LOL, or lol, is an initialism for laugh out loud and a popular element of Internet slang. It was first used almost exclusively on Usenet, but has since become widespread in other forms of computer-mediated communication and even face-to-face communication. The Oxford English Dictionary first listed LOL in March, 2011, as one of the three most popular initialisms in Internet slang, alongside BFN and IMHO.
About LOL in brief
LOL, or lol, is an initialism for laugh out loud and a popular element of Internet slang. It was first used almost exclusively on Usenet, but has since become widespread in other forms of computer-mediated communication and even face-to-face communication. It is one of many initialisms for expressing bodily reactions, in particular laughter, as text, including LOL, ROFL and smileys. These initialisms are controversial, and several authors recommend against their use, either in general or in specific contexts such as business communications. Linguist John McWhorter stated that lol is utilized less as a reaction to something that is hilarious, but rather as a way to lighten the conversation.
The Oxford English Dictionary first listed LOL in March, 2011, as one of the three most popular initialisms in Internet slang, alongside BFN and IMHO. The list of acronyms and emoticons collected into folk dictionaries that are circulated informally amongst users of UsenET, IRC, and other form of computer- mediated communication are called LOL, BFN, IMHO, and ROTFL. The use of LOL is not necessarily as genuine as the use of smiley faces or grins is. Victoria Clarke states that capitalization is important when people write LOL, and that people who write LOL may well be laughing louder than those who write ROFL, and opines that LOL and ROFL are losing force over time.
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This page is based on the article LOL published in Wikipedia (as of Dec. 08, 2020) and was automatically summarized using artificial intelligence.
