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In what year was LOL, as in laughing out loud, first recorded?

LOL

American  
[el-oh-el, lol] / ˈɛlˌoʊˈɛl, lɒl /
Or lol

interjection

  1. laughing out loud; laugh out loud: used as a response to something funny or as a follow-up to something said only as a joke.

    You can see from the pics that my dog did not appreciate how we dressed him up for Halloween this year. LOL!


verb (used without object)

LOLed, LOLing
  1. to laugh: I can’t stop loling over this dumb video!

    I literally LOLed when I got your text.

    I can’t stop loling over this dumb video!

LOL British  

abbreviation

  1. laughing out loud

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of LOL

First recorded in 1985–90; from its use in digital communications


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

It did look like something I’d write to someone I’m close to, complete with a lack of punctuation and a self-deprecating LOL.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 18, 2026

The court heard Mrs Spragg replied: "Yes we can go through their bins. LOL."

From BBC ● Oct. 29, 2025

On the subject of the presidency itself, and the burdensome toll its responsibilities take on statesmen like her father, our position is: LOL.

From Slate ● Jan. 14, 2025

To his classmates and himself, Lal was no longer spelled LOL.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 1, 2024

LOL once Lydia tells me what I need to fix.

From "The Serpent King" by Jeff Zentner

Nor do I see anyone else really LOLing it up despite all their screen time.

From The Guardian ● Sep. 20, 2019

The man is all smiles this week at the Quicken Loan National, almost to an aggressive degree, like in these photos of him LOLing his damn face off at Kevin Na, of all people.

From Golf Digest ● Jun. 27, 2018

Shoeless Amy LOLing on Dougie's sofa was perfect.

From Slate ● Feb. 11, 2013

I have to say, though, that I did find myself LOLing a good bit more this week than last, so call me a philistine.

From Slate ● Nov. 6, 2012

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