Newsflash: People say dumb things on the internet. Whether you’ve just read a load of ignorant comments on your local newspaper website or bombastic posts from a rising influencer, you may find yourself utterly speechless (or typeless). When all you can do is shake your head at the ridiculousness you’ve just witnessed, just use a quick SMH.
SMH: Shaking My Head
Commonly found on message boards and social media, and perhaps texts with people who are younger than you, SMH (or smh) means “shaking my head” and is the perfect response to express condescending displeasure. It can stand alone as a comment, or you can follow it up with an explanation about why your head is shaking.
SMH replaces comments such as:
I’m speechless at what you just said
words fail me
I can’t even
there are no words
facepalm
-_- (a cringe emoticon)
When you see SMH after something confusing, the writer may mean “Scratching My Head” to indicate confusion. It can also stand for “Sydney Morning Herald” and “Society for Military History,” but those meanings are less likely than “what you said was really unfortunate.”
Where It Started
People have been shaking their heads with disbelief at others’ ignorance ever since the first humans used tools (“SMH, I can’t believe you want to use the wheel for that.”) But the slang term SMH started to become popular online around 2009. Leave it to Redditors and online trolls to come up with such a succinct term for such a universal feeling.
When to ‘SMH’ at Someone
So when’s the best time to drop an SMH into your group chat? Try it out in these situations:
your know-it-all sibling starts a long text with “Well, actually”
a relative has gone full conspiracy theory on your social media feed
someone uses racist or sexist terms to make an (invalid) point online
a friend posts a video of themselves doing something embarrassing
your significant other cancels a date yet again
you find out that your friend’s significant other is cheating (maybe that’s why they keep canceling dates)
a dating app match slips into your DMs with a lame pickup line
someone gives bad advice in a field where they are most definitely not an expert
your parent posts their last search engine entry in the wrong field, and now their social media post says “good pizza places near me”
your parent posts an inflammatory (and ill-informed) comment on your friend’s page
pretty much anything your parent posts on social media
Other Versions of SMH
Sometimes SMH just isn’t enough. In those cases, you can get more specific (or emphatic) with:
SMBH - Shaking My Bald Head
SMHF - Shaking My Head Furiously
SMHO - Shaking My Head Off (being so embarrassed that your head comes right off)
SMDH - Shaking My Damn Head
SMFH - Shaking My F****** Head
SMUH - Shaking My Unicorn Head (when you feel superior to the other person)
SMHAM - Shaking My Head at Myself
SMHIDB - Shaking My Head In Disbelief
When SMH Isn’t Enough
Still need that extra oomph in your response? Try out these alternatives to SMH:
KMHS - Keeping My Head Still (it’s so embarrassing that you can’t even SMH)
NMH - Nodding My Head (you agree with someone)
NMHLY - Nodding My Head Like Yeah (Miley Cyrus reference)
SMJ - So Much Judgment
DMJ - Dropping My Jaw (extreme SMH)
CMA - Crossing My Arms
Avoid Future SMH Moments
As satisfying as SMH is to leave in a comment, it’s mortifying to receive in response. Keep the SMH away by mastering these online terms: