ngl
Ngl means “not gonna lie.” It comes before an honest opinion or a small confession, and it often softens something that might otherwise sound blunt or embarrassing.
What does ngl mean?
Ngl is short for “not gonna lie” (not going to lie). Despite the wording, people rarely use it to promise they’re telling the truth. It flags that what follows is candid: an opinion you might not expect, an admission, or a compliment you feel a little awkward giving.
It can go at the start or the end of a message, and it’s almost always written in lowercase.
How to use ngl
- “Ngl, I liked the first movie better.”
- “That haircut really suits you ngl.”
- “Ngl I completely forgot we had a meeting today.”
- “I was nervous about the trip ngl, but it was great.”
Ngl vs. tbh
They overlap a lot. Tbh (to be honest) is slightly more neutral and fits a wider range of messages. Ngl feels more casual and confessional, closer to “okay, I’ll admit it.” In most texts you can swap one for the other.
Is ngl rude?
Not usually. It can cushion criticism (“ngl, this draft needs work”), but it doesn’t cancel it out. If the opinion is harsh, adding ngl won’t make it kinder, and in work chats a plain “honestly” or “to be fair” often lands better.
Where ngl comes from
Ngl abbreviates the spoken phrase “not gonna lie,” a conversational filler people used long before it became a texting shortcut. Like most chat abbreviations it grew out of texting and online chat, and its first written use isn’t documented.
Related terms
See more terms like this in our texting abbreviations guide.
Notes
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