What Does 987 Mean in a Text?
The Quick Answer
In a text, the numbers 987 mean "Excuse me."More Detail...
If you were to read 987 in Chinese, they would sound similar to the Chinese words 对不起, which translate as "Excuse me." Lots of Chinese words sound similar to the Chinese numbers. As a result, sentences can be created using just numbers. Of note, the number "0" (zero), which is used to represent the word "you," does not sound much like the Chinese word for "you," but it is still used so meaningful sentences can be created. These Chinese chat codes have become highly popular, not only in countries where Chinese characters are used but also in countries with different alphabets (e.g., Latin, Arabic, Cyrillic).| Number | Chinese Meaning | English Meaning |
|---|---|---|
987 | 对不起 | Excuse me. |
Image for 987
When the individual numbers in 987 are read aloud in Chinese, they sound like the words 对不起, which mean "Excuse me."
Summary of Key Points
| 987 | |
|---|---|
| Definition: | 对不起 (Excuse me) |
| Type: | Chinese "Numerical Sentence" |
| Guessability: |  1: Easy to guess (if you understand Chinese, else virtually impossible) |
| Typical Users: |  Adults and Teenagers |
An Academic Look at 987
987 is an example of a numeronym, which is an abbreviation made up of just numbers or of letters and numbers. Numeronyms have been used since long before the digital era. Many of the early ones were written on the envelopes of letters between lovers. They were often a coded message between the sender and the recipient, thought to allow secret expressions of love or passion. They can be formed in various ways, such as:
- Shortening a word by replacing a sequence of letters with the count of those letters (e.g., i18n for "internationalization" and a11y for "accessibility").
- Combining letters and numbers (e.g, K9 for "canine" and W3 for "World Wide Web").
- Using numbers to represent letters or words (e.g., 143 for "I love you," 637 for "always and forever," and 5201314 for "I will love you for a lifetime").
Example of 987 Used in a Text
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