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

By 2010, the International Telecommunications Union reported trillions of messages sent yearly, turning SMS into a global cultural habit that shaped abbreviations like LOL and BRB. —Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 3 Dec. 2025

Beyond adding passkeys and shoring up two-factor authentication with something other than SMS, the key rule is never to use links to access accounts. —Ray Padilla, Louisville Courier Journal, 30 Nov. 2025

Each eligible household member can cast up to 20 votes per couple per week (10 online and 10 via SMS). —Amanda Castro, MSNBC Newsweek, 25 Nov. 2025

Stoltz is repped by SMS and Patti Felker; Thornton by BMG Talent; Rosenblum by WPA; Mercer by Orly Ravid; and Turpin by Holmes King. —Matt Grobar, Deadline, 24 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Short Message Service

First Known Use

1991, in the meaning defined above