The Meaning of WTV: What It Is and How To Use It

Have you ever wondered what the trending abbreviation WTV stands for? This guide will provide you with all of the knowledge you need on the acronym WTV, including its definition, usage, sentence usage, and more!

Your writing, at its best

Compose bold, clear, mistake-free, writing with Grammarly's AI-powered writing assistant

What is the definition of WTV?

According to Cyber Definitions, the acronym WTV stands for “whatever.” This trending internet slang abbreviation is often used on social media and in SMS text messaging to mean the word whatever. Merriam-Webster Unabridged English Dictionary states that the word whatever can be used as an exclamation to show that someone does not care about the outcome of a certain action or event. For example, if someone asked someone else where they wanted to eat for dinner, the other person could reply with “I’m fine with WTV,” which implies that they do not care where the other person chooses to eat for dinner. The term whatever can sometimes be seen as flippant or rude, but this all depends on the context. Sometimes in text form, it is difficult to perceive someone’s tone. Therefore, one should try and be abundantly clear what they mean by the abbreviation WTV when using it in text. You wouldn’t want to accidentally offend someone! Sometimes, whatever is also abbreviated WTVR or W/E, or even whatevs, which shortens “ever” to “evs”!

According to The Free Dictionary, the acronym WTV can also stand for a variety of other things. These definitions, however, are far less common. If one plans to sue one of these less common definitions, they should ensure that the context is abundantly clear. Someone might be confused if the user of the acronym WTV does not provide proper context. Always make sure that the context is clear when using acronyms that have multiple meanings.

  • Wound Tumor Virus
  • Wuxi Television (China)
  • Water Tank Vessel (US Navy)
  • Warwick Television (Warwick University, England)
  • Westward Television (England, 1961-1981)
  • Würzburger Tarifverbund (German transport association)
  • WebTV (Internet Device)
  • Wakayama Telecasting (Japan)
  • Web Television
  • Wolf Television (South Kitsap High School, Washington state)
  • Windows Recorded TV (software)

Is the acronym WTV casual or formal?

The acronym WTV is extremely casual and should never be used in professional or formal settings. TInternet slang terms and acronyms like this should only be used in casual texting conversations or on social media, and should never be used in situations like business emails, negotiations, or other professional or formal circumstances. Using acronyms like this makes one come off as unprofessional and informal. 

The word whatever itself is also considered informal, so one should consider using another word or phrase in place of the word whatever. For example, instead of replying to the question “Where would you like to eat?” with “Whatever is fine,” you could instead say, “I can find something at any place you choose!” or “Take your pick!”

What are synonyms for the acronym WTV?

There are many different words and phrases that one can use in place of the abbreviation WTV. While whatever is still an informal term, someone might choose to use one of these alternate words because they are slightly more professional than using an internet slang acronym. Additionally, someone might choose to use a synonym for a certain word in order to expand their own vocabulary or in order to avoid repeating themselves. Some of the below synonyms are from Word Hippo Thesaurus

  • WTVR – Whatever
  • W/E – Whatever
  • Whatevs – whatever
  • what have you
  • so forth
  • all this
  • etc.
  • the rest
  • all that jazz
  • anything
  • what all
  • others
  • so on and so forth
  • whatsoever
  • etcetera
  • the like
  • on and on
  • all that
  • blah blah blah
  • something or other
  • suchlike
  • yada yada yada
  • so on
  • everything
  • all that
  • whatnot
  • et cetera

How can the acronym WTV be used in a sentence?

The word WTV can be used in a variety of different sentences as a placeholder for the word whatever. Below are a couple of examples in which using the acronym WTV would be appropriate. In this first example, Anita is texting Nicole about what Anita wants to do for her birthday.

Anita: I’m thinking we can get ready at my house at like 5 on Saturday, and then I can make a reservation somewhere at 6:30? What do you think?

Nicole: That sounds great! I’m totally free Saturday so WTV works for you.

Anita: Great! Where do you want to eat for dinner?

Nicole: LOL, I’m fine with WTV! It’s your birthday, you choose!

Anita: R U sure?

Nicole: Yes, duh!

Here, Nicole uses the acronym WTV to show Anita that her schedule and food preferences are flexible and that she can make anything work on Anita’s birthday. In this next example, Anita and Nicole are discussing Nicole’s terrible day at school.

Nicole: First I found out I got a C- on the math quiz – and that was the highest grade in the class! Everyone failed because he purposely tried to write trick questions!

Anita: Ugh, he’s the worst! WTV. Screw him.

Nicole: IKR?! And then, you know how Tyler has told me he was going to ask me to homecoming?

Anita: Yeah!

Nicole: He asked Elizabeth! Like WTF right? I was already picking out a dress because he told me he was going to ask me and then he just does a complete 180.

Anita: Ugh, WTV. Screw him and screw math and screw all of this! Let’s just go to the dance as a group.

Overall, the abbreviation WTV is a slang term that means whatever. This is often used in text messaging and on social media to imply a lack of opinion or care about something. Slang terms like WTV and other slang words should be reserved for casual settings and never used in professional or formal contexts.

Sources:

  1. https://acronyms.thefreedictionary.com/WTV
  2. https://www.cyberdefinitions.com/definitions/WTV.html#:~:text=WTV%20means%20%22Whatever%22.
  3. https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/whatever
  4. https://www.wordhippo.com/what-is/another-word-for/whatever.html