20 Texts That Should Be In The Texting Hall Of Fame

Twenty-five years ago, the first SMS message was sent. What a difference a quarter of a century makes. Celebrate the evolution of the text message — from T9 to GIFs — with Messenger!

1.

Often thought of as the Mona Lisa of the textual genre, the happy face is the quintessential work of pre-emoji emotion in texting.

2.

The winking smiley is often meant to indicate humor in textual form, but it may also indicate that someone like-likes you. Many a friendship has been ruined by incorrectly deciphering the winking smiley.

3.

Did your friend get a new number and not tell you? Or is this some sort of bit? Equal parts vibrant discovery and annoying chore, this text is a classic.

4.

A perennial sign of greeting that is useful in all scenarios, "hey" has made it into nearly every American's textual conversations.

5.

A form of greeting that means the sender is totally flirting with you. Unlike the winking smiley, there is no ambiguity to be found in that second "y." They are into you, friend.

6.

The text that says, "I agree with you emphatically," while also saying, "No one has the time to type out the word 'totally.' It's two extra letters."

7.

Perhaps the scariest inductee in the entire Text Hall of Fame, "k." is the conversation ender. An innovation in passive-aggression, this text says, "I'm done talking to you now. Scamper off and bother someone else."

8.

Much less terrifying than its single-character sibling, "kk" actually means "OK."

9.

Messaging changed our lives by opening up hundreds of new and innovative ways for us to be passive-aggressive to each other. Sending "u alive?" to someone who hasn't texted you back is just one wonderful example of this.

10.

If you are like many Americans, your mom still may not grasp that texts are not to be sent in the format of paper letters. At least she's not calling with this information, though.

11.

Usually sent from the patriarch of the clan because the matriarch is genuinely worried that you might be dead after you didn't respond to the picture of the family dog in a sweater.

12.

The person sending you this text is bored. They are so bored that they cannot be bothered to type, "What you doing?" out in full. They are asking — nay, begging — you to save them from this boredom.

13.

We all know they're not really "walking up now," but when we get this text from our chronically late friend 20 minutes after they were supposed to meet us at the bar, we can at least hope they've left their house.

14.

Are they actually just seeing this? Or have they been ignoring us for some unforeseen, probably-less-than-important reason? This text is an enigma the first time you get it from someone, but it's a sure sign that you're dealing with a procrastinator the third or fourth time you get it from someone.

15.

This well-worn text is what we use when we're trying to say, "This conversation has been pleasant, but now I have something more important to do." It is the genteel version of the dreaded "k."

16.

This text is the universal symbol that you said something funny. Despite the fact that this abbreviation actually stands for "laugh out loud," there is, at best, a 50/50 chance that you actually made them laugh out loud.

17.

You said something so funny, it warrants more than "lol." You actually might have made them laugh out loud with this one.

18.

Despite the implied claim that they are laughing their ass off, your recipient very likely has their whole ass intact. But you were very, very funny.

19.

Congratulations, you made your mom laugh.

20.

The "someone is messaging you right now" bubble isn't fearsome, but many find it anxiety-provoking. No, it isn't technically a "text," but it's definitely part of the experience, so it deserves a spot in the Hall of Fame all the same.

All images courtesy of Getty Images

With Messenger, text conversations are a work of art. Connect on practically any mobile device — globally and instantly — for free with a simple text, voice call, or even video chat. Download the app!

Facebook: video.php