Have you seen the term 'asl' appear on YouTube, Facebook, TikTok or another social media platform and need to know what it means? The term 'asl' has an updated meaning to what it used to mean on social media. This post unpacks the meaning and origin behind the word.
Meaning
The term 'asl' is a common text-based abbreviation that is used to mean “as hell”. The term can be used to emphasize a user's point, and it adds emphasis to the meaning of what was said right before the expression appears.
Even though the term used to be internet shorthand for 'age, sex, location', this particular meaning of the word is considered less popular today.
Someone can be annoyed, hungry or angry 'asl' in a status or casual conversation.
The point of the expression as hell is to add emphasis to what a person has already said. The literal meaning of the term 'asl' can be translated to mean “very much”.
While this is not common, the term 'ASL' can also be common, accepted shorthand for “American Sign Language” in contextually appropriate discussions.
Example Usage
“Let's just hope that the White Castle is right around the corner. Me, Kumar and Jake are hungry asl right now.”
“Did you hear the story about the old lady who broke into the restaurant at two in the morning? She must have been hungry asl to go through the ceiling to get into the place.”
“You should post those pictures of his mother in a swimsuit at the water park. He's going to be mad asl when he sees it.”
“Call his parents, they're going to be mad asl when they see what he did to the swimming pool with his friends.”
Origin
The text-based abbreviation 'asl' has its origins in the late 1990s to early 2000s.
When it first appeared around 1998, the acronym 'asl' was initially used as a short, text-based acronym to ask people for their personal details: age, sex and location.
As internet conversation evolved, later use of the term would come to mean “as hell” instead of its earlier meaning.
The term “as hell” has been in popular use within the English language since at least the 1920s, but its abbreviation is a modern invention of the internet age. The updated, modern use of 'asl' can attribute its use to social media platforms like TikTok where it has become commonplace.
Younger internet users no longer ask for age, sex or location in conversation, but instead use this term to place emphasis or focus on what they say.
Phrases Similar to asl
- As sin
- Like hell
- Like heck
Phrases Opposite to asl
- N/a
What is the Correct Saying?
- asl
- Asl
Ways People May Say asl Incorrectly
If you refer to older forums and message boards from the 1990s and 2000s, then you might still see the term 'asl' appear as a shorter way to ask people for their age, sex or location. The term still appears on dating websites and chatrooms this way, but rarely anywhere else.
It can be considered impolite or forward to ask someone for their asl in conversation, especially if this information appears on their public profile.
While age, sex and location used to be the correct way to use the expression 'asl', this is no longer the case today.
Acceptable Ways to Phrase asl
The correct way to use the term 'asl' is as an abbreviation for the term “as hell”.
The term 'asl' is mostly used to add emphasis to what has been said, or to come back to a specific point with emphasis.
'Asl' is added to a sentence in the same way that the longer expression would be written out. The usage of this expression is just a shorter way to save time and still say the same thing.
The term 'asl' can also stand for “American Sign Language”, though this is clear from the context of the sentence.