Essential texting acronyms every parent must know

Kim Komando | Special for USA TODAY

Sometimes it feels like parents and teens don't speak the same language. When it comes to texting, chatting and emailing, that's literally true. If you've looked at any teen's communications, you'll see them sprinkled with acronyms and shorthand that make no sense.

Those letters and numbers are an ever-evolving code that kids pick up from their friends. Some acronyms really are harmless, like the now-common LOL, but there are plenty that aren't. If you see the following acronyms on your kids' gadgets, it's time for a serious talk.

A quick note on LOL: While most people use this as "laugh out loud," there are people who use it as "lots of love." This can lead to unfortunate cases where you end up "laughing" at someone's tragic news.

Some of these acronym meanings are very direct and a little shocking.

Your kid has something to hide

CD9: Short for "Code 9," which means parents are around.

KPC: Keeping Parents Clueless

MOS: Mom Over Shoulder

P911: Parent Alert

PAL: Parents Are Listening

PAW: Parents Are Watching

PIR: Parent In Room

POS: Parent Over Shoulder

Your kid's personal information or safety is at risk

ASL: Age/Sex/Location

F2F: Face to Face. Asking for a meeting or video chat

LMIRL: Let's Meet In Real Life

NAZ: Name/Address/ZIP

MOOS: Member of the Opposite Sex

MOSS: Member of the Same Sex

MORF or RUMORF: Male or Female, or Are Your Male or Female?

RU/18: Are You Over 18?

WUF: Where You From?

WYCM: Will You Call Me?

WYRN: What's Your Real Name?

Your kid shouldn't be involved in this

143, 459 or ILU: I love you

1174: Invited to a wild party

420: Marijuana

GNOC: Get Naked On Cam

GYPO: Get Your Pants Off

AMEZRU: I Am Easy, Are You?

IWSN: I Want Sex Now

KFY or K4Y: Kiss For You

KOTL: Kiss On The Lips

NIFOC: Nude In Front Of The Computer

RUH: Are You Horny?

TDTM: Talk Dirty To Me

Not every acronym is bad

BRB: Be Right Back

CWYL: Chat With You Later

CYT: See You Tomorrow

IMHO: In My Humble Opinion

IMNSHO: In My Not So Humble Opinion

L8R: Later

LMK: Let Me Know

NM: Never Mind

ROTFL: Rolling On The Floor Laughing

SOHF: Sense Of Humor Failure

If you're curious about another acronym that you've stumbled across in your kids' texts or chat, look it up on NetLingo. It has a continually updating list of online acronyms, along with their various meanings and origins.

As any parent will tell you, dealing with teenagers and preteens is a fine balancing act. You want to give them freedom to explore, but you also need to keep tabs on what they're doing. Click here for 5 dangerous apps you don't know your kid is using.

I recommend friending or following your kids on any sites they use. If they know you're watching, they're less likely to do something they shouldn't. Plus, you can keep an eye to make sure they aren't revealing information they shouldn't or talking to people who aren't safe.

Of course, you never know what sites they might be using that you don't know about. That's where monitoring and tracking apps and software come in handy. You can keep tabs on everything they do online.

Just be sure to communicate with your kids about why certain sites are bad so they can grow into responsible digital citizens. In fact, you should start before they're teens with my 10 Commandments for Kids Online. It's a contract between you and your child about the do's and don'ts of our digital life.

Finally, be sure you're teaching and demonstrating good mobile manners. I've created 10 rules that everyone should follow and even made a poster you can hang at home, work, school or anywhere else people need a gentle digital etiquette reminder.

On the Kim Komando Show, the nation's largest weekend radio talk show, Kim takes calls and dispenses advice on today's digital lifestyle, from smartphones and tablets to online privacy and data hacks. For her daily tips, free newsletters and more, visit her website at Komando.com. Email her at techcomments@usatoday.com.