As I prepared recently to make a presentation about Latin America and the importance of learning Spanish to a bunch of beginning-level seventh- and eighth-grade students, I struggled to come up with topics that middle school kids could relate to. Suddenly, it dawned on me that a great way to keep their interest would be to talk about texting and instant messaging. I pulled together a list of some commonly used abbreviations used in Latin America and now — at the urging of several curious adult friends — am posting them here (needless to say, the kids loved it). Any more to share? Please let me know!
Pq or xq = ¿por qué? or porque
100pre = siempre
grax = gracias
NTP = No Te Preocupes (or sometimes, No Tengo Problema)
Vdd = verdad
Tb = también
Bno = bueno
Bb = bebe
Cam = cámara
je je je = LOL
KLK (only in the Dominican Republic, I believe) = ¿qué es lo que hay?
ps = pues
Q? = ¿Qué?
TQM or TKM = Te Quiero Mucho