What does “fn” mean? Have you ever used abbreviations such as 26y4u, GBTW, DKDC, B4N, TTM? An abbreviation, according to Merriam Webster, is a short form of a word/phrase used to save time and space, avoid repetition or follow conventional usage. Abbreviation styling can be inconsistent and arbitrary with possible variations, so it is sometimes hard to know what an abbreviation means. Hence, let’s take a look at some common abbreviations below and how they are used.
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What Does F Stand For?
Everyone in the U.S. uses ‘F’ to mean a degree on the Fahrenheit temperature scale. However, there are other meanings connected to this letter. For example, F can mean the failing grade in a class or course, or short for Folio, a paper and book size. “F” can also be used as a contraction for ‘fax’, or ‘false’. In class airfare, ‘F’ means ‘first’. People who love photography will understand “f” as focal length. Meanwhile, software developers will translate “f” into “float” in the C programming language.
In musical technical slang, F stands for forte. Forte is a dynamic indication in music which means a specific part of a song should be played strongly and louder. Dynamics will make each piece of music sound different and unique. Particularly, a forte dynamic will add extra emphasis to the song by instructing the musicians to play notes loudly or extending their length.
What Does N Stand For?
We usually see N after Y and understand it immediately as Yes and No. However, N as an abbreviation can mean many more things. N can mean “North” in directions, or “Noun” in grammar, or “Noon” as in the time of day. Natural numbers are also abbreviated as “N”, and so does “Nitrogen”. In formulae in quantum physics, “N” is short for Principal Quantum Number, while in general physics, “N” means Neutron Number.
Surprisingly, there are literally meanings of N in different fields that have nothing to do with the letter. In astronomy, people understand “N” as Mean Motion, though both words start with the letter M instead of N. At the same time, N means asparagine – a kind of amino acid, or “moles” in chemistry. The technical uses of the words depend on the fields of research and the context of dialogue.
What Does Fn Mean?
‘FN’ is used widely with the meaning of “function”. The most common place you will see “fn” is on electrical devices or your computer keyboards. For example, when you press the Fn key on your computer keyboard, you enable the secondary purpose of other keys. You can easily adjust the screen’s brightness or control the video playback by using the Fn key with other keys.
As an abbreviation, FN can stand for many more words. “FN” can be the acronym for the first name, or file number, or even first notice. The US Navy uses FN as short for “FORCEnet”, while the United States Coast Guard (USCG) uses “FN” for “fireman”. Sometimes, FN can mean the Food Network (TV channel) or the Financial News, depending on context.
Enjoying what you are reading? Check out our College Life for more interesting facts and phrases.
What Do Other Abbreviations Mean?
Y/N
The most popular use of “Y/N” is right after a question, and “Y/N” indicates the two answers: yes or no. This abbreviation is widely used on questionnaires or surveys, where a large crowd is asked the same questions and their answers will be recorded for research purposes. In daily texts, people also sometimes use Y/N instead of typing fully “yes or no”.
In addition, “Y/N” as an urban slang for “your name”, is common on the registration forms or online applications. Besides, “Y/N” is popularly used in fanfics, fiction written by fans or amateurs based on copyrighted characters or settings. It is used to make the fiction more realistic by allowing readers to insert themselves into the story.
Ft
There are abbreviations we see quite often but hardly know what they mean. For example, OST stands for the Original Sound Track, while MV is short for Music Video or ‘bpm’ as an abbreviation for ‘beats per minute’. Other examples include “f”, which means Forte as we mentioned earlier, and “ff”, which stands for Fortissimo, and “fp” Fortepiano.
Now you may wonder “what does ft mean in music”? “Ft” or sometimes “Feat” are both short for “featuring”. Let’s take the song ‘I’m the one’ for example. The full name of the song is ‘DJ Khaled – I’m the One ft. Justin Bieber, Quavo, Chance the Rapper, Lil Wayne’. This means that DJ Khaled is the main singer and other artists titled after “ft” have contributed to the song in some way. They can play a part in producing the song, playing an instrument, or singing a part of the song.
Other Abbreviations
Abbreviations can be created and adopted in large groups of people, usually among those of the same generation in daily context. Below are some common abbreviations that may amaze you.
| Slang Term | Meaning | Slang Term | Meaning |
| *$ | Starbucks | KNP | OK, no problem |
| 26y4u | Too sexy for you | LYSM | Love you so much |
| AA | Adiós amigo | NC | No comment |
| AWTY | Are we there yet? | NTY | No thank you |
| AYFR | Are you for real? | nvr | Never |
| AYFT | Are you free today? | OAO | Over and out |
| B4N | Bye for now | onl | Online |
| Bai | Bye | POIDH | Pictures or it didn’t happen |
| BFAM | Brother from another mother | probs | Probably |
| BFFL | Best friend for life | RUS | Are you serious? |
| BU&I | Between you and I | RYFS | Are you freakin’ serious? |
| c | See | SG | Sounds good |
| CU | See you | sk8 | Skate |
| CUL | Catch you later | SML | So much love |
| CYM | Check your mail | str8 | Straight |
| D/C | Don’t care | TAY | Thinking about you |
| delish | Delicious | TGFF | Thank God for Friday |
| Dis | This | Tix | Tickets |
| DKDC | Don’t know, don’t care | Totes | Totally |
| dunno | Don’t know | TOU | Thinking of you |
| ez | Easy | TTB | That’s too bad |
| frnd | Friend | TTYVS | Talk to you very soon |
| G2G | Good to go | TYFA | Thank you for asking |
| GBTW | Get back to work | W^ | What’s up |
| HIG | How’s it going? | wat | What |
| I8U | I hate you | WAYDRN | What are you doing right now |
| ILU | I love you | WBU | What ’bout you |
| It me | I identify with that | welp | Well |
| JC | Just chilling | WU | What’s up |
| JJ | Just joking | Wub | Love |
| JP | Just playing | ya | You |
| JW | Just wondering | yh | Yeah |
| Kewt | Cute | yo | Hey |
The Final Thought
Abbreviations play a part in our life, either technically or socially. For many people, Jobandedu bets using technical abbreviations is a part of their profession. While for others, using abbreviations for daily communication gives them much more joy. Not only in the US where we speak English, but in any country with different languages people also have their own systems of abbreviations, the same case with sign language. And that is what makes life interesting around the world.
