BRB

BRB (phrase & interjection / Internet & Text Slang)

(Also heard as: brb, Brb, B.R.B.)

Definition:

Be right back. It’s basically the universal pause button for messaging. You throw it out when you have to ditch your screen for two minutes to sort something out, but you aren’t actually leaving the chat for good. When you look at the BRB slang meaning, it just translates to: “Hold your horses, I’ll be back in two seconds.”

Where It Comes From:

This goes straight back to the dial-up trenches of the 90s—think ICQ, MSN Messenger, and old-school IRC lobbies. If your mum shouted you down for dinner, or the dog started tearing up the carpet, you couldn’t just vanish without your mates thinking the dial-up connection died. Smacking out those three letters was the fastest way to hit pause before sprinting away from the family computer. It became second nature and never left our thumbs.

How People Actually Use It:

You see it thrown into WhatsApp group chats, Discord voice channels, Twitch streams, and work Slacks all day long. People drop it when they’re popping the kettle on, taking a quick bathroom break, answering the front door for a Deliveroo, or hunting for a phone charger before the battery dies. It’s just good manners so nobody thinks you’ve wandered off and ignored them mid-yarn.

Examples in the Wild:

• “Kettle’s boiled, brb making a brew.”

  Translation: Give me two minutes to make a hot drink.

• “The postie’s knocking on the glass, BRB!”

  Translation: Hang on, I have to go grab a parcel at the door.

• “BRB, my wireless mouse just died on me.”

  Translation: Stepping away for a second to find fresh batteries.

Similar Slang: AFK, BK, Sec, Hold fire, One min, Hold on