it's always okay to ask for clarity if someone uses a term you're unfamiliar with.
NSA - No Strings Attached
DDF - Drug and Disease Free
FWB - Friends With Benefits
SB - Sugar Baby
SD - Sugar Daddy
SM - Sugar Momma
LTR - Long Term Relationship
PPM - Pay Per Meet
SA - Seeking Arrangement
AP - Affair Partner
DADT - Don't Ask, Don't Tell
BBW - Big Beautiful Woman
BHM - Big Handsome Man
BDSM - Bondage/Discipline, Dominance/Submission, Sadism/Masochism
DL - Down Low
GSOH - Good Sense Of Humor
ISO - In Search Of
WLTM - Would Like To Meet
HWP - Height/Weight Proportional
W4M - Woman For Man
M4W - Man For Woman
M4M - Man For Man
W4W - Woman For Woman
Bi - Bisexual
GF - Girlfriend
BF - Boyfriend
TG - Transgender
TS - Transsexual
TV - Transvestite
SO - Significant Other
DTR - Define The Relationship
MB - Marriage Broker
MC - Missed Connections
RL - Real Life
SBF - Single Black Female
SBM - Single Black Male
SWF - Single White Female
SWM - Single White Male
WAA - Will Answer All
MWC - Married With Children
ND - Non-Drinker
NS - Non-Smoker
WP - Professional White
DBF - Divorced Black Female
DBM - Divorced Black Male
DWF - Divorced White Female
DWM - Divorced White Male
DOB - Date Of Birth
IRL - In Real Life
Ghosting - Ending a personal relationship with someone by suddenly and without explanation withdrawing from all communication.
CATFISH - Someone who creates a false online identity.
CUFFING - Selecting a partner for the colder months, who you then ignore come spring.
BREADCRUMBING - Leading someone on with non-committal but flirtatious messages.
ZOMBIEING - When an ex gets back in touch out of the blue.
ROACHING - When the person you're seeing is hiding the fact that they're dating around.
BENCHING - Keeping someone as a backup and keeping contact minimal.
MOONING - Silencing your mobile (or 'mooning') to ignore someone.
JELLY - To be jealous.
LAYBY - Someone still in a relationship but setting up a partner for when they become single.
TUNING - Flirting but not yet dating.
THRONING - Dating someone just to improve your personal profile or reputation.
HAUNTING - When someone who ghosted you in the past suddenly comes back into your life.
CASPERING - A friendly alternative to ghosting where an explanation is given before the end of the relationship.
STASHING - When you're in a relationship with someone but they hide you away from their friends and social media.
SUBMARINING - When someone who ghosted you pops back up into your life.
SLOW FADE - A less dramatic version of ghosting where contact gradually dies off.
CUSHIONING - Dating other people while you're in a relationship as a backup plan if your current relationship ends.
SHIPPED - Short for 'relationship'.
SO - Significant Other
STR - Short Term Relationship
R-BOMBED - When someone reads your message but doesn't respond.
KITTENFISH - Someone who presents themselves unrealistically on a dating app, they then turn out to be completely different IRL (In Real Life).
GHOSTEE - Person who gets ghosted.
E-FIT - When your social media posts and pictures are carefully curated so they serve as an online dating profile.
FBO - Facebook Official
IRL - In Real Life
MIA - Missing In Action
RAINCHECK - Postpone a date.
SITUATIONSHIP - A relationship that's not quite a romantic relationship but is definitely more than a platonic friendship.
DM - Direct Message
DTF - Down To (willing to proceed in a sexual way)
ELO Score - A rating of attractiveness, used by some dating apps.
FBO - Facebook Official
IRL - In Real Life
NRE - New Relationship Energy
Poly - Polyamorous
RL - Real Life
SLS - SwingLifeStyle
TOYBOY - A younger man dating an older woman.
COUGAR - An older woman dating a younger man.
FLAME - A current or former love interest.
ON AGAIN/OFF AGAIN - Inconsistent relationship status, breaking up and then getting back together multiple times.
SERENDIPIDATING - Putting off a date in the hope something better comes along.
MATING - Meeting someone for the first time.
CARDIO - Short for catching feelings.
SPOON - To cuddle.
WHEELING - The pre-dating phase, when one person is pursuing another.
LOVE BOMBING - When someone tries to control another individual with "bombs" brimming with "love" right from day one. It's manipulative and overwhelming.
MONKEYING - In the same vein as "on to the next," but with a more proactive approach. Rather than casually moving on from a failed relationship, you're getting a head start on the next.
STEALTHING - When a man secretly removes his condom mid-way through sexual intercourse.
The Wall