tone tags / tone indicators

explanation, information, etc as well as a masterlist of them

made by @ranlaugh on twitter - refer to the last button for some notes from me
last updated november 24th 2021

here is a link to a different tone indicator carrd if you'd like to give it a look

what is tone?
tone is what a phrase or statement means or comes across as despite what it's actually saying. examples of tone could be serious, joking, lighthearted, etc.

what are tone tags?
tone tags / tone indicators are things you can include with text to indicate what the tone of it is.

why are they used?
some people have difficulty picking up on tone. communicating through text only makes this harder due to lack of audio and physical clues (voice inflection, body language, facial expressions, etc.) tagging what tone you are using can be very helpful for others understanding of what you're saying, clarification, avoiding miscommunications, etc.

when/where should they be used?
they can be used any time or place you may be communicating through text.

here is a definition of tone tags on urban dictionary. urban dictionary may not always necessarily be a reliable source but this definition is correct and also put simply.

here is an article from the new york times. it talks about a lot of tone tag related things. what they are, discourse surrounding them, some things similar to tone indicators that have been used in the past, etc.

some other things to keep in mind

do not mock the use of tone tags. you may not need them but some people do. not everyone can tell when something is a joke, etc. just be nice about it.

using a tone tag isn't an excuse to be mean. you can't say something not cool and then put /j (joking) after it to get away with it. be nice.

try to put tone tag(s) in your original post. if you comment it underneath your original post not everyone will see it.

do not purposefully use tone tags incorrectly "as a joke", to confuse people, etc. the point of tone tags is to clarify.

you do not have to use all these tone tags. this carrd has a lot. you may not think all of them are helpful for you personally and that's ok. use what you would like. respect others using what they like.

use tone tags however feels right to you. sometimes I use multiple, sometimes only one, sometimes none at all. just do what feels right. it will probably be fine. if someone asks for clarification just clarify.

all the tone tags I'm aware of and their meanings

there is a page with explanations and examples after this one just incase anyone wants / needs them

/j = joking
/hj = half joking
/s or /sarc = sarcastic / sarcasm
/srs = serious
/nsrs = not serious
/lh = light hearted
/g or /gen = genuine / genuine question
/ij = inside joke
/ref = reference
/t = teasing
/nm = not mad
/lu = a little upset
/nf = not forced
/nbh = nobody here
/nsb = not subtweeting
/nay = not at you
/ay = at you
/nbr = not being rude
/ot = off topic
/th = threat
/cb = clickbait
/f = fake
/q = quote
/l or /ly = lyrics
/c = copypasta
/m = metaphor / metaphorically
/li = literal / literally
/rt or /rh = rhetorical question
/hyp = hyperbole
/ex = exaggeration
/p = platonic
/r = romantic
/a = alterous
/sx or /x = sexual intent
/nsx or /ns = non-sexual intent
/pc or /pos = positive connotation
/nc or /neg = negative connotation
/neu = neutral / neutral connotation

explanations, examples, etc

anything underlined is a link to either the source the quote is from or a link to a definition of that word. quotes in examples are all things I made up. I hope everything makes sense :)

the format will be...
tag = meaning - definition / explanation of word itself (if included)
use (when they would be used, etc)
example
any other explaning or things I want to say

/j = joking
used when saying something in a joking manner
"so I'm pretty much the president of twitter /j"

-

/hj = half joking
used when saying something that is kind of a joke but kind of serious
"well I am usually right /hj"
I would like to think I am correct a fair amount but I also am not trying to be cocky so I would be half joking.

-

/s or /sarc = sarcastic / sarcasm - "sarcasm refers to the use of words that mean the opposite of what you really want to say"
used when being sarcastic
"I really love feeling sad /sarc"
I don't actually like to feel sad. saying so was sarcasm.

-

/srs = serious
used when saying something you really mean
"I really appreciate you /srs"

-

/nsrs = not serious
used when saying something not too seriously
"you're the worst /nsrs"

-

/lh = lighthearted - "free from care, or seriousness"
used when saying something lightheartedly
"hey leave me out of this /lh"
I would say something like this if my friends were having a silly argument and were trying to ask me my opinion on it.

-

/g or /gen = genuine - "authentic; real"
used when saying something genuinely or when asking a legitimate question
"I'm proud of you /g" or "are you sure about that? /gen"

-

/ij = inside joke - "a joke that is understood only by people with special knowledge about something" - typically something only a small and / or specific group of people are aware of - those outside of the group will probably be confused by it or simply not find it funny in the same way those within the group do
used when saying an inside joke
"ah my glubbies /ij"

-

/ref = reference - typically to media (movies, tv, music, etc)
used when referencing something
"memento mori /ref"

-

/t = teasing - "to irritate or provoke... often playfully"
used when teasing someone
"ok sure mr 'idk what I'm doing' /t"

-

/nm = not mad
to indicate you are not actually mad or upset about something
"ouch I really related there /nm"

-

/lu = a little upset
used when upset about something but not too upset
"oh that sucks /lu"

original (as far as I'm aware) creation and explanation tweet (includes example)

-

/nf = not forced
used when saying to do something or when asking someone to do something
"retweet this /nf"

-

/nbh = nobody here
used when tweeting something vague to assure followers it is not indirectly to or about them
"sometimes people say things that make me so upset /nbh"

-

/nst = not subtweeting
used to assure people you aren't subtweeting them - a subtweet is a tweet "that refers to a particular user without directly mentioning them"
"wow I really dislike (whatever thing you dislike) /nst"
you are just saying you don't like that thing. no one tweeted about that thing making you think to tweet that you dislike it. you're just making a general statement.

original (as far as I'm aware) creation and explanation tweet

-

/nay = not at you
used when saying something but not meaning it at the person you are responding to
someone quote retweets something you dislike with "look at this" and you respond with "no thank you /nay"
you would be saying no thank you to whatever they quote retweeted. not no thank you to them saying to look at it.

original (as far as I'm aware) creation and explanation tweet

-

/ay = at you
used to make the person aware you are addressing them

-

/nbr = not being rude
used when saying something that may seem rude but isn't meant to be rude
"I don't think you're doing that right /nbr"
in that sitiuation I would probably just be trying to be helpful by saying that they weren't doing something correctly. I want to make sure they know I was just trying to help not trying to be mean.

-

/ot = off topic
used when saying something that isn't directly related to what was being discussed

-

/th = threat - "an expression of intention to inflict evil, injury, or damage"
used when giving a threat
"if you don't stop I will block you /th"

-

/cb = clickbait - "a form of false advertisement... designed to attract attention"
used when using clickbait
"omg you have to look at this it will change your life /cb"

-

/f = fake
used when saying or referring to something not real
someone could post a photo that looks like a screenshot of a tweet but really it has been edited to say something different they would caption it with "/f"

-

/q = quote
used when quoting something or someone
"oh yes the past can hurt but the way I see it you can either run from it or you can learn from it /q"

-

/l or /ly = lyrics
used when quoting specifically song lyrics
"I say the wrong shit at the right times /ly"

-

/c = copypasta - "a block of text which is copied and pasted across the internet"
used when using a copypasta
"[idols name] do your shoes need shining? [idols name] [idols name] please Do you need coffee? Come back PLEASE Dont go away from me [idols name] please /c"

-

/m = metaphor - "a figure of speech in which a term or phrase is applied to something to which it is not literally applicable in order to suggest a resemblance"
used when saying something metaphorically
"he is a shining star /m"
he is not actually a star. he is being compared to one.

-

/li = literal - "following the words of the original very closely and exactly"
used when saying something literally
"wowie I don't like that /li"
I would be saying that when I do actually dislike something.

-

/rt or /rh = rhetorical / rhetorical question - "a question asked in order to create a dramatic effect or to make a point rather than to get an answer"
used when saying or asking something rhetorically
"who cares? /rt" or "who cares? /rh"
rt can stand for retweet on twitter. because of that I prefer /rh but do whatever you want really.

-

/hyp = hyperbole - "exaggerated statements or claims not meant to be taken literally"
used when using a hyperbole
"I have a million things to do today /hyp"
I do not actually have to do one million things today. I was just meaning I have a lot of things to do today.

-

/ex = exaggeration - "the action of making statements that represent something as better or worse than it really is"
used when exaggerating
"what took you so long? I was waiting forever /ex"

-

/p = platonic - a friendship type of love, care, intimacy, etc
used when saying something with platonic intentions
"I love you /p"

-

/r = romantic - a more than friendship type of love, care, intimacy, etc; typically of partners
used when saying something with romantic intentions
"I love you /r"

-

/a = alterous - "an attraction best described as wanting emotional closeness without necessarily being (at all or entirely) platonic and/or romantic"
used when saying something with alterous intentions
"I love you /a"

-

/sx or /x = sexual intent
used when meaning something in a sexual way

-

/nsx or /ns = non-sexual intent
used when meaning something in a not sexual way

-

/pos or /pc = positive / positive connotation
used when saying something and meaning it in a positive way
"oh my goodness I'm going to cry /pos"
implies I'm crying for a happy reason

-

/neg or /nc = negative / negative connotation
used when saying something and meaning it in a negative way
"oh my goodness I'm going to cry /neg"
implies I'm crying for an upsetting reason

-

/neu = neutral / neutral connotation
used to show what you are saying is neutral or that you feel indifferent about it
"oh yeah I don't care /neu"
you don't care about something but not in a mean or negative way - you are just indifferent

from ranlaugh (the creator of this carrd)

feel free to share this carrd. no need to ask me for permission. the point is for the information to be shared.

I am no longer adding much to this carrd very often. that being said please do let me know if there are any errors whether that be spelling, grammar, with any of the information itself, with any of the links, etc.

I didn't come up with the concept of tone tags. I didn't invent them. just because I made this carrd doesn't make me the face of tone tags or anything like that. I'm just spreading information that I think is helpful. please take tone tags as they are without me as a person or account affecting that.

thank you !