One way of hooking up with other guys is by browsing though various personal ads posted in your local newspaper, message boards, chat rooms, and in dating sites. To save space, some terms are abbreviated, leaving those viewing them for the first time confused and lost in translation. Don’t worry, because we have compiled the basic abbreviations inserted in gay personal ads. Are you ready to break the codes?
69 – Sixty-nine (he would like to give and receive BJs)
A – Asian
ALT – Alternative Sex (refers to kinky sex and fetishes like BDSM)
ASP – Anglo-Saxon Protestant
B – Black (African-American)
BB – Bare Back (to have anal sex without a condom)
BDSM – Bondage, Discipline, and Sado-Masochism (any form of sex that deals with pain and submission)
Bear – Generally refers to bearded and hairy guys
BI – Bisexual
BiF – Bisexual Female
BiM – Bisexual Male
BJ – Blow Job (oral sex)
Blnd – Blonde (pale-haired)
Brn – Brunette (having dark brown hair)
Bottom – A guy who prefers to be on the receiving end of anal sex
C – Christian
CD – Cross-Dresser
CPLS – Couples (usually appearing on ads of gay couples seeking for a three-some, four-some, or couple swing)
Cub – A younger bear
Cut – Having a circumcized penis
D – Divorced (usually referring to a previous heterosexual marriage)
D/D Free – Drug- and Disease-Free (can also appear as DDF)
Dom – Dominant Male or Female (prefers a partner who is submissive, sometimes to a point of being a slave)
DM – Divorced Male
DGM – Divorced Gay Male
F – Female
Fems – Feminine (referring to effeminate gays, or those who act girly)
FF – Fist Fucking (having a fist inserted to a partner’s vagina or anus)
FTM – Female to Male Transsexual (lesbians who have had transgender procedures to become male)
GAM – Gay Asian Male
GBM – Gay Black Male
GHM – Gay Hispanic Male
GSOH – Good Sense of Humor
GWM – Gay White Male
H – Hispanic
HD – Heavy Drinker
HS – Heavy Smoker
HWP – Height-Weight Proportional
ICQ – A free online messaging service (www.icq.com) derived from the phrase “I Seek You”; this term is usually followed by an “ID number” or the user’s numeric code
IM – Instant Messaging (like ICQ, AOL Instant Messenger, Yahoo! Messenger, MSN Messenger, etc.)
IM me – Send me an Instant Message
IRL – In Real Life
ISO – In Search Of/ I Seek Of
J – Jewish
LD – Light Drinker
LDR – Long-Distance Relationship
LOL – Laughing Out Loud (this term began in chat rooms, and can now sometimes be seen in public ad sites like Craigslist.org)
LS – Light Smoker
LTR – Long-Term Relationship
M – Male
M2M – Man to Man/ Male to Male (like in M2M Sex)
MSM – Male Seeking Male
ND – Non-Drinker
NLP – No Losers Please
NS – Non-Smoker
NSA Sex – No-Strings-Attached Sex (seeking for a sex buddy, instead of a relationship)
MTF – Male to Female Transsexual
P – Professional (this means that he works in an office)
Pics – Pictures (may vary between face pics, body pics or more erotic pics)
PLS – Please
PnP – Party and Play (to have sex after drinking or, sometimes, under the influence of drugs)
POS – HIV-Positive
S – Single
SD – Social Drinker (drinks alcohol only whenever he is out partying)
SGM – Single Gay Male
SGAM – Single Gay Asian Male (may interchange with SAGM)
SGBM – Single Gay Black Male (may interchange with SBGM)
SGHM – Single Gay Hispanic Male (may interchange with SHGM)
SGWM – Single Gay White Male (may interchange with SWGM)
SGAPM – Single Gay Asian Professional Male
SGBPM – Single Gay Black Professional Male
SGHPM – Single Gay Hispanic Professional Male
SGWPM – Single Gay White Professional Male
SI – Similar Interests
Sub – Submissive (seeks guys who are dominant in sex)
Top – A guy who prefers to be the giving end of anal sex
TG – Transgender (someone who has completely transformed into someone of opposite sex)
TS – Transsexual (see TG)
TV – Transvestite (someone who wears clothing of the opposite sex)
Uncut – Uncircumsized Penis
Vrs – Versatile (can be Top or Bottom; may also appear as Versa)
W – White (Caucasian)
W/ – With (for instance, “W/ own place”)
W/E – Well-Endowed (having an above-average sized penis)
WASP – White Anglo-Saxon Protestant
WS – Water Sports (having sex that involves urine)
YO – Years Old (for instance, “20 YO”)