BTOBS

What Does BTOBS Mean in a Text?

The Quick Answer

BTOBS means "Be There Or Be Square."

More Observations...

The abbreviation BTOBS is commonly associated with an event and implies that anyone who's cool and hip will be there. If you don't go, people will think you're a "nerd" or a "dork," i.e., a "square." The term "square" was coined in the 1950s to mean someone, usually older, who was out of touch, unfashionable, and conservative.

Image for BTOBS

When I write BTOBS, I mean this:

BTOBS means "Be There Or Be Square."

Summary of Key Points

We have summarized the key points in the table below:

BTOBS
Definition:	Be There Or Be Square
Type:	Abbreviation
Guessability:	4: Difficult to guess
Typical Users:	Adults and Teenagers

Examples of BTOBS in Sentences

Here are examples of BTOBS in conversations:

Sally: I don't know whether I can be bothered to go to the party tonight.
Richard: What? Everyone's going. BTOBS.

Tina: I've been invited to the opening night of a new club.
Joel: BTOBS. I heard it's an 'A'-list crowd.

An Academic Look at BTOBS

BTOBS is an initialism abbreviation. Technically, this means it is pronounced using its individual letters (i.e., Bee Tee Oh Bee Ess), but as this is harder to say than "Be there or be square," it is not often uttered using its letters. In other words, the abbreviation BTOBS is for efficiency in writing and not efficiency in speech.