let me know) and ‘Icymi’ (In case you missed it).

Language expert Professor John Sutherland said: “The limitation of characters on old handsets was a key factor in the rise of acronyms in text messaging such as ‘Txt’, ‘Gr8’ and ‘M8’.

“Technological evolution has meant that these words are now effectively extinct from the text speak language and are seen as antique.”

The professor also commented on emojis, which are being used extensively in conversations in 2015 and said our use of facial expression emojicons “harks back to a caveman form of communication.”

Top 10 Outdated Text Terms

TXT = Text

GR8 = Great

M8 = Mate

BRB = Be right back

ROFL = Rolling on the floor laughing

BBZ = Babes

L8RZ = See you later

GTG = Got to go

Enuf = Enough

TTYL = Talk to you later

Top Ten Phrases Parents don’t understand

Fleek = Looking good

FOMO = Fear of missing out

Bae = A term of affection

ICYMI = In case you missed it

Deadout = Rubbis or tired

TBT = Throwback Thursday

LMK = Let me know

RN = Right now

Thirsty = Looking for attention

NSFW = Not safe for work