SMS

abbreviation or noun

ˌes-ˌem-ˈes 

: a technology for sending short text messages between mobile phones

messages sent via SMS

—often used before another noun

Creative, colorful, and sometimes perplexing, emoji add energy to SMS messages.

—Christina Bonnington

also : a message sent using this technology : text message

… is helping to test a device that implants sensors in cows to let farmers know when they are in heat. When that is the case, the device sends an SMS to the farmer's phone.

—John Tagliabue

Examples of SMS in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Indeed, the LRDs are cooler and more luminous than our current SMS models predict. —Paul Sutter, Space.com, 23 Mar. 2026

Apps asking for extensive permissions such as SMS access, accessibility features, and microphone control should always be investigated. —Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 21 Mar. 2026

The selection was announced by SMS to Iranians, among whom Mojtaba Khamenei has long had a reputation for skullduggery and power plays. —Kay Armin Serjoie, Time, 9 Mar. 2026

The company’s traditional business as a mobile provider faces pressure as competition from alternate platforms like WhatsApp, Telegram and Zoom have driven down usage of voice calls and SMS messaging. —Angelica Ang, Fortune, 24 Feb. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Short Message Service

First Known Use

1991, in the meaning defined above