See what “IMHO” is in other dictionaries. IMHO - what does this mean? how to use when communicating on the Internet? original meaning and what does it mean now? plus a video explanation of what the word IMHO means on the Internet
Computer slang is a relatively new phenomenon, but has already become quite firmly established among advanced Internet users. Here and there in the vastness of the Internet: in chats, on forums and in personal correspondence, you come across mysterious abbreviated words. For experienced users, this is the usual language of Internet communication, but newcomers are sometimes baffled by such abbreviations. One of the most popular in Internet communication is abbreviation IMHO. What is IMHO and where do the legs of this abbreviation “grow”?
IMHO it came to us from the Western Internet, and in the original it looks like IMHO– an expression literally meaning “in my humble opinion” or “in my honest opinion” ( in my humble opinion). Over time, more “fresh” interpretations of this phrase appeared, for example, “in my terrible opinion” - in my terrible opinion.
The term IMHO initially appeared among science fiction fans, later spread throughout the Internet - and recently it has been trying to break out of the Internet and offline.
This expression is used when communicating on the Internet (on forums, chats, etc.) to express your point of view. This is a kind of synonym for the phrases “in my opinion”, “my opinion is”, “I believe”, “I think that”. IMHO this is author's personal opinion, which he expresses without imposing it on anyone and without claiming its correctness (reliability).
However, domestic Internet users became too lazy to switch the case every time to change the language when typing the abbreviation IMHO - and so it was born IMHO, which immediately acquired new interpretations. The most popular of them is “ I have an opinion, I want to voice it».
There are also tougher options: “I have an Opinion, You can’t Fuck it” and completely obscene (although what kind of censorship is on the Internet?) “I have an Opinion, You can Fuck it.” Has the right to life and version with a bit of humor- “I have an Opinion, Even if it’s Wrong.” Less known other interpretations of the abbreviation IMHO: “Individual Opinion – I’ll refuse” or “Individual Opinion of the Answer Owner.”
The use of the abbreviation IMHO in the Internet lexicon is not only allows you to communicate faster and more comfortably(after all, it’s much faster to type these four letters than to write “my point of view is ...”), but also is a sign of “advancement” network user. But for newcomers to the world of the Internet, the presence of such abbreviations is perplexing - however, over time, they too become part of the mainstream. Although there are those who fundamentally refuse to change their vocabulary and continue to use phrases like “I think that...” on the Internet.
Now you know exactly what IMHO is - don’t forget to include this word in a message on a forum or in a chat when the opportunity arises, you will be known as an “advanced user”!
What is IMHO? The correct decoding of the word is often unknown to newcomers on the Internet, although it is actively used in discussions on forums, comments and personal correspondence.
It turns out that this is one of the expressions of Internet slang that can cause misunderstanding between interlocutors, because users attribute different meanings to it.
We will talk about the intricacies of deciphering this popular abbreviation in this article.
Contents:
Where did the word come from?
The story goes that this mysterious abbreviation appeared at the suggestion of users of the FIDO social network.
To quickly communicate with each other, information technology specialists have shortened the English phrase “In My Humble Opinion,” which literally translates "In my humble opinion"- IMHO. This is the basic expression that most users in English-speaking countries mean when communicating online.
An alternative version of its origin considers the place of its “birth” to be a network for science fiction fans called Usenet.
Allegedly IMHO is an abbreviation for imhonet - either it is there or it is not.
Where is it used?
Most often, such an abbreviation is used to make it clear to interlocutors in a chat or on a forum that a person expresses his opinion, which does not pretend to be the truth.
But during his travels around the world it also acquired other meanings:
- "In My Horrible Opinion" – "In my terrible opinion";
- "In My Honest Opinion" – "According to my respected opinion".
As you can see, the last transcript indicates a manifestation of an arrogant attitude towards the interlocutor or, in general, towards all the people who will read the user’s comment.
Russian users not only replaced the letters in the abbreviation with the Cyrillic alphabet, but also came up with their own decoding options, which are distant from the original version, and not for the better.
So, when communicating with Runet users, you may come across a person who uses IMHO in this sense:
- « I have an opinion, I want to mark it";
- “I have an opinion, you can’t argue with it”.
The last option characterizes not only a person’s attitude towards opponents in a dispute, but also his cultural level as a whole.
How to find out which transcript the interlocutor had in mind? Perhaps, ask about it directly or look at his further remarks on the forum or in the chat.
In order not to find yourself in an awkward situation due to the polysemy, IMHO, it is better not to use it around strangers.
In any case, it should be reserved for online battles - in real life, the use of Internet jargon is considered inappropriate.
IMHO (IMHO, IMHO) is a word often found in forums and Internet conferences, causing confusion and vague associations for an untrained user. In fact, IMHO is the English abbreviation IMHO written in Russian letters, which stands for the phrase “In my humble opinion” - “In my humble opinion.” Typing “IMHO” on the keyboard is easier than “I think” or “I believe”; Here lies the secret of the popularity of this word. Meanwhile, the great and mighty Russian language has long allowed Runet users to decipher “IMHO” in their own way: “I have an opinion - you can’t argue with it.” Perhaps this is more correct... (IMHO.)
But the glorious path of this word does not end there. “IMHO” has already become a noun, which usually means “personal opinion,” “idea, view, belief,” or “assumption.”
A little less often you can come across another meaning of “IMHO”: a computer acronym. That is, “IMHO” is a synonym for the very definition of “acronym, abbreviation”, a generic word for all abbreviations of this type. What is "BTB"? Answer: by the way – “by the way”, i.e. an acronym. Abbreviation. Another imho from many imho.
The stress is on the second syllable, the noun “imho” is neuter and is freely inflected (“without imho”, “according to imho”). There is also a plural - “imhi”. In the composition of complex words, this component is almost not observed: lovers of experiments have not yet thought of calling a referendum or a voting poll “imhomer” or “imhomometer.” But there is already “imhoism”. A new philosophical movement, no less. In online debates, the adjectives “imhoshny” and “imhovy” – “subjective”, “personal”, “based on one’s own experience” – are thrown around. It should be noted that these epithets are not without self-confidence and aplomb (note how far we have come from the initially modest English I.M.H.O.). And the “imkhoshnik” will probably be a person with his own mind, a debater who is difficult to convince. And finally, computer pirates, working in their gloomy lairs to hack the next mega-portal or super-toy, automatically purr under their breath: “Imho-ho and a bottle of rum...”. “Imho-ho” is an interjection.
Along with the correct literary version “imho”, the colloquial “imha” (noun) is used. Less commonly, one comes across the unchangeable form “imhu” (introductory word), clearly reduced from the expression “according to my humble imhu.”
“IMHO” cannot be recognized exclusively as an attribute of written speech. I've heard people use it in conversation (again, as an introductory word). Moreover, before our eyes, a certain sworn fidoshnik “infected” with this “IMHO” an interlocutor who did not have access not only to web networks, but also to a personal computer at all.
The word “IMHO” appears very often on forums and in posts. It is clear that this is one of the “representatives” of network Internet jargon. But what does “IMHO” mean? How can you decipher this
Wikipedia suggests turning to the history of his birth. It is assumed that it began with the English phrase “In My Humble Opinion,” which can be literally translated into our great and mighty Russian as “in my humble opinion.” And if you use the abbreviation of the English words that make up this phrase, you get nothing more than four letters that make sounds, which in Russian are designated by the letters “i”, “m”, “x” and “o”.
So, the meaning of the word “IMHO” is explained by a rather long phrase. That is, a person who has expressed his opinion about something knows that there are other options for judgment. He does not insist that his point of view is the only correct one! However, he also does not want to remain silent.
This is on the one hand. But the Russian soul has always surprised foreigners. Their logic is inexplicable. When we say the word “probably,” we sometimes express not doubt or assumption, but precisely a firm conviction. The same thing often happens with the word “IMHO”.
Here’s a post a user writes on the forum: “You’re wrong, you need to act completely differently in this case!” And at the end of his speech he adds a modest “IMHO.” What does it mean? Assumption or doubt that you are right? Not at all!
Perhaps this happens precisely because some Slavs do not know the exact translation of the phrase that gave birth to the slang word. And, seeing such a turn, the wits came up with their own original way of deciphering the abbreviation, only not in English, but in Russian.
What does “IMHO” mean in the understanding of those who have a sense of humor? There are no doubts here, everything is concrete and clear. “I have an opinion - don’t challenge me!”
In fact, there are a great many ironic options for answering the question of what “IMHO” means. Basically, the first part of the transcripts is almost the same, and only the second part varies.
If you try to briefly list them, it will look something like this:
- damn you will judge;
- I'll fucking refuse;
- I want to voice it;
- albeit erroneous.
Or there are also such interpretations: “Individual opinion of the owner of the answer”; “You can’t refute a true opinion!” And some, the most firmly convinced types, are even inclined to believe that to the thorny question of what “IMHO” means, there is only one clear and correct answer: “I want to refute existing opinions!”
However, no matter how much the cynics exude their wit, this word still indicates the subjectivity rather than the objectivity of the Internet user’s statement. “IMHO” most likely acts as an analogue of the introductory words “in my opinion”, “in my judgment”, “in my opinion”, “in my experience”, “according to my observations”, “I think so”, “this is mine” personal opinion" and others. And, just as in a letter the listed expressions should be highlighted with commas, the same rules apply to “IMHO”.
It’s another matter when the question is raised about what letters to write this word in: uppercase or lowercase, Russian or English. Here, clear rules have not yet been introduced. Someone writes the entire word like the generally accepted abbreviations GES, GBDD, VUZ, using all letters in capitals. Others write the entire word, and some even use English. But all this is not the point.
Not only the history of the origin of the word is interesting, but also its path to the common Internet user. There is an opinion that the first time it was used was in a science fiction film. From there, the abbreviation was picked up by professional programmers of the FIDO network, and only then this word took its step towards universal popularity, firmly entering the speech of all other layers of Internet society.
Those who stand up for the purity of the great and mighty Russian when they have to read the correspondence of today's youth. “YapaTstolom”, “laughing”, “peace-noki” and other “newly formed” popular words. So, “IMHO” against their background looks like just a modest abbreviation of a long phrase, a kind of tracing paper of an English abbreviation.
IMHO what does this mean in Internet language? In virtual communications - social networks, forums, instant messengers - slang is often used. It allows you to speed up the communication process, because it is much easier to type a letter abbreviation on the keyboard than a phrase. However, buzzwords that have appeared in everyday life are often used incorrectly.
You can find out what the word IMHO means by first deciphering it.
IMHO what does this mean, deciphering the word
Of the abbreviations used on the Internet, IMHO one of the most popular. It owes its appearance to the Americans; our compatriots did not translate the abbreviation into their native language, they simply replaced the English letters with Russian ones. What does IMHO mean on forums, in comments to videos or news? Decoding the letter combination IMHO is available in any English textbook. The Americans and the British have a stable expression akin to the Russian “as I dare to believe.” In the English manner it sounds: “in my humble opinion,” or “In My Humble Opinion.” Guests of Internet resources leave this abbreviation in reviews, comments, the beginning or end of their thoughts, it does not matter. Over time, our domestic interpretation of the abbreviation began to take on new meanings. Today, the “modesty” in its composition has diminished. The lexeme is no longer so much a delicate form of a person admitting that he may be wrong, but rather a categorical summary of “I think so.” It's impossible to convince me otherwise. Don't even try. Therefore, the question “what does IMHO mean in the comments” can be safely answered: a kind of linguistic and semantic marker of the steadfastness of the author’s position.
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Options for using IMHO in Russian
Since such a word has appeared, it must be used correctly. The emphasis is on the second syllable. It is used as an introductory construction, and a neuter noun, inflected by case: “no imha”, “about imha”, etc. It is even used in the plural - “your imhi doesn’t bother me.” The lexeme also plays the role of an adjective. The Russian language is great and powerful! “In my opinion”, “the dude’s position”, etc. The “literary” version of “IMHO” has recently been joined by the colloquial version – “IMHO”.
Traditional philology looks at such verbiage with the calmness of a boa constrictor. Since everything is superficial, the tongue will shake off the excess on its own. Just give it time.
Interesting! The popular abbreviation is not always used in full. There is a more concise form of it. Thus, journalists from some men's magazines use only the first two letters - IM.
Stand your ground, or IMHO
So, the letter combination IMHO, what does it mean today in Russian? During verbal Internet battles, it emphasizes the desire of the top starter to defend his point of view to the end. He will not compromise. He is the most authoritative expert on the issue under discussion. A halo of truth shines above his head, understand your insignificance, bend your knees and do not object to the icon of knowledge! Used in this sense, IMHO serves as a clear indicator of the level of mentality of the author of the topic and his manner of conducting discussions.
Test: what do you know about the Russian army?
Why was the modest American IMHO replaced by the authoritarian IMHO when used by Russian users? Can this phenomenon be explained by the originality of the Russian character or by arbitrary distortion due to the widespread prevalence of the lexeme on the vastness of the global web? Perhaps the buzzword was first used for a long time, and only then translated into Russian? As in a typical case for the Russian mentality, when a new instrument is first broken, and only then they begin to study the instructions for it.
It is difficult to answer these questions; all that remains is to state the facts. Today, IMHO serves as a bullet point that people want to put in discussions or disputes. As a rule, young authors suffer from this. They are studying or have recently graduated from school and consider themselves unsurpassed experts on any issue. As soon as an adult hints to them that they are wrong, he will immediately be accused of ageism and blacklisted.
Why use IMHO?
There is an opinion that the abbreviation was invented by Fidonet users. This was the name of a specialized network for software developers. The work of programmers takes a lot of time, every minute counts, the deadline cannot be violated. So they came up with short symbols to make typing faster.
The intriguing abbreviation has another version of its origin. It could have appeared because of the word “imhonet”, which was coined by gamers who prefer fantasy games.