{"id":350863,"date":"2021-10-10T14:00:00","date_gmt":"2021-10-10T11:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/what-does-tbh-mean-and-how-do-you-use-it\/"},"modified":"2021-10-10T14:00:00","modified_gmt":"2021-10-10T11:00:00","slug":"what-does-tbh-mean-and-how-do-you-use-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/what-does-tbh-mean-and-how-do-you-use-it\/","title":{"rendered":"#What Does \u201cTBH\u201d Mean, and How Do You Use It?"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_84 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a2a6d95e81a9\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a2a6d95e81a9\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/what-does-tbh-mean-and-how-do-you-use-it\/#%E2%80%9CTo_Be_Honest%E2%80%9D_or_%E2%80%9CTo_Be_Heard%E2%80%9D\" >\u201cTo Be Honest\u201d or \u201cTo Be Heard\u201d<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/what-does-tbh-mean-and-how-do-you-use-it\/#From_TBH_and_Back_Again\" >From TBH and Back Again<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/what-does-tbh-mean-and-how-do-you-use-it\/#How_to_Use_TBH\" >How to Use TBH<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<p><strong>&#8220;#What Does \u201cTBH\u201d Mean, and How Do You Use It?&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<div>\n<!-- UNCACHED CONTENT --><\/p>\n<figure style=\"width: 1200px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"type:primaryImage size-full wp-image-749178\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/the-letters-22TBH22-in-a-big-comic-styled-font.jpeg?width=398&amp;trim=1,1&amp;bg-color=000&amp;pad=1,1 400w, https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/the-letters-22TBH22-in-a-big-comic-styled-font.jpeg?width=1198&amp;trim=1,1&amp;bg-color=000&amp;pad=1,1 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, 400w, 1200w\" src=\"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/the-letters-22TBH22-in-a-big-comic-styled-font.jpeg?width=1198&amp;trim=1,1&amp;bg-color=000&amp;pad=1,1\" alt=\"The letters &quot;TBH&quot; in a big, comic-styled font\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\" onload=\"pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\" onerror=\"this.onerror=null;pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><span class=\"type:primaryImage imagecredit\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.shutterstock.com\/image-vector\/abbreviation-tbh-be-honest-retro-comic-1171334563\">acidmit\/Shutterstock.com<\/a><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>You\u2019ve probably seen people throwing around the phrase \u201cTBH,\u201d but what does it mean? This expression has been around for quite a while, but its meaning has changed somewhat over time.<\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"%E2%80%9CTo_Be_Honest%E2%80%9D_or_%E2%80%9CTo_Be_Heard%E2%80%9D\"><\/span>\u201cTo Be Honest\u201d or \u201cTo Be Heard\u201d<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>In most situations, TBH is used as a direct abbreviation for \u201cto be honest.\u201d\u00a0It\u2019s an initialism that gained traction in the late 90s or early 2000s, and its origins are closely associated with internet forums, internet relay chat (IRC), and text-message culture.<\/p>\n<p>TBH is usually\u00a0placed at the beginning or the end of a sentence to convey a feeling of frankness. If someone wants to be candid about an opinion, they could say \u201cTBH, I hate video <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/game\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"7\" title=\"Game\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">game<\/a>s.\u201d Of course, TBH can also be used as a tool for bluntness, flattery, or insult. You could lift somebody up with a comment like \u201cTBH, you\u2019re a strong and genuine person\u201d or bring them down with \u201cTBH, I hate your taste in <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/watch-movies-tv-seriess\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"8\" title=\"Watch Movies &amp; TV Series\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">movies<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Seems pretty straightforward, right? Well, TBH lives a secret life among teenagers. Some kids understand TBH as an abbreviation for \u201cto be heard\u201d\u2014a catchall term for <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/social-mediaa\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"1\" title=\"Social Media\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">social<\/a> interactions that are confessional in nature.<\/p>\n<p>There\u2019s even a genre of social media posts called \u201c<a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.businessinsider.com\/what-does-tbh-mean-2016-5\">TBH posts<\/a>\u201d where kids ask for their blunt opinions of each other. Teenagers might say \u201clike this post for a TBH,\u201d or \u201cTBH for TBH\u201d with the intention of handing out (or receiving) blunt opinions. These opinions are usually meant to be complimentary or humorous, but they can also be intentionally hurtful or abusive (these are teenagers we\u2019re talking about, after all).<\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"From_TBH_and_Back_Again\"><\/span>From TBH and Back Again<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>As we mentioned earlier, TBH (to be honest) became a common phrase during the late 90s or early 2000s. It was probably used in IRC or SMS conversations to convey a sense of honesty or candor before spreading onto message boards and websites. The first <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.urbandictionary.com\/define.php?term=tbh\">Urban Dictionary<\/a> entry for TBH was added in 2003, and (according to <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/trends.google.com\/trends\/explore?date=all&amp;geo=US&amp;q=tbh\">Google Trends<\/a>) the word didn\u2019t hit the big time until 2011.<\/p>\n<p>The teenage definition of TBH (to be heard) has a similarly vague history. It\u2019s safe to assume the phrase (along with phrases like \u201cTBH for TBH\u201d) began cropping up on websites like Facebook and Tumblr around 2010. At least, that\u2019s when\u00a0question-answer sites like\u00a0<a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/ask.fm\/\">ask.fm<\/a>\u00a0were trendy.<\/p>\n<figure style=\"width: 650px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-447861 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/2-5.png?trim=1,1&amp;bg-color=000&amp;pad=1,1\" alt=\"A woman holds up a flip phone and an iPhone. She looks toward the flip phone---toward a long departed era...\" width=\"650\" height=\"300\" data-crediturl=\"https:\/\/www.shutterstock.com\/image-photo\/young-woman-holding-smart-phone-feature-1483127333\" data-credittext=\"metamorworks\/Shutterstock.com\" onload=\"pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\" onerror=\"this.onerror=null;pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><span class=\"imagecredit\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.shutterstock.com\/image-photo\/young-woman-holding-smart-phone-feature-1483127333\">metamorworks\/Shutterstock.com<\/a><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Anyway, the alternative definition of TBH flew under the radar until 2015 or 2016, when morning <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/news\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"2\" title=\"News\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">news<\/a> shows and publications like <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.businessinsider.com\/what-does-tbh-mean-2016-5\">Business Insider<\/a>\u00a0reported on it as a potential form of bullying. Facebook must have noticed the trend, as the company purchased a <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/news\/the-switch\/wp\/2017\/10\/17\/tbh-facebooks-new-anonymous-teen-compliment-app-explained\/\">question-answer app called TBH<\/a> in 2017. The <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">app<\/a>, which failed, was targeted toward teenagers and followed a <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.parents.com\/toddlers-preschoolers\/everything-kids\/is-tbh-really-the-nice-social-media-app\/\">weird kind of quiz format<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Sadly, the teenage definition of TBH is currently on the way out. It has lost traction on <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/trends.google.com\/trends\/explore?date=all&amp;geo=US&amp;q=tbh\">Google Trends<\/a>, it hasn\u2019t appeared in any Business magazines, and Instagram\u2019s Story Stickers have effectively streamlined the process of asking your friends for a TBH.<\/p>\n<p>In a way, I\u2019m personally bummed we\u2019re ditching \u201cto be heard.\u201d I think it\u2019s an interesting phrase that points out how things that are \u201creal\u201d or \u201ccandid\u201d are often used as a currency for attention online. Oh well, at least \u201cto be honest\u201d actually makes sense.<\/p>\n<h2 role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"2\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_to_Use_TBH\"><\/span>How to Use TBH<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>TBH is a direct abbreviation for the phrase \u201cto be honest.\u201d In most situations, you can just use the word \u201cTBH\u201d wherever you might actually say \u201cto be honest\u201d in a sentence.<\/p>\n<p>Just keep in mind that most people use TBH at the beginning or end of a sentence. It\u2019s <em>occasionally<\/em> used in the middle of a sentence, but only as a preposition for an independent clause. You won\u2019t see someone saying \u201cI\u2019m trying TBH with you!\u201d That\u2019s just an eyesore and a crime against the internet.<\/p>\n<figure style=\"width: 650px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-447862 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/3-4.png?trim=1,1&amp;bg-color=000&amp;pad=1,1\" alt=\"A man stares at his computer and tries his best to be honest.\" width=\"650\" height=\"300\" data-crediturl=\"https:\/\/www.shutterstock.com\/image-photo\/head-shot-serious-puzzled-african-american-1414318691?\" data-credittext=\"Fizkes\/Shutterstock.com\" onload=\"pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\" onerror=\"this.onerror=null;pagespeed.lazyLoadImages.loadIfVisibleAndMaybeBeacon(this);\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><span class=\"imagecredit\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.shutterstock.com\/image-photo\/head-shot-serious-puzzled-african-american-1414318691?\">Fizkes\/Shutterstock.com<\/a><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Here are a few quick examples of how to use TBH properly:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>TBH, I could never get behind the whole Iron Man thing.<\/li>\n<li>TBH, you\u2019re my best friend. I love to text you, bro.<\/li>\n<li>It\u2019s not a big deal, TBH.<\/li>\n<li>I know I\u2019m always talking about my muscles, but I\u2019m actually pretty weak, TBH.<\/li>\n<li>I\u2019m pretty hungry, but TBH, I\u2019m always pretty hungry.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>As for the \u201cto be heard\u201d definition, it\u2019s\u00a0<em>probably<\/em> not worth committing to memory. The trend is on its way out, and it\u2019s mostly used by teenagers.<\/p>\n<hr\/>\n<p>Speaking of trends that are on their way out, now\u2019s a great time to catch up on some other interesting pieces of timely internet culture, like leetspeak, Finstagrams, and the word YEET. TBH, it\u2019s nice to know where these pieces of culture came from, even if you don\u2019t plan to use them in your everyday life.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><script>\n setTimeout(function(){\n  !function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s)\n  {if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function(){n.callMethod?\n  n.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments)};\n  if(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;n.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version='2.0';\n  n.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0;\n  t.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0];\n  s.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s) } (window, document,'script',\n  'https:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/fbevents.js');\n   fbq('init', '335401813750447');\n   fbq('track', 'PageView');\n  },3000);\n<\/script><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMLG0nwswvr63Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more like this article, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/technology\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Technology category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/447760\/what-does-tbh-mean-and-how-do-you-use-it\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;#What Does \u201cTBH\u201d Mean, and How Do You Use It?&#8221; acidmit\/Shutterstock.com You\u2019ve probably seen people throwing around the phrase \u201cTBH,\u201d but what does it mean? This expression has been around for quite a while, but its meaning has changed somewhat over time. \u201cTo Be Honest\u201d or \u201cTo Be Heard\u201d In most situations, TBH is used&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":350864,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.howtogeek.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/the-letters-22TBH22-in-a-big-comic-styled-font.jpeg?height=200p&trim=2,2,2,2","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-350863","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-technology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/350863","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=350863"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/350863\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/350864"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=350863"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=350863"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=350863"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}