The 20 Most-Searched Text Abbreviations of 2025 (So Far)

Language is constantly evolving, and text abbreviations are no exception. Although many may still have a difficult time learning the slang terms that appeared on last year‘s list of the most Googled text abbreviations, more acronyms have cropped up to stump people in 2025. The online tool Word Unscrambler researched the subject from January 1 to March 5, 2025, to determine which abbreviations Americans struggle with most.    

Data analysts used Google Trends to determine the top trending text abbreviations. They also used an online analytics tool called Ahrefs to find the number of searches per term. The most-searched abbreviations were discovered by looking up keyword variations and combinations of “meaning text” (e.g. “text meaning” and “mean in text”) along with the term. For example, “What does OTP mean in text” and “OTP text meaning” inquiries both help determine how often people searched for the abbreviation’s definition. Data scientists gathered about 100 search variations for the top text abbreviations.

According to Word Unscrambler, FAFO (f*ck around and find out) is the most-searched abbreviation of 2025, with 254,000 searches. It means “actions have consequences, so choose yours wisely.” The phrase isn’t new, but it recently gained widespread attention on social media—specifically regarding political takes. Politicians on both sides of the political spectrum used the word on social media—and, in one instance, on CNN—both before and during the most recent election; the acronym also features heavily in politically charged memes circulating the internet.

SMH (shaking my head) is once again on the list of the top search text abbreviations. This year, the acronym has 166,000 searches, which is 65,450 less than it did in 2024. The meaning of SMH hasn’t changed—it still indicates things like disapproval, frustration, and disappointment.

The third-most searched text abbreviation is PMO (101,000 searches), which has two meanings. The first is “put me on,” usually indicating an introduction to something or someone. For example, a person might say, “I like this TV series. My friend put me on to it.” Someone may also ask you to “put them on” to another person. As Yahoo explains, to “hook or link me up” with someone best describes PMO’s meaning. Another definition of PMO is “pisses me off”—and you probably know what that means.

The top 20 most-searched text abbreviations are below: 

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