99 Survival Acronyms and Terms Preppers Use
This Survival Acronyms and Terms post was first published in 2017 and has been updated since. We keep our content relevant as the world around us changes, as we learn new skills and techniques, and (of course) when we learn new survival terms and acronyms.
Using shorthand to talk about specialized topics in communities is nothing new. Plenty of people are of the opinion that prepper acronyms just muddy up communication and cause a headache for newcomers. They argue that it drives people away from prepping and puts preppers in a bad light. Others insist that it establishes a sense of community, and improves communication flow with abbreviations.
Whether you are an avid survival acronym user or prefer to use plain English, knowing what they mean can come in handy when dealing with preppers. Below you’ll find our comprehensive list of prepping and survival acronyms and terms, split up by type and organized alphabetically.
Contents (Jump to a Section)
Prepping Acronyms (A-E)
2A: The Second Amendment
ABC: Airway, Breathing, Circulation – first aid / CPR steps
ALICE: All-purpose Lightweight Individual Carrying Equipment – a gear attachment system used by the military found on older packs. Still preferred by some, although it is less popular than the MOLLE system.
BOB: Bug Out Bag – a mobile survival kit that you use to evacuate your home and relocate.
BOL: Bug Out Location – an alternate location from your home where you plan to retreat when trigger events occur.
BOV: Bug Out Vehicle – a vehicle equipped for and used for getting to a BOL, or living on the move.
BLOB: Black Out Bag – an emergency kit specifically for power outages of various time lengths, usually including lights, candles, power banks, etc.
CAT: Combat Application Tourniquet – a fast application tourniquet that is included in many survival first aid kits.
CB: Citizen Band (Radio) – a short-distance amateur radio communication band. CB radios are often included in BOVs.
CBRN: Chemical, Biological, Radioactive, Nuclear – unconventional types of WMDs. Conventional weapons can be added to the acronym with CBRNE- the added ‘E’ standing for Explosives.
CCW: Concealed Carry Weapon
CDC: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention – a federal agency that prevents the spread of infectious diseases and pathogens.
CERT: Community Emergency Response Team – local Citizens Corps groups trained by FEMA to assist with local and regional disasters.
CME: Coronal Mass Ejection – a naturally occurring solar flare with the potential to create an EMP event by bombarding the atmosphere with magnetic field lines.
CMS: Consumable Medical Supplies – Antibiotics and other medicine and supplies run out.
CPR: Cardiopulmonary resuscitation – well-known first aid training.
DHS: Department of Homeland Security – a cabinet of the federal government created after the September 11th attacks charged with protecting the country from asymmetric threats.
DIY: Do It Yourself
DoD: US Department of Defense (military)
EARS: Emergency Alert Response System – part of emergency communications for mass notifications.
EDC: Everyday Carry – a harder look at the gear, equipment, and clothes you have on you every day.
EMP: Electromagnetic Pulse – a short burst of electromagnetic energy that can disrupt and damage unprotected electronics. Nuclear blasts can cause EMPs.
EOTW: End of the World
EROL: Excessive Rule of Law – the opposite of the better known WROL, this describes a police state where laws are plentiful and fully enforced to the point of infringing on basic rights. While WROL can be triggered by an event, EROL is usually more gradual. EROL, however, can occur when the governing body reacts to an event.
ETA: Estimated Time of Arrival
Prepping Acronyms (F-O)
FIFO: First in, First Out – a method of inventory management, used often in food storage, to cycle all inventory. Think of this method as working like a garden hose.
FEMA: Federal Emergency Management Agency – a federal agency that plans for, mitigates, and responds to federal emergencies. They coordinate with the DoD, DHS, CDC, and CERT teams when needed.
FRS: Family Radio Service – designated frequencies for short-distance radio service commonly used with walkie-talkies.
FUBAR: F’d up Beyond All Recognition – a military carryover term for bad situations.
GHB: Get Home Bag – The average person spends 38% of their waking time away from home. This kit is designed to help them get back.
GOOD: Get Out of Dodge – a saying originating from Westerns adopted to mean escaping from populated areas. GOOD bags are similar to BOBs but are designed with urban scenarios in mind with extra weaponry and urban tools.
GMRS: General Mobile Radio Service – a licensed radio service similar to CB with frequencies of 462 MHz and 467 MHz.
GPS: Global Positioning System – a satellite-driven navigation system used by GPS receivers and many smartphones.
ICE: In Case of Emergency – an acronym label used to identify who people wish to be contacted in case of emergency.
JIC: Just In Case
ICP: Incident Command Post – created by the ICS (Incident Command System), this is the command and control at an entry point to the disaster area.
IFAK: Individual First Aid Kit – a small, portable first aid kit first used by the military.
INCH: I’m Never Coming Home – a long-term kit meant to sustain wilderness survival indefinitely.
ISIS: Islamic State of Iraq and Syria – terrorists.
LEO: Law Enforcement Officer – local law enforcement and military law enforcement.
LIFO: Last In, First Out – another inventory management system that does not work so well for food storage. Think of this method as working like an AR-15 magazine.
LOS: Line of Sight
LTS: Long-Term Survival
MOLLE: Modular Lightweight Load-Carrying Equipment – pronounced “Molly”, a web lacing found on current military and tactical packs and vests for attaching gear.
MRE: Meal, Ready to Eat – a prepackaged meal used extensively by the military.
MURS: Multi-Use Radio Service – 151 – 154 MHz spectrum range channels often used for private walkie-talkies, but once designated for industrial and business use.
NBC: Nuclear, Biological, Chemical – this older term has been replaced (at least in the military) by CBRN
NOAA: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration – a federal agency that tracks weather events, including space weather and wildfires.
NINJA: No Income, No Job or Assets – a derogatory term used to describe those dependent on society to survive.
NVGs: Night Vision Goggles
OCOKA: Observation and Field of Fire, Cover and Concealment, Obstacles, Key or Decisive Terrain, Avenues of Approach – A mnemonic-type acronym that overlapped from military circles. It can also have “-W” tacked on the end standing for Weather.
OPSEC: Operational Security – a military term used to describe protecting valuable and critical information.
OTC: Over the Counter – besides being used to describe over-the-counter medication, it is used to describe easily obtainable supplies.
Survival Acronyms (P-Z)
PMA: Positive Mental Attitude – a type of mindset or mantra that focuses on the importance of being positive in stressful situations.
PTB: Powers that Be – an allusion to a society-controlling elite class that while somewhat accurate, usually is used in a conspiracy context.
RAD: Roentgen Absorbed Dose – radiation dose measurement
RAT: Rapid Application Tourniquet – another tourniquet type that doesn’t stop hemorrhaging quite as fast as a CAT.
REM: Roentgen Equivalent Man
SA: Situational Awareness – observing and understanding what is going on around you, especially relating to prepper situational awareness.
SCARE: Social Chaos and Response Emergency – yeah, it doesn’t make sense grammatically but it is a prepper acronym for a civil unrest-focused bag/kit.
SHTF: Shit Hits the Fan – when used by a prepper this describes an emergency, disaster, or situation where society could possibly collapse. The severity has since been watered down by over-use and now often describes simply unfortunate situations.
SIP: Shelter in Place – an emergency agency-directed order to seal off rooms and stay put to avoid volatile CBRN agent contamination.
SNAFU: Situation Normal- All F’d Up – another military crossover acronym not to be confused with SHTF or FUBAR. SNAFU simply means you acknowledge that everything is normal, and that is normally messed up.
SOL: “Shit Outta Luck”
SOP: Standard Operating Procedure – a military-rooted acronym used often when developing plans, or relaying plans to others.
SOS: Save Our Ship – a recognizable signal for help, it is extremely recognizable when communicated with Morse code.
STOP: Stop, Take a Step Back, Observe, Proceed Mindfully – A behavioral therapy tool that helps manage stress during critical situations, developed by Marsha Linehan. (Source)
SWAT-T: Stretch, Wrap, and Tuck tourniquet (not as effective as a CAT tourniquet).
TEOTWAWKI: The End of the World as We Know It – not necessarily the end of the world, but the end of society as we currently recognize it. The acronym usually labels the event that occurred to cause the societal collapse.
TLA: Three Letter Acronym – a tongue-in-cheek reference used in communities where there are possibly too many acronyms.
TP: Toilet Paper – often used as an example of an item that has an initial stock-out run in an emergency.
TWEP: Terminate With Extreme Prejudice – more of a military term, it’s pretty self-explanatory.
UHF: Ultra High Frequency – usually referring to a band for amateur radio.
VOAD: Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster – Not all disaster assistance agencies are government-controlled.
WB: Weather Band – a type of radio that can receive broadcasts from some or all of the seven Nation Weather Service (NWS) frequencies. Weather radios are a staple of preparedness and one of the first resources a prepper should buy.
WMD: Weapon of Mass Destruction – a CBRN or conventional weapon that can kill or harm a significant portion of the population.
WROL: Without Rule of Law – anarchy, civil disobedience, societal collapse, or non-enforcement are all WROL scenarios where laws do not exist, are ignored, or are simply not enforced.
WUSH: Wake Up, [Stuffs] Happening – usually a kit or bag meant to be a bedside grab-and-go resource. It is odd that with SHTF, SOL, and plenty of other acronyms using expletives, this acronym is usually described with “Stuff” rather than the original “Shit”.
YOYO: You’re On Your Own – a prepper acronym name for how employees, soldiers, and police will inevitably abandon their station or mission to fend for themselves and their families in a bad enough scenario.
Prepping Terms
Besides abbreviating almost everything, there are a few words and prepping terms that preppers like to use. They include:
100 mph tape: A beefy duct tape popularized by the military with superior adhesive and weather resistance.
550 cord: A specific rating of paracord (Type III) popularized by the military, with a tensile strength of 550 pounds.
Bug Out: Originating from British slang, ‘bugging out’ is a form of military retreat. In prepper and survivalist terms, it means to leave your area with survival kits to relocate to a (preferably a pre-designated) safe area. Mobile kits, such as ‘bug out bags‘ are needed to make this happen.
Bugging In: Opposite of bugging out, but ‘hunkering down’ with your own resources in the same area.
Bushcraft: Outdoor survival skills with a focus on making resources. Extremely popular in the UK, Australia, and Europe and growing in popularity elsewhere.
Carrington: the most intense geomagnetic storm recorded in history, back in 1859.
Faraday: a bag, case, or cage made out of sealed conductive materials to protect sensitive electronics inside from EMPs and CMEs.
Ham: often assumed that it is an acronym, but it is actually just slang for amateur radio operators.
Homestead: isolated homes that are usually self-sufficient, off-grid, and/or, agricultural work. Homesteading is everything that goes into setting up and running a homestead, and homesteaders are the people who do it. The Homestead Act of 1862 used to grant land for this use, but now free land is harder to come by.
Molon Labe: A Greek phrase μολὼν λαβέ meaning ‘come and take them’, often used in defiance of those that would challenge the US second amendment.
Off Grid: Living without supported services like electricity, phone lines, water/sewage lines, etc. “Going off-grid” is usually a lifestyle choice that can be equated to homesteading.
Pollyanna: A blindly optimistic person in the face of real threats and danger- the hero of Eleanor Portor’s 1913 novel of the same name.
Prep: A specific resource, plan, or kit related to prepping, or just shorthand for the word ‘prepare’. Preps (plural) are often used to describe specific preparations made as a prepper.
Prepper: Someone who is prepared for emergencies, disasters, and more (What is Prepping and What is a Prepper?)
Preptember: A moniker for National Preparedness Month, which is September in the US. This typically involves thorough kit and plan reviews, drills, and a slew of month-long Preptember sales.
Rule of Three: a survival rule of thumb describing how humans can only live 3 minutes without air, 3 hours without shelter, 3 days without water, and 3 weeks without food. We have a whole article breaking it down: The Survival Rule of 3 | Air, Shelter, Water, & Food.
Supervolcano: a volcano with a VEI over 8 and the capacity to cause a multi-regional natural disaster.
Survivalist: Often used interchangeably with ‘prepper’, but many survivalists will argue that they are more skill-focused instead of stocking resources.
Two is One, One is None: A common mantra in prepping that prepares for resource failure. We go over the origin and meaning in our article: Two is One and One is None | The Power of Redundancy.
SURVIVAL Acronym
Chapter one of the military survival manual FM 3-05.70 starts with:
This manual is based entirely on the keyword SURVIVAL. The letters in this word can help guide you in your actions in any survival situation. When faced with a survival situation, remember the word SURVIVAL. (Source)
It goes on to break down the military acronym:
- S – Size Up the Situation
- U – Use All Your Senses, Undue Haste Makes Waste
- R – Remember Where You Are
- V – Vanquish Fear and Panic
- I – Improvise
- V – Value Living
- A – Act Like the Natives
- L – Live by Your Wits, But for Now, Learn Basic Skills
Download the FM 21-76 US Army Survival Manual (and many other survival guides, manuals, checklists, etc) for free in our survival PDF library. The manual itself does the best job of describing each of the components of the S.U.R.V.I.V.A.L. acronym and has plenty of other great information inside.
PREPPER Acronym
The PREPPER acronym is much less common than the SURVIVAL acronym because it’s not included in a government manual. We wouldn’t classify this one as particularly useful, as it obviously leans on the SURVIVAL acronym heavily, and uses some redundancy.
Still, you may come across it in your preparedness journey- so here is the PREPPER acronym:
- P – Prepare for any disaster
- R – Respond without fear
- E – Evaluate every possible scenario
- P – Pack supplies
- P – Plan for the unexpected
- E – Envision a happy outcome
- R – Remember to hope
I warned you that it’s not great! The military-rooted SURVIVAL acronym is the king of survival acronyms, but the PREPPER one could use some work. Maybe some hard-charging preppers out there can come out with a better acronym- if we need another one at all.
The Final Word
Are there too many survival acronyms and prepper terms in our community? Probably. But that doesn’t mean you should ignore them. Keeping up the dialogue no matter how far we steer away from layman’s terms is important. Let us know any prepper terms or survival acronyms we may have missed in the comments below.
Here are a few other communication-related articles our readers find useful:
- The Military Phonetic Alphabet Guide
- WSHTF – When Shit Hits the Fan
- How to Start Prepping: Prepper 101
Keep exploring, stay prepared, and be safe.
See more of our expert-written guides, resources, and reviews in your search results – add TruePrepper as a preferred source.
Prepping Your Way
No judgement and no imperatives. Prepare the way you want to with the trusted source millions of modern preppers have relied on.Our newsletter fires out every Monday where you can expect:
- Practical prepping guides and tips
- Thorough survival gear reviews
- Noticeably absent spam and popups
- < 0.4% of people unsubscribe
Great job SG. Very informative. I have been actively calling on the military for 10 years. learning the” Acronyms” is crucial to doing business w/the Military. SNAFU ,FUBAR,SOP,MOS and FOB are standards. Keep up the good work guys. My Best. JE
You wouldn’t think a YOYO NINJA could be a prepper but here I am.
My moto of “Be Screwed Now And Avoid The Post SHTF Rush” has left me in good standing.
I just want to know if Chickens and Goats are considered assets or liabilities?
AND! My lady friend assures me that “BOB” stands for Battery Operated Boyfriend. Go figure eh? But she’d know.
So much to do, so much to do, … I feel more like a “human doing” than a human being.
My first batch of 19 surviving meat Chickens will soon be ready for harvest and the space I was making in the freezer for them was filled by a couple of great meat deals I stumbled across.
I’ll have to go through the freezer again to make that space or pressure can most of the Chickens like I did last year.
There’s still lots of canned Chicken left so I really wanted to freeze the majority of these first smaller Chickens. I’m really liking roast Chicken these days.
The second batch of 20 birds will be grown larger for canning.
The Goats are young and I’m not expecting too much from them this year. They are the small breed Milk Goats for easy handling and I’m sure any neutered males will turn out tasty.
My new $500 dollar Goat/Chicken barn turned into a 6, 7, 8, … hell, a thousand dollar barn. The new hinges alone for all those doors I needed cost me $100. Doors for pens, doors for the barn, doors for the corral.
I found a whack of 12 foot long wooden pallets “for free” that made a great corral.
It took me years to collect all the used lumber, and steel roofing and months to save the cash I’d need to build but there she is.
Not to bad for a NINJA.
Just the hay I needed for this winters feed filled 1/3 of the barn. My small barn got smaller real fast.
It’s a good thing small bales of hay are still affordable here, they only set me back $200.
Oh well, it pays to be resourceful when one is a willing resident in our great Gulag of Poverty.
A houseboat rental business had the electric service on the wharf updated so they ditched their solar panels for the convenience of AC current and I went into debt for the first time in a long time to get this “resource”.
Ten, 100 watt solar panels, three large deep cycle batteries, three charge controllers, three inverters and some 4 gauge wiring to tie everything together for a thousand dollars.
I scored big time IMHO.
I’ll be wanting more batteries of course. Slowly, slowly.
Now to get it some of the solar power set up for the barn.
I’ll not be providing the eternal and entitled “profits” demanded from the population of economic slaves by the electric company if I can help it and screw them if they can’t take a joke.
Is some lights, a radio, and a 12 volt diesel heater too much to ask for? I don’t think so.
I was buying some Chicken feed last week when I was informed that the CFIA (canadian food inspection agency) wanted my name and address in case there was any contaminated feed.
This is the agency that inspects restaurants and food factories to insure they are not posening us as they poison us with their substandard and chemically infused “for profit” products.
They are supposed to inspect the factory where the feed is produced, not inspect me. I’m not selling anything to the public and I’m not “for profit” I’m “For ME”!
The only reason they’d want such information from me is to make their job of eradicating backyard chickens easier when we are told that the Feather Flu is a danger to us and our families.
I’m not falling for it.
I told them my name is Donald Trump and my address is “Get F’d Lane”. True story. The guy at the feed mill just looked at me and smiled. He didn’t give a damn either.
I now need a hidden Chicken coop where I could hide some Hens and a rooster if required to. As if I don’t have enough to do.
As it is, I keep 12 to 24 fresh and fertilized eggs on the counter at all times in case I need to incubate some eggs for a fresh flock.
You never know when this human filth may swoop in to eradicate my poor chickens. I’ve been wiped out in the past by wild animals and those fertilized eggs saved my bacon.
It’s sad when one must make such preparations.
Your’s truly,
YOYO NINJA
I love the “eggs on the counter in case you need to incubate” idea!