What Does IMY Mean?

In text messaging, instant messaging, social media, and other short forms of communication IMY stands for:

I Miss You

It's as simple as that. If this acronym was sent to you, somebody thinks you're special and wants you in his or her life!

IMY is a phrase that is often said in real life as a standalone sentence, so don't be surprised if you see it posted online (directed to you or someone else) or in a text message with no other words or phrases accompanying it.

Variations of IMY

There are other acronym versions of IMY that can be used to intensify its meaning. These include:

• IMYSM: I Miss You So Much
• IMYSFM: I Miss You So F***ing Much
• IMYSB: I Miss You So Bad
• IMYMTA: I Miss You More Than Anything

IMYSFM is one variation that includes the F-word, so keep that in mind if you think you might want to use it yourself, but don't wish to offend anybody. You may want to stick to IMYSM, IMYSB or IMYMTA to avoid any negative misinterpretations from the recipient of your message or iMessage.

Remember that not everyone will know how to interpret these more elaborate acronym variations. If you just want to keep things simple with as few letters to interpret in the acronym as possible, sticking with IMY is always a good idea.

How to Respond to IMY

Anytime a person tells another person that they miss them, there's often hope that they feel the same. Those who do feel the same might respond with, "I miss you too."

To say this in text/chat speak, you can simply use the acronym IMYT. The T represents the word "too" after "I miss you."

If you don't miss the other person, however, then you're free to respond however you like. (Just try to be sensitive of their feelings in your response!)

Examples of How IMY and IMYT Are Used

Friend #1: "Imy!"

Friend #2: "Aw, imyt!"

The above example shows how simple these two acronyms really are when used in a typical text or chat conversation. They really need no explanation.

IMY vs. ILY

IMY is similar to the more popular acronym ILY, which stands for I Love You. The variations for ILY are also similar to the variations for IMY since it's so easy to switch out the word "miss" for "love."

Acronyms like ILYSM (I Love You So Much), ILYSFM (I Love You So F***ing Much) and ILYMTA (I Love You More Than Anything) are almost identical to the IMY variations outlined above. Of course, the use of the word "miss" or "love" will completely change the meaning of the acronym.

Before You Send an IMY Message to Someone...

Truth be told, sometimes it's just better to type "I miss you" out in plain English. Since the phrase itself is such a serious one, it's probably pretty important to you to be taken seriously when you say it, and acronyms have a way of making us appear non-serious or overly casual in our conversations.

If you really want to mean it when you tell someone you miss them, consider this before you use the acronym. Chances are they'll appreciate those three words written in full much more.