n writing, there are three common methods we can use to shorten words: 

abbreviations(1),
acronyms(2), and initialisms(3).

Why do we shorten words?

“It sounds obvious: we make words shorter to save us a bit of time and effort. But some
diminutives actually make words longer

 What They Are, Why They Exist, and How to Use Them
 1 BC. BC: Because. Tacos for lunch bc it's Tuesday!
 2 BTW. BTW: By the way. ...
 3 CYA. CYA: See ya. ...
 4 DM. DM: Direct message. ...
 5 FTW. FTW: For the win. ...
 6 FWIW. FWIW: For what it's worth. ...
 7 IDK. IDK: I don't know. ...
 8 ILY. ILY: I love you.