OMG
An abbreviation of “oh my God” expressing surprise, excitement, disbelief, or strong reaction.
By Cal Hewitt, Gen X · Researched from public sources · ·
What it actually means
OMG is a versatile reaction marker whose tone can be sincere, comic, shocked, or exaggerated. It became a digital staple but has a documented printed history that is much older than the internet.
See the quick definition in the OMG dictionary entry.
Where it came from
The Oxford English Dictionary’s earliest documented use, reported by Guinness World Records, is Admiral John Arbuthnot Fisher’s 9 September 1917 letter to Winston Churchill, where he wrote O.M.G. for Oh! My God!.
Commonly credited to John Arbuthnot Fisher (1917), well-documented.
Where it's popular
Global English-language texting, social media, and speech.
The first recorded use predates online chat.
How it caught on
- 1917Fisher used O.M.G. in a letter to Churchill.
- 1919The letter appeared in Fisher’s memoirs.
- 1994An early documented digital-context use appeared on Usenet.
How to use it
“OMG, the tickets actually went through.”
Excited surprise.
“OMG, that ending was wild.”
A reaction to entertainment.
Common mix-ups
OMG was not invented by texting or social media. Its first documented written use is from 1917.
Do you actually know it?
OMG, the date
0/31. When was OMG first documented in print?
2. Who wrote the early O.M.G.?
3. What does OMG stand for?
Related slang
Questions people ask
What does OMG stand for?
Oh my God.
Who first used OMG in print?
The earliest documented use is Admiral John Arbuthnot Fisher in 1917.
Is OMG only for surprise?
No. It can express excitement, disbelief, annoyance, or embarrassment.
The famous earliest example was written in a wartime letter, not a chat window.
Get the weekly decode
Get this week's list as soon as you confirm: what Gen Z is actually saying, what moved up or down, and the new terms that are not in the dictionary yet. A fresh one every week after that.