‘TBH’ tops South Africa’s most searched text abbreviations in 2026: Top 20 revealed

New research has revealed South Africa’s most searched text abbreviations for 2026.

The study was conducted by word-finding experts at Unscramblerer.com. It analysed Google Trends data from 1 January to 30 March 2026 for searches related to texting acronyms.

Data research analyst Randoh Sallihall highlighted that South African text abbreviations are constantly evolving.

“The list of the most confusing South African text abbreviations is always changing. In 2026, our research found many new top acronyms and even some changes in meanings for older ones. It is fascinating that social media trends can easily change the mainstream meaning of an acronym within a short frame of time. An example is PMO, where the mainstream meaning changed from ‘Put me on’ to ‘P-sses me off’.”

The research combined Google Trends data with monthly search volumes from Ahrefs. It included more than 100 keyword variations, such as “TBH meaning text” or “what does SMH mean in text”. Acronyms were analysed across social media, forums, and texting platforms.

Sallihall added that meanings can shift depending on the community using them.

“Acronyms are an effective and fast way to communicate, but context matters. How you use them for friends, family, colleagues, or online forums can affect how your message is received.”

A 2024 study published in the Journal of Experimental Psychology, which analysed data from more than 5 300 participants in Tinder and Discord conversations, found that using acronyms can signal lower effort. This often results in fewer replies, shorter messages, and lower engagement. The effect occurs regardless of age or familiarity with the sender.

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