FOMO

Or fo·mo

[foh-moh]

noun

Slang.

1. a feeling of anxiety or insecurity over the possibility of missing out on something, as an event or an opportunity.

   If I say no to a party invitation, I get a bad case of FOMO.

Word History and Origins

Origin of FOMO¹

First recorded in 2000–05; f(ear) o(f) m(issing) o(ut)

Example Sentences

Strength in central-bank purchases “proves that central banks aren’t immune to FOMO,” which refers to the fear of missing out, Adrian Ash, director of research at BullionVault, told MarketWatch on Friday.

Read more on MarketWatch

It seems that young people are spending long hours on these social-media platforms mainly because of FOMO: fear of missing out.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Fifteen-year-old Liberty said having a phone gave her a fear of missing out, or FOMO, because she did not socialise a lot outside of school.

Read more on BBC

“FOMO,” Baffert said with a laugh, referring to the acronym for “fear of missing out.”

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Another factor may now be helping to drive the gold market upwards: FOMO, or fear of missing out.

Read more on BBC

When To Use

What does FOMO mean?

Short for fear of missing out, FOMO is an anxious feeling you get when you feel other people might be having a good time without you.In the digital age, FOMO often leads to a constant checking of social media to see what your friends are doing.