Texting in Spanish
In this article, we explain ten commonly-used phrases that you can use to text in Spanish sin problemas(without difficulty).
1. Jajaja
If you want to acknowledge that something is funny, you can text jajaja, which translates to hahaha or LOL in English. Here are a few examples:
Have you ever wondered why the sound you make when you laugh is spelled differently in Spanish? Both jajaja and hahaha are onomatopoeias, meaning that they are words that resemble the noise they refer to. In the Spanish alphabet, the hache(h) is silent, so it wouldn't make much sense to use it for a laughing sound. Instead, the jota(j), which in many dialects of Spanish sounds like the English "h," is used.
2. Oka or Okas
Okaand okasare equivalent to the English word OK. For example:
3. Q or k
A singular qor kis short for the words queand qué, which translate to what or that, depending on the context. Here is an example that shows both usages:
In addition to the words que and qué, the letters "q" and "k" have been incorporated into other words as well. For example, qnis short for quienor quién.
4. Tb
Tbis an abbreviation for the Spanish word también, which translates to me too or same when written as a reply to a text. For example:
5. Tqm
In Spanish, tqmstands for te quiero mucho, which means lyl or love you lots in English. Look at the following example:
There are a few variations of the phrase tqm that you may come across while conversing with Spanish speakers virtually. As already mentioned, the letters "q" and "k" are often interchangeable in the Spanish texting world, so you can also use tkmto say the same thing. Additionally, you might come across the acronym tam(te amo mucho), which is a more romantic and intimate way of saying "I love you."
6. X fa
X fais short for the word por favor, which means please in English. Here is an example:
You may be wondering how x fa came about, given that it looks very different from the word por favor (please). Many times, Spanish speakers will say porfaas a shortened version of por favor, similar to how many English speakers say thanks instead of thank you. Furthermore, many replace porwith the letter "x" because por can mean times (as in "multiplied by") in Spanish. Thus, "x" is often used as shorthand for por (and sometimes per and par), whether it is a prefix of a word or a word in itself. Here are some examples of similar abbreviations used for texting:
7. Grax
Many Spanish speakers use graxas shorthand for the word gracias(thanks o thank you). For example:
As we saw in the previous section, often times the letter "x" is used as shorthand when Spanish speakers text. However, in this case, the "x" may be used for a few different reasons. Some believe that it comes from the way that English speakers use "x" at the end of the word "thanks," as in thx or thnx. Others believe that it evolved from gracs, a shortened version of gracias, given that the "c" and "s" make an "x" sound when together. Sea lo que sea(whatever it may be), now you'll be able to recognize that grax means gracias while texting in Spanish.
8. Q tal?
The phrase Q tal?means ¿Qué tal?, which translates to How's it going? or What's up? For example:
You may have noticed that this phrase, along with a few others we've talked about in this article, doesn't include the opening punctuation marks ¿ and ¡. ¡No te preocupes!(Don't worry!) Many Spanish speakers omit these punctuation marks while texting, so it is completely appropriate if you choose not to include them. Just remember to continue using them in formal contexts.
9. Xq or pq
The abbreviations xqand pqare short for the words porqueand por qué, which mean because and why, respectively. Look at the following example:
10. Bn
Bnis short for bien(good), which is a common response to the question ¿Cómo estás?(How are you?). For example:
Bien is not the only word that Spanish speakers omit vowels from while texting. The table below shows a list of common words that are shortened in a similar way:
| Text abbreviation | Meaning | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| msj | mensaje | message |
| sbs? | ¿Sabes? | You know? |
| spro | espero | I hope |
Learn more phrases to use in Spanish with these articles:
