JHi, I’m Jason. Your phone buzzes on a Friday night. You open it and see, “omw, running late, sorry lol. tbh the meeting was too long.” You stare at the screen. You know every letter, but not the message.大家好，我是 Jason。週五晚上你的手機震了一下，打開來看到：「omw, running late, sorry lol. tbh the meeting was too long.」你盯著螢幕，每個字母都認得，整句卻看不懂。
MAnd I’m Mary. So you type “OK” and hope for the best. Don’t worry, we’ve all done that. Today we’ll decode seven texting abbreviations, learn how they really feel, and learn when to skip them.我是 Mary。所以你只好回一個「OK」，然後祈禱沒事。別擔心，大家都這樣過。今天我們來破解七個訊息縮寫，聽聽它們真正的語氣，也學會什麼時候不要用。
JOur story starts at a café in Taipei, on a Friday night. Leo is looking at his phone. His American coworker keeps sending him letters. So he asks his friend Chloe, “What’s omw?”我們的故事從週五晚上台北的一間咖啡店開始。Leo 低頭看著手機，他的美國同事一直傳一堆字母給他。於是他問朋友 Chloe：「omw 是什麼？」
MChloe is a foreign friend, and she’s very relaxed about it. She says, “On my way. It means she’s already coming.” Let’s stop on that one, because there’s a small trap inside it.Chloe 是外國朋友，她一派輕鬆。她說：「On my way，意思是她已經在過來的路上了。」我們先停在這一句，因為裡面藏了一個小陷阱。
JThe trap is the word “already.” You only send omw after you’ve actually left. Keys in your hand, door closed, walking or driving. If you’re still on the couch, it’s not true yet.陷阱就是「already」這個字。你要真的出發了才傳 omw：鑰匙拿著、門關好、正在走路或開車。如果你還坐在沙發上，那就還不是真的。
MRight, and your friends will know. Some people text “omw” while they’re still at home in pajamas. Everyone jokes about it. So make it true first, and then send “omw, see you in ten.”對，而且朋友都看得出來。有些人還穿著睡衣在家就傳 omw，大家都會拿這個開玩笑。所以先讓它變成真的，再傳「omw, see you in ten.」（在路上了，十分鐘後見。）
JNext, Leo says, “She wrote, running late, sorry lol. Why is she laughing?” It’s a fair thing to wonder, because lol stands for “laugh out loud.” But in a text, it often isn’t that.接著 Leo 說：「她寫 running late, sorry lol，她為什麼在笑？」會這樣想很合理，因為 lol 代表 laugh out loud（大聲笑出來）。但在訊息裡，常常不是這個意思。
MChloe answers, “She’s not really laughing. Lol just makes the message sound lighter. Like a little smile.” Nobody is laughing about being late. It just says, “No big deal, I’m friendly.”Chloe 回答：「她不是真的在笑。lol 只是讓訊息聽起來輕鬆一點，像個小小的微笑。」沒有人在笑自己遲到，它只是在說：「沒什麼大不了，我很友善。」
JIn Chinese, we’d add haha at the end of a text. Same idea. “Sorry, I forgot again lol.” It softens the sentence. And if something is truly funny, people often type haha instead.中文訊息的句尾我們會加個「哈哈」，其實是同一個概念。「Sorry, I forgot again lol.」（抱歉我又忘了哈哈。）它會讓句子變柔和。真的很好笑的時候，大家反而常常直接打 haha。
MNow the honest ones. Leo asks, “What about tbh? She said, tbh the meeting was too long.” And Chloe says, “To be honest. People use it right before an honest opinion.”接下來是「說真心話」的縮寫。Leo 問：「那 tbh 呢？她說 tbh the meeting was too long。」Chloe 說：「To be honest，老實說。大家會在說真心話之前用。」
JThink of it as a little door opening. The word tbh tells your friend, here comes the real me. For example, “tbh I’m not a big fan of that movie.” Short, easy, and friendly.把它想成輕輕推開一扇門。tbh 是在告訴朋友：接下來是真正的我。例如「tbh I’m not a big fan of that movie.」（老實說，我不太喜歡那部電影。）簡短、簡單又親切。
MThen Leo asks, “And ngl? Is that the same thing?” Chloe says, “Pretty close. Not gonna lie. It’s even more casual.” So ngl fits best with friends.然後 Leo 問：「那 ngl 呢？意思一樣嗎？」Chloe 說：「很接近。Not gonna lie，不騙你。它更隨性。」所以 ngl 最適合跟朋友用。
JChloe gives an example too. “ngl, I love that place.” That means, “Not gonna lie, I really love it.” And you can use tbh or ngl for good news, not only for complaints.Chloe 也舉了例子：「ngl, I love that place.」意思是「不騙你，我超愛那裡。」而且 tbh 和 ngl 不是只能用來抱怨，說好消息也可以。
MThree quick ones now. First, brb. It means be right back. You use it when you step away for a minute. “brb, grabbing coffee.” And then you really do come back fast.現在來三個快速的。第一個是 brb，意思是 be right back，馬上回來。你暫時離開一下時用。「brb, grabbing coffee.」（馬上回來，我去拿咖啡。）然後你真的要很快回來。
JSecond, idk. It means I don’t know. “idk, maybe Friday?” It sounds soft and a little tired, like a shrug in text form. Friends use it all the time.第二個是 idk，意思是 I don’t know，我不知道。「idk, maybe Friday?」（不知道耶，星期五？）聽起來軟軟的、有點懶懶的，像用文字聳肩。朋友之間超常用。
MThird, btw. It means by the way. You use it to add one more thing. “btw, the meeting moved to three.” In Chinese, it’s like saying, “Oh, and one more thing.”第三個是 btw，意思是 by the way，順帶一提。用來補充另一件事。「btw, the meeting moved to three.」（順帶一提，會議改到三點。）就像中文說的「對了，還有一件事」。
JLet’s check the list. When you see omw, I’ve left. When you see lol, keep it light. Before tbh and ngl comes an honest opinion. And brb, idk, and btw are quick helpers. Nothing scary.我們來整理一下。看到 omw，代表我已經出發了；看到 lol，代表語氣輕鬆；tbh 和 ngl 後面接真心話；brb、idk、btw 則是快速小幫手。一點都不可怕。
MNow the big question. Leo asks, “Can I use these in an email to my boss?” And Chloe says, “I wouldn’t. Keep them for texts with friends and coworkers you’re close to.”現在來到重點問題。Leo 問：「那我可以在寫給主管的 email 裡用這些嗎？」Chloe 說：「我不會。這些留給跟朋友、比較熟的同事傳訊息時用就好。」
JShe’s right. Emails to bosses and clients need full words. Instead of tbh, write “To be honest,” or “Honestly,”. Instead of btw, write “By the way,”. It looks careful and polite.她說得對。寫給主管和客戶的 email 要用完整的字。不要用 tbh，改寫「To be honest,」或「Honestly,」；不要用 btw，改寫「By the way,」。這樣看起來細心又有禮貌。
MSame for omw. In an email, write, “I’m on my way and will arrive in ten minutes.” It’s longer, but it feels professional. And lol? Just leave it out. Your kind words can carry the smile.omw 也一樣。在 email 裡寫「I’m on my way and will arrive in ten minutes.」（我在路上，十分鐘後到。）比較長，但很專業。至於 lol？直接省略。親切的用字就能帶出微笑。
JHere’s a simple tip. If you’re not sure the person will understand, or you’re not sure it fits, write the full words. Full words are never wrong. Abbreviations are only a bonus.給你一個簡單的小撇步。如果你不確定對方看不看得懂，或不確定場合適不適合，就寫完整的字。完整的字永遠不會錯，縮寫只是加分。
MAlso, watch your coworker’s style. If they use lol first, you can relax a little. If they write full sentences, match them. Copying their style is a smart, safe move.另外，多留意同事的風格。如果他們先用 lol，你就可以放鬆一點；如果他們都寫完整句子，你也跟著寫。模仿對方的風格，是聰明又安全的做法。
JLet me try a mini story. A friend texts, “omw.” You reply, “Great, I’m already here lol.” That lol says, “Take your time, no pressure.” See how it keeps things warm?我來試一個小故事。朋友傳「omw」，你回「Great, I’m already here lol.」（太好了，我已經到了哈哈。）那個 lol 的意思是「慢慢來，沒壓力」。看到它怎麼讓氣氛變溫暖了嗎？
MNow compare two versions of one idea. To a friend: “tbh I need more time lol.” To a client: “To be honest, I need a little more time.” Same idea, different outfit.現在比較同一個想法的兩種寫法。對朋友：「tbh I need more time lol.」（老實說我需要多一點時間哈哈。）對客戶：「To be honest, I need a little more time.」同一個想法，換一套衣服。
JI like that. You’re not learning two languages. You’re just choosing the right clothes for the right place, café or office. And if you see an abbreviation you don’t know, just ask. Nobody minds.我喜歡這個說法。你不是在學兩種語言，只是在不同的地方選對衣服，咖啡店或辦公室都一樣。而且看到不懂的縮寫，直接問就好，沒有人會介意。
MOkay, we’re almost done. Let’s hear the whole conversation one more time, from Leo’s first question to Chloe’s last answer, at the café in Taipei.好，我們快結束了。讓我們把整段對話再完整聽一次，從 Leo 的第一個問題，到 Chloe 的最後一個回答，場景就在台北的咖啡店。
JListen for omw, lol, tbh, and ngl, and notice the light, friendly feeling behind each one. Here we go.仔細聽 omw、lol、tbh 和 ngl，感受每一個背後那種輕鬆又友善的語氣。我們開始吧。
🔁 [DIALOGUE REPLAY] 重播情境對話
MSo here’s today’s takeaway. Abbreviations are just friendly shortcuts. Use them with friends, write full words at work, and when you’re unsure, full words always win.那麼今天的重點是：縮寫只是朋友之間親切的小捷徑。跟朋友用，工作上寫完整的字，不確定的時候，完整的字永遠最安全。
JWhich abbreviation have you seen but never understood? Tell us in the comments, and we’ll decode it, maybe in a future episode. Find more on MJ English, and follow along.你看過卻一直沒搞懂的是哪個縮寫？留言告訴我們，我們幫你解碼，說不定還會排進之後的集數。更多內容請到 MJ English，歡迎追蹤。
MThat’s all from us today. I’m Mary.今天就到這裡。我是 Mary。
JAnd I’m Jason. Bye for now!我是 Jason。先這樣囉！
