So, you're sending a message to your Italian friends, feeling very proud of your improving Italian skills, when suddenly they hit you with this farewell: ikB! Confused? Ah, welcome to the wild world of Italian internet slang!
Love it or hate it, internet slang has quietly become a part of our daily conversations. Sometimes exploring this digital subculture feels like cracking a mysterious code, but for the younger crowd it's as familiar as their native language. guess what? There was even an Italian band who wrote catchy songs Salute to these Italian internet slangs!
Now, while some of these expressions may have found their way into online conversations among more mature people, generally speaking, most Italians would not frown upon this online shorthand. Therefore, it is wise to sprinkle less and reserve it when appropriate.
Let’s take a look at some Italian abbreviations, acronyms and expressions commonly used around the web, including those sweet words of endearment, so you’ll never be left scratching your head over news from your Italian friends again!
Italian internet slang vocabulary
Italian internet slang is a linguistic playground where simplicity is not only a virtue, but the queen! Words are broken down into their essence, sometimes down to just one letter, and abbreviations look like coded messages. But believe it or not, this trend isn't as modern as you might think.
The art of shortening words has deep roots, dating back centuries. In fact, revered Italian poet Giacomo Leopardi was already playing with one-word abbreviations as early as the 19th century. Yes, you heard it right! He casually wrote in the letter: 8bre for October (October) or 9bre for November (November). Talk about being ahead of the curve!
Below, I've broken down the most common Italian internet slang terms by type so you can more easily familiarize yourself with them.
Words and abbreviations in which the sounds are replaced by single letters
A popular technique in Italian internet slang is to use letters instead of sounds. hold the letter X, For example. it represents sound Every. This may sound strange, but in Italian, the multiplication symbol X read Every (For example, 2 x 2 = 4 is Two times two equals four).
Then there's the letter kwhich usually replaces hard C sounds like ch and C when followed by a vowel A, ohand you.
| slang | Italian | English |
| X | Every | for |
| Western Europe | but | but |
| Why | Why | Why |
| x that | so | so |
| xdono/xdn | pardon | forgive |
| xsona/xsn | persona | people |
| Fito | perfect | perfect |
| Has been sent | allow | allow |
| Saxophone | Know | Know |
| Siam | we hope | let us hope/we hope |
| this | That | What |
| arrive | gas | World Health Organization |
| kilometer | Come | how |
| thousand | scam | and |
| gram | What | What |
| kk | ok ok | ok ok |
| even | return | also |
Here are some examples:
- Arrive at 5 am = Arrive at 5 am (I will arrive before 5 p.m.)
- That's it! = That’s what I did! (What do I know!)
- Why don't you tell me how far you are? = Why don't you tell me how you are? (Why don't you tell me how you are?)
- Keji, do you want to go out? = Who are you going out with? (Who are you going out with?)
- what are you doing today? = What are you doing today? (what are you doing today?)
- Xfetto anke x me = suits me too (This is perfect for me too)
Words and abbreviations with sounds replaced by numbers
Just like in the previous section, sometimes a sound is replaced by a number that sounds exactly like it does in Italian:
| slang | Italian | English |
| 1 | one | a/someone |
| 6 | yes | Who are you |
| 80 | I have a lot | Literally, I have a lot (with expressions like ho tanta name – I’m hungry; ho tanta voglia di te – I want you so much; etc.) |
| More than 3 doors | trembling | bad |
| q8 | quota | I quote |
| qlk1 | someone | someone |
Some examples:
- Why don't you go? = Why don't you go? (why are you not going?)
- 80 Sushi craving = I really want to eat sushi (I really want to eat sushi)
- What a great third film! = What a terrible movie! (What a terrible movie!)
Words and abbreviations with omitted and/or missing vowels
The following terms are composed only of consonants, often omitting vowels. This is especially noticeable in pronouns, where you'll notice that the final vowel disappears. When it comes to verbs, sometimes they like to skip the ending!
| slang | Italian | English |
| ASP | etc. | waiting |
| BC | you kiss | kiss |
| BN | bene | OK |
| BRV | good at | OK |
| Best Practices | That's it | enough, stop |
| C | Character | We are there |
| california | About | about |
| Anyway | Anyway | However, no matter what |
| cpt | Understood | Understood |
| d | of | of |
| dgt | enter | enter |
| DM | tomorrow | tomorrow |
| DP | back | back |
| DV | Pigeon | Where |
| dx | correct | correct |
| FRS | Maybe | perhaps |
| gg | sky | sky |
| Getz | Thanks | Thanks |
| when | call/call | call/call |
| rice | my/my | I |
| MSG | information | message |
| kindness | No | no |
| Ent | there is nothing | there is nothing |
| serial number | digit | digit |
| Program group | nail | You're welcome |
| proximal | Neighbor | Next |
| private | private | private |
| Kunshan | someone | someone |
| qlk | Some | Some |
| qll | That | That |
| qnd | when | when |
| What | so | so |
| qnt | How many | How many |
| ql | something | something |
| Quast | this | this |
| respond | reply/reply | answer/answer |
| sap | Know | Know |
| SC | excuse me | sorry |
| Sir | solo | only |
| spr | always | always |
| tin | I am | I am/they are |
| Stas | tonight | tonight |
| SX | left | left |
| t | of | you (second person singular) |
| Telephone | Phone/Phone | call/call |
| tnt | Very | a lot of |
| t | also | Too much |
| Ted | late | late |
| clam down | clam down | Relax (mainly used in Milan) |
| TT | everything everyone | everything/everyone |
| v | six | you (second person plural) |
| ETC | I thought about it | I thought about it |
Some examples:
- C 6 Star? =Are you there tonight? (Are you there tonight?)
- T tel dm = I will call you tomorrow (I'll call you tomorrow)
- Vlv sl saxe km stai = I just want to know how you are (I just want to know how you are)
- I feel happy for you! = I will always be by your side (I am always here!)
- Grz, 6 dv 1special xsona = thank you, you are such a special person (Thank you, you are really special)
Learn common phrases in Italian internet slang
Now, let's explore some super concise Italian phrases that are commonly used online. Some are so obscure that many people, myself included, are often completely confused when trying to decipher their meaning!
| slang | Italian | English |
| + o – | more or less | more or less |
| + – x | more or less for | more or less for |
| Associated Press | soon | goodbye |
| c6? | you are here? | are u there? |
| Has been sent | we will discuss | I'll talk to you later |
| Depend on | we will meet again | See you later |
| chemical vapor deposition | see you later | See you later |
| DV 6? | Where are you? | Where are you? |
| Kev | What are you doing? | What are you doing? |
| nonsense! | How wonderful! | How nice! |
| mm tons | I really miss you | I really miss you |
| Ministry of Finance? | male or female? | male or female? |
| please | please | please |
| ETC | you are my life | you are my life |
| t FCC SAP | I will let you know | I will tell you |
| t when dp | I'll call you later | I'll call you later |
| program | I beg you | Please, I beg you. |
| t phone + trd | I'll call you later | I'll call you later |
| face | I love you | I love you |
| Tourism Development Board | I love you | I care about you very much (apparently this is often used among teenagers as a softer alternative to “ti amo”) |
| reach | i really love you | i really love you |
| tv1mdb | i really love you | I love you very much (for friends) |
| TV 1kdb | i really love you | I love you very much (for friends) |
| TVB | I love you | I love you (for friends) |
| TV station/tvtttttb | love you so much | I love you very much (for friends) |
| virtual network | OK | It doesn't matter |
| Sith | For example | For example |
Some examples:
- Answer to pfv, is dv 6 completed? = Please answer, where did you end up? (Please answer, where are you?)
- Tt bn, t tel + trd = everything is fine, I will call you later (Okay, I'll call you later)
- Da, slmv! = I love you very much, you are my life! (I love you very much, you are my life!)
- C vd dm, tvb = see you tomorrow, I love you (see you tomorrow, love you)
- Vbn, kilometers you want = OK, whatever you want (Okay, as you wish)
Italian internet slang based on English
It is common for Italians to include popular English abbreviations (such as LOL, FYI, FOMO or WTF) in their chats and messages. But beyond that, Italian dictionaries are filled with new words created by Italianizing common English verbs and terms from the online and gaming worlds. Here are some examples:
- download From “Download”, as shown below: Did you download the file I sent you? (Did you download the file I sent you?)
- link From “to link” like this: Please link to these articles in your next article (Be sure to link these articles in your next post)
- trigger from “trigger” as follows: This song touches me so much (This song really touches me)
- Gashi logs From “Login”, as shown below: I just logged in but can't see anyone in the chat (I just logged in and don't see anyone in the chat)
- Troll From “trolls” such as: They were pranking Mario on that forum (They were pranking Mario on that forum)
- spoiler From “destroy”, as in: Woe to anyone who spoils the series finale! (Don’t spoil the ending of the series!)
- dropper From “to drop”, as in: Have you seen their new video on TikTok? (Have you seen their new video on TikTok?)
- asshole From “bug” like: There's something totally wrong with my computer (My computer is totally broken)
- Backup tool From “backup” like: Don’t forget to back up everything before shutting down your computer! (Don’t forget to back up everything before shutting down your computer!)
- hacker From “hackers” like: Did you hear that they hacked into all the computers in the school? (Did you hear that all the computers in the school were hacked?)
- mark Start with “to tag” like this: Remember to tag me in your Instagram posts (Don’t forget to tag me in the Instagram post)
- banner From “forbidden”, as in: They banned me from the community, you know? (They banned me from the community, can you believe it?)
- Memare From “meme” like: I'm looking for new meme videos (I'm looking for new meme videos)
- bookworm From “nerds” as in: I was in a daze all day yesterday (I wandered around all day yesterday)
- screenshot From “Screenshot”, as shown below: I screenshot all the stories and travel tips (I screenshot all the stories and travel tips)
- Loral From “lol” as in: We had a lot of trouble, Mario was too strong! (We laughed a lot, Mario was so funny!)
- informer From “whistleblowers” such as: Mario leaked everything to the others (Mario has leaked everything to others)
- Whatsappare From “WhatsApp” as shown below: Mario and I talked until 4 o'clock in the morning (Mario and I exchanged messages via WhatsApp until 4am)
- Googlers From “Google” like: Have you tried searching for the place on Google to see reviews? (Have you tried looking up this place on Google to see reviews?)
Heather Broster is a graduate with honors in linguistics from the University of Western Ontario. She is an aspiring polyglot, fluent in English and Italian, as well as varying degrees of fluency in Japanese, Welsh and French. Originally from Toronto, Heather has lived in several countries, notably Italy for six years. Her main research areas are language acquisition, education and bilingual teaching.
