French abbreviations: 75+ texting and formal examples with rules and practice

Key takeaways

• French abbreviations split into four useful groups: texting shortcuts, formal written forms, everyday public signs, and acronyms or initialisms.
• Texting abbreviations like mdr, jsp, stp, and tkt belong in casual chats, not formal emails.
• Formal abbreviations like M., Mme, c.-à-d., n°, and p. ex. follow stricter typographical conventions governed by French style guides.
• A French tutor helps you practice the social difference between a message to a friend, a landlord, a professor, and a hiring manager.

 

French abbreviations appear in text messages, emails, forms, apartment ads, class notes, and workplace documents. The fastest way to read them is to separate casual texting shortcuts like bjr from formal abbreviations like M., Mme, c.-à-d., and n°.

The tricky part is not memorizing the short forms. It is knowing which ones belong in which situation, because using slt in a cover letter or Veuillez agréer in a group chat will confuse your reader instantly. If you have ever wondered whether stp is too casual for a landlord or whether p.j. belongs in your email sign-off, that is exactly the kind of judgment call a French teacher can help you settle before you send the message.

What are the main types of French abbreviations?

French abbreviations fall into texting shortcuts, formal abbreviations, titles, public sign abbreviations, acronyms, and initialisms. Learn the setting first, then memorize the short form.

Here is the quick map:

Type	French example	Full form	English meaning	Best setting
Texting	bjr	bonjour	hello	friends, quick chats
Texting	mdr	mort de rire	laughing hard	informal messages
Polite texting	stp	s’il te plaît	please	friends, family
Formal title	M.	Monsieur	Mr., Sir	letters, forms
Formal title	Mme	Madame	Ms., Mrs., Madam	letters, forms
Formal phrase	c.-à-d.	c’est-à-dire	that is to say	notes, formal writing
Number label	n°	numéro	number	forms, addresses
Initialism	SNCF	Société nationale des chemins de fer français	French national rail company	stations, travel

French abbreviations save space, but they also signal tone. A message that starts with slt sounds relaxed. A message that starts with Madame, sounds formal. If you mix the two registers in one message, you sound confused rather than casual or polite.

If you already know basic French greetings, abbreviations become easier because many short forms come from common phrases.

What French texting abbreviations should you know first?

Start with texting abbreviations that shorten greetings, laughter, questions, and common reactions. These are the forms you will meet in chats, comments, group messages, and quick plans.

French texting abbreviations work by phonetic compression (replacing syllables with single letters or numbers that sound like the original) and by dropping vowels. For instance, bjr drops the vowels from bonjour, while dem1 replaces the final syllable -main with the number 1 because un sounds close to -ain. Once you understand these two patterns, you can decode new abbreviations you have not memorized.

The table below gathers common forms. The abbreviations themselves are widely documented across French SMS reference lists. They are organized here with pronunciation approximations and example sentences drawn from how they actually appear in casual French writing.

Abbreviation	Full French	Pronunciation hint	English meaning	Example sentence
bjr	bonjour	bon-zhoor	hello	Bjr, ça va ?
bsr	bonsoir	bon-swahr	good evening	Bsr, tu es libre ?
slt	salut	sah-loo	hi, bye	Slt, à demain.
cc	coucou	koo-koo	hey	Cc, tu fais quoi ?
svp	s’il vous plaît	seel voo pleh	please (formal)	Envoyez-moi ça svp.
stp	s’il te plaît	seel tuh pleh	please (informal)	Appelle-moi stp.
dsl	désolé	day-zo-lay	sorry	Dsl, je suis en retard.
mdr	mort de rire	mor duh reer	lol	Mdr, trop drôle.
ptdr	pété de rire	peh-tay duh reer	laughing hard	Ptdr, j’en peux plus.
jpp	j’en peux plus	zhahn puh ploo	I’m done, I can’t	Jpp de ce film.
jsp	je ne sais pas	zhuh nuh seh pah	I don’t know	Jsp, on verra.
tkt	t’inquiète	tan-kyet	don’t worry	Tkt, ça va aller.
pk	pourquoi	poor-kwah	why	Pk tu pars ?
pcq	parce que	pars kuh	because	Je pars pcq je travaille.
qd	quand	kahn	when	Tu arrives qd ?
qqn	quelqu’un	kel-kuhn	someone	Qqn a mon sac ?
qqch	quelque chose	kel-kuh shoz	something	Tu veux qqch ?
bcp	beaucoup	bo-koo	a lot	Merci bcp.
rdv	rendez-vous	rahn-day-voo	appointment, meeting	Rdv à 18 h.
msg	message	meh-sazh	message	J’ai vu ton msg.
pb	problème	pro-blem	problem	Pas de pb.
a+	à plus	ah ploos	see you later	A+, bonne soirée.
à tt	à tout à l’heure	ah toot ah luhr	see you soon today	À tt au café.
dem1	demain	duh-man	tomorrow	On se voit dem1.
auj	aujourd’hui	oh-zhoor-dwee	today	Auj, je suis pris.
mtn	maintenant	mant-nahn	now	Je pars mtn.
pr	pour	poor	for	C’est pr toi.
avc	avec	ah-vek	with	Je viens avc Paul.
tt	tout	too	all, very	C’est tt bon.
vrmt	vraiment	vreh-mahn	really	C’est vrmt sympa.
grave	grave	grahv	seriously, very	C’est grave bien.
koi	quoi	kwah	what	Tu fais koi ?
ki	qui	kee	who	Ki vient ?
ct	c’était	seh-teh	it was	Ct super.
g	j’ai	zhay	I have	G faim.
chui	je suis	shwee	I am	Chui là.

Do not copy every shortcut into your own messages right away. Start with stp, svp, mdr, tkt, jsp, rdv, and bcp, since these appear often and rarely confuse the reader.

The real challenge with texting abbreviations is not knowing what they mean. It is hearing them in your head with correct French pronunciation so you can also use the full phrase in conversation. An online French teacher can read a message thread with you, say each full form aloud, and help you build the reflex of expanding abbreviations into spoken sentences.

Which formal French abbreviations belong in emails and documents?

Formal French abbreviations appear in letters, administrative forms, resumes, academic notes, invoices, and business emails. Use them sparingly, and avoid texting shortcuts in professional writing.

French formal abbreviations follow typographical conventions set out in style guides. In standard usage, M. and MM. take periods, while Mme and Mmes appear without periods. French acronyms also normally use capital letters without periods.

The Académie française’s online dictionary confirms n° as the standard abbreviation for numéro and records the use of the superscript o after the letter n.

The following table uses these conventions. Titles and standard abbreviations are well established in French administrative and publishing practice. Where items are straightforward (like etc. for et cetera or tél. for téléphone), no additional citation is needed because these are transparent shortenings that match their full form.

Abbreviation	Full French	English meaning	Example
M.	Monsieur	Mr., Sir	M. Dupont
MM.	Messieurs	Gentlemen, Messrs.	MM. Bernard et Petit
Mme	Madame	Ms., Mrs., Madam	Mme Lefèvre
Mmes	Mesdames	Ladies, Mesdames	Mmes Durand et Martin
Mlle	Mademoiselle	Miss	Mlle Robert
Dr	Docteur	Doctor	Dr Moreau
Me	Maître	legal title for a lawyer or notary	Me Garnier
Pr	Professeur	Professor	Pr Lemoine
p. ex.	par exemple	for example	p. ex., lundi ou mardi
c.-à-d.	c’est-à-dire	that is to say	c.-à-d. avant midi
etc.	et cetera	and so on	les livres, cahiers, etc.
n°	numéro	number	dossier n° 42
tél.	téléphone	phone	Tél. : 01 00 00 00 00
adr.	adresse	address	Adr. : 12 rue Victor Hugo
réf.	référence	reference	Réf. : commande 815
obj.	objet	subject	Obj. : demande de stage
p.j.	pièce jointe	attachment	P.j. : CV
R.-V.	rendez-vous	appointment	R.-V. confirmé
av.	avenue	avenue	av. de la République
bd	boulevard	boulevard	bd Saint-Michel
r.	rue	street	r. des Écoles
app.	appartement	apartment	app. 3B
env.	environ	about, around	env. 20 minutes
min.	minute	minute	15 min.
h	heure	hour, time marker	14 h 30

In formal emails, write the full word when you are unsure. Veuillez trouver mon CV en pièce jointe sounds smoother than a heavy line full of shortened forms. For email openings and closings, the guide to how to write an email in French gives more complete phrases.

Learners often use p.j. correctly in the subject line but then switch to bjr in the body, which immediately undermines the professional tone they set up. If you are applying for jobs, renting an apartment, or writing to a university in France, have a French language tutor review your actual draft before you send it. That kind of situation-specific correction is hard to get from a grammar app.

Which French acronyms and initialisms appear in daily life?

French acronyms and initialisms name institutions, services, exams, transport systems, and document types. You will see them on signs, forms, job listings, and the news. Read the full phrase once, then learn the short form.

An important distinction: an acronym is a shortened form pronounced as a single word, like OTAN (oh-tahn, the French name for NATO). An initialism is spelled out letter by letter, like SNCF (ess-enn-say-eff) or RATP (air-ah-tay-pay). In French, both types normally omit periods between letters.

This distinction matters for pronunciation. When you encounter SNCF in conversation, French speakers say each letter individually: ess-enn-say-eff. But when you encounter OTAN, they say it as one word: oh-tahn. If you pronounce an initialism as a word or spell out an acronym letter by letter, you will sound unfamiliar with the term.

For transport terms, the operators themselves use these short forms as their official names. The SNCF identifies itself as Société nationale des chemins de fer français on its corporate site. The RATP describes itself as the Régie autonome des transports parisiens.

For employment terms, French labor law defines the contrat à durée déterminée (CDD) and contrat à durée indéterminée (CDI) as the two main contract types.

Short form	Type	Full French	English meaning	Where you see it
SNCF	Initialism (ess-enn-say-eff)	Société nationale des chemins de fer français	French national rail company	train stations
RATP	Initialism (air-ah-tay-pay)	Régie autonome des transports parisiens	Paris public transit operator	Paris transport
TGV	Initialism (tay-zhay-vay)	train à grande vitesse	high speed train	tickets, stations
TER	Initialism (tay-uh-air)	transport express régional	regional train	regional travel
RER	Initialism (air-uh-air)	réseau express régional	regional express network	Paris area transit
OTAN	Acronym (oh-tahn)	Organisation du traité de l’Atlantique nord	NATO	news, politics
SMIC	Acronym (smeek)	salaire minimum interprofessionnel de croissance	minimum wage	work, news
CV	Initialism (say-vay)	curriculum vitae	resume	job applications
CDD	Initialism (say-day-day)	contrat à durée déterminée	fixed term contract	work documents
CDI	Initialism (say-day-ee)	contrat à durée indéterminée	open ended contract	job ads
TVA	Initialism (tay-vay-ah)	taxe sur la valeur ajoutée	value added tax	receipts, invoices
SAV	Initialism (ess-ah-vay)	service après-vente	after sales service	stores
BD	Initialism (bay-day)	bande dessinée	comic book	bookstores
BTS	Initialism (bay-tay-ess)	brevet de technicien supérieur	two year higher technical diploma	school
BAC	Acronym (bahk)	baccalauréat	French secondary school exam	education
DELF	Acronym (delf)	diplôme d’études en langue française	French language diploma	French exams
DALF	Acronym (dalf)	diplôme approfondi de langue française	advanced French diploma	French exams
UE	Initialism (oo-uh)	Union européenne	European Union	news, forms
ONU	Acronym (oh-noo)	Organisation des Nations unies	United Nations	news
JO	Initialism (zhee-oh)	Jeux olympiques	Olympic Games	sports news
HLM	Initialism (ahsh-ell-emm)	habitation à loyer modéré	subsidized housing	housing ads
PME	Initialism (pay-emm-uh)	petite ou moyenne entreprise	small or medium sized business	business
RH	Initialism (air-ahsh)	ressources humaines	human resources	work emails
RIB	Acronym (reeb)	relevé d’identité bancaire	bank details document	banking

For business French, CV, CDD, CDI, RH, PME, and TVA matter more than playful texting forms.

If you are preparing for a French proficiency exam, you should also recognize DELF and DALF since these acronyms appear on test registration pages and certificates.

When these short forms come up in conversation or in a listening exercise and you freeze, that is a sign to practice them aloud. A French tutoring session focused on real-world documents, like a job listing full of CDD, CDI, RH, and SMIC, will help you decode and discuss them in context.

What rules help you write French abbreviations correctly?

The safest rule is simple: use texting abbreviations only in casual writing, and use formal abbreviations only when the reader expects them. If the message affects work, housing, school, money, or immigration, choose the full form unless the abbreviation is standard on the form.

Use these rules as a checklist:

• Match the relationship.

Write stp to a friend, but s’il vous plaît or svp to someone you do not know well.

• Do not mix texting style with formal openings.

Bonjour Mme, dsl pour le retard feels mismatched. Write Bonjour Madame, je suis désolé pour le retard.

• Use title abbreviations with their correct punctuation.

M. takes a period because it is a true truncation (the word is cut short). Mme does not take a period because the last letter of the abbreviation matches the last letter of Madame. This rule, where contractions that end with the final letter of the full word omit the period, is standard in French typography.

• Do not add periods inside most acronyms and initialisms.

Write SNCF, RATP, OTAN, not S.N.C.F. Modern French convention omits the periods.

• Know whether to say it as a word or spell it out.

OTAN is pronounced as one word (oh-tahn). SNCF is spelled out letter by letter (ess-enn-say-eff). If you are unsure, listen to a French speaker say it once. This is one reason practicing with a private French lessons tutor pays off, because you hear the right pronunciation in real time.

• Say the full phrase during speaking practice.

If you see c.-à-d., read c’est-à-dire. If you see rdv, say rendez-vous. This trains your ear for conversation, not just your eye for reading.

• Keep accents in full forms.

The abbreviation c.-à-d. points to c’est-à-dire, not cest a dire. Accent marks matter in polished writing. If you need a refresher on when and where French accents appear, the guide on French alphabet covers the accent system.

If grammar accuracy is your weak spot, shorten less. A clear full sentence beats a clever abbreviation with the wrong tone.

These rules are straightforward on paper, but in practice, learners trip over edge cases: is svp acceptable at the end of an email to a colleague you have met, or does it sound impatient? A French tutor online lets you bring your actual messages and get a straight answer rather than guessing.

How do French abbreviations work in real messages?

French abbreviations make sense when you see them inside full messages. The same idea changes a lot between a friend text, a polite message, and a formal email.

Casual friend chat

French: Slt, t dispo mtn ? J’ai un pb avec le devoir. Tu peux m’aider stp ?

Natural full version: Salut, tu es disponible maintenant ? J’ai un problème avec le devoir. Tu peux m’aider s’il te plaît ?

English: Hi, are you free now? I have a problem with the homework. Please help me?

Polite message to a neighbor

French: Bonjour, avez-vous un rdv possible demain ? Merci bcp.

Better polished version: Bonjour, auriez-vous un rendez-vous possible demain ? Merci beaucoup.

English: Hello, would you have an appointment available tomorrow? Thank you very much.

Formal email to a recruiter

French: Madame, veuillez trouver mon CV en p.j. Réf. : offre assistant commercial.

Fuller version: Madame, veuillez trouver mon CV en pièce jointe. Référence : offre assistant commercial.

English: Madam, please find my resume attached. Reference: sales assistant job posting.

Apartment ad

French: App. 2 pièces, 35 m², 3e étage, proche métro, tél. après 18 h.

English: Two room apartment, 35 square meters, third floor, near metro, phone after 6 p.m.

Class notes

French: Ex. : verbes en -er. P. ex. : parler, aimer, regarder. À revoir pr lundi.

Fuller version: Exemple : verbes en -er. Par exemple : parler, aimer, regarder. À revoir pour lundi.

English: Example: verbs ending in -er. For example: to speak, to love, to watch. Review for Monday.

If your goal is speaking, do not stop at decoding. Read each full version aloud and then make a new message with your own schedule, work, or study details. For more live sentence practice, French conversation practice will help you turn written shortcuts into spoken French.

The pattern to notice across these five examples: as the relationship gets more distant, abbreviations get fewer and more standardized. That gradient is what learners struggle with most, and it is the exact kind of judgment that comes from practicing with a real person who speaks French natively.

Put your French abbreviations to work

Knowing 75+ French abbreviations is useful. Knowing when to use each one, and when to write the full phrase instead, is what makes your French sound like it belongs in the conversation.

The gap between reading abbreviations and using them correctly in your own writing is a register problem, not a vocabulary problem. A tutor who sees your actual texts, emails, or cover letters can point out where your tone shifts feel awkward, whether you are overusing stp with a professor or writing out rendez-vous where everyone else writes rdv.

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FAQ

What does mdr mean in French texting?

Mdr stands for mort de rire, meaning “dying of laughter.” It is the French equivalent of “lol.” Use it with friends only, never in formal writing.

Is bjr rude in French?

Bjr is not rude between friends, but it feels abrupt in a first message or anything professional. Use the full bonjour whenever you are not sure of the relationship.

What is the abbreviation for Monsieur in French?

The abbreviation for Monsieur is M. with a period. Mme for Madame does not take a period because its final letter matches the final letter of the full word.

What is the difference between a French acronym and an initialism?

An acronym is pronounced as a single word, like OTAN (oh-tahn) or SMIC (smeek). An initialism is spelled out letter by letter, like SNCF (ess-enn-say-eff) or TGV (tay-zhay-vay). Both types are written in capitals without periods in modern French.

Should I use French abbreviations in work emails?

Use only standard formal abbreviations such as M., Mme, n°, réf., or p.j. at work. Texting forms like slt, dsl, bjr, and mdr do not belong in professional communication.