What does SMH mean on TikTok? Answered

You may have come across many different acronyms when falling down your TikTok rabbit holes, which we are all doing a LOT of these days, admit it. But keeping up with all of these terms can be challenging, and we want to remain hip and relevant. With the ever-changing tapestry that is internet slang, it can be hard to nail down what some of these terms mean. One of these such acronyms is ‘SMH’, so let’s dive into what that means.

What does the acronym ‘SMH’ mean on TikTok?

Online, and on TikTok, the acronym SMH usually stands for ‘shaking my head’ or ‘shake my head’. The phrase refers to someone shaking their head because they are disappointed or a little annoyed at something or a situation. For example, if your friend were to say something that you might find stupid and yet slightly funny, or just something plain wrong, SMH could be used as a correct response. 

But SMH did not originate on the popular social media platform TikTok, as it has been widely used across most social media platforms, including some that were around before the platform launched in 2016. 

Urban Dictionary, whose users define internet slang throughout the modern age, contains definitions for SMH that predate TikTok including one from 2004. Other definitions of the acronym include ‘so much hate’ and ‘smack my head’ both of which come to the same meaning as ‘shaking my head’.

Hopefully, now that you know a bit more about the acronym you will be able to use it correctly with your friends, without them replying SMH when you tell them that you didn’t know what it meant.