{{Short description|Internet slang term}} {{About|the Internet slang|other uses|Not Safe for Work (film){{!}}''Not Safe for Work'' (film)|and|Not Safe for Work (TV series){{!}}''Not Safe for Work'' (TV series)}} {{Redirect|NSFW||NSFW (disambiguation)}} {{Redirect|Safe for work|work safety|Occupational safety and health}}{{Unreliable sources|date=April 2023}}[[File:Wikipe-tan Commission 2 by SpagMushrooms.png|thumb|upright|alt=Illustration of Wikipe-tan, an unofficial mascot of Wikipedia, wearing lingerie, suggestively looking at the viewer while holding a whip.|An illustration of Wikipe-tan in a stylized softcore adult-themed costume, featuring fishnet stockings and stiletto heels, and holding a whip]]
'''Not safe for work''' ('''NSFW'''), also known as '''not suitable for work''', is Internet slang or shorthand used to mark links to content, videos, or webpages the viewer may not wish to be seen viewing in a public, formal, or controlled environment.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Paasonen |first1=Susanna |last2=Jarrett |first2=Kylie |last3=Light |first3=Ben |title=NSFW: Sex, Humor, and Risk in Social Media |date=2019 |publisher=The MIT Press |location=Cambridge |isbn=978-0-262-35523-0 |doi=10.7551/mitpress/10916.001.0001}}</ref><ref name="VICE">{{Cite web |last=Brown |first=Jessica |date=2017-08-09 |title=A Brief History of 'NSFW' |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/nsfw-brief-history/ |access-date=2025-04-13 |website=VICE |language=en-US}}</ref> The marked content may contain graphic violence, pornography, profanity, nudity, slurs, or other potentially disturbing subject matter. Environments that may be problematic include workplaces, schools, and family settings.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.lifewire.com/what-does-nsfw-mean-2483431|title=The Meaning of NSFW and How to Use It|work=Lifewire|access-date=2018-10-21|language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181021234703/https://www.lifewire.com/what-does-nsfw-mean-2483431|archive-date=2018-10-21|url-status=unfit}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.myenglishteacher.eu/blog/nsfw-meaning/|title=NSFW Meaning. What does NSFW mean?|date=2017-12-29|work=MyEnglishTeacher.eu Blog|access-date=2018-10-21|language=en-US|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181021232320/https://www.myenglishteacher.eu/blog/nsfw-meaning/|archive-date=2018-10-21|url-status=usurped}}</ref> NSFW has particular relevance for people trying to make personal use of the Internet at workplaces or schools that have policies prohibiting access to sexual and graphic subject matter.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.complex.com/pop-culture/2013/08/looking-at-nsfw-content-job-work/|title=How Not To Get Caught Looking at NSFW Content on the Job|website=Complex|language=en|access-date=2018-10-21|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181021232633/https://www.complex.com/pop-culture/2013/08/looking-at-nsfw-content-job-work/|archive-date=2018-10-21|url-status=live}}</ref> Conversely, '''safe for work''' ('''SFW''') is used for links that do not contain such material,<ref>[https://www.computerhope.com/jargon/s/sfw.htm What is SFW (Safe for Work)] from Computer Hope</ref> especially where the title might otherwise lead people to think that the content is NSFW.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2021-01-19|title=Check out this Reddit thread dedicated to the hottest sex stories|url=https://happymag.tv/sex-stories/|access-date=2021-01-19|website=Happy Mag|language=en-US}}</ref>
The similar expression '''not safe for life''' ('''NSFL''') is also used,<ref>{{cite news|url=https://mindanaotimes.com.ph/how-to-watch-nsfw-nsfl-content-safely-and-discreetly/|title=How to watch NSFW/NSFL content safely and discreetly|work=Mindanao Times|date=February 14, 2024|access-date=November 16, 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|last1=Pullen|first1=John Patrick|last2=Citizen|first2=Jessica|date=June 17, 2016|orig-date=May 3, 2012|url=https://time.com/4373616/text-abbreviations-acronyms/|title=116 Teen Text Terms Decoded for Confused Parents|magazine=Time|access-date=November 16, 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Martinez|first=Fidel|date=June 1, 2021|url=https://www.dailydot.com/irl/what-is-reddit-50-50-wtf-funny/|title=The shock and aww of Reddit's 50/50|work=The Daily Dot|access-date=2025-09-18|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://archive.today/20210331235425/https://www.dailydot.com/irl/what-is-reddit-50-50-wtf-funny/|archive-date=2021-03-31}}</ref> referring to content which is so nauseating or disturbing that it might be emotionally scarring to view. Links marked NSFL may contain murder, gore, or certain fetish pornography.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.reddithelp.com/en/categories/reddit-101/reddit-basics/what-do-all-these-acronyms-mean|title=Reddit Basics|website=reddit.zendesk.com|access-date=17 September 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191210125102/https://www.reddithelp.com/en/categories/reddit-101/reddit-basics/what-do-all-these-acronyms-mean|archive-date=10 December 2019|url-status=live}}</ref>
Some platforms, such as Reddit, Twitter, Patreon, or DeviantArt have long offered users the option to designate their content as NSFW, in order to warn others of its explicit nature before they access it, as well as to algorithmically separate it from SFW content.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Reddiquette |url=https://reddit.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/205926439-Reddiquette |access-date=2022-03-21 |website=Reddit Help |language=en-US}}</ref>
== History == It has been speculated that the term evolved from an earlier form originating on message boards, '''not for British school kids''' ('''NFBSK'''), which appears online as early as the year 2000.<ref name="VICE" /> "NSFW" itself has been used in online communities since the early 2000s, with a definition being posted to Urban Dictionary in 2003.<ref name="VICE" /> In 2009, it was suggested that a future version of HTML could include "NSFW" as a standardized tag for adult material on websites that could be automatically hidden depending on user settings.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Zeldman |first=L. Jeffrey |date=2009-06-08 |title=NSFW tag in HTML 5 |url=https://zeldman.com/2009/06/08/not-safe-for-work-tag-in-html-5/ |access-date=2025-04-13 |website=Jeffrey Zeldman Presents |language=en-US}}</ref>
By 2011, the term was common enough to be added to Oxford Dictionaries Online,<ref>{{Cite web |date=2011-06-03 |title='NSFW,' 'ZOMG,' and 'Twittersphere' added to dictionary |url=https://www.today.com/money/nsfw-zomg-twittersphere-added-dictionary-122978 |access-date=2025-04-13 |website=TODAY.com |language=en}}</ref> with Merriam-Webster adding the abbreviation to its dictionary in 2015.<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Steinmetz |first=Katy |date=2015-05-26 |title=Merriam-Webster Defines 'Jeggings,' 'NSFW' and 'Meme' |url=https://time.com/3896800/merriam-webster-update-nsfw-dark-money-wtf/ |access-date=2025-04-13 |magazine=TIME |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2015-05-26 |title="Emoji," "Photobomb," "WTF" and More Hip Internet Phrases Officially Added to Merriam-Webster Dictionary |url=https://www.eonline.com/news/660052/emoji-photobomb-wtf-and-more-hip-internet-phrases-officially-added-to-merriam-webster-dictionary |access-date=2025-04-13 |website=E! Online}}</ref> The Oxford English Dictionary added the term in 2016, citing earliest evidence of usage from 2002.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Oxford English Dictionary |title=NSFW (adj.) |url=https://doi.org/10.1093/OED/1059511319 |access-date=2025-04-13 |website=Oxford English Dictionary |date=2023 |doi=10.1093/OED/1059511319 }}</ref>
==See also== {{Portal|Internet|Erotica and pornography}} *Internet filter – Software used to restrict access to unsuitable content *{{Annotated link|Internet pornography}} *{{Annotated link|Rule 34}} *{{Annotated link|Shock site}} *{{Annotated link|Trash stream}}
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== * {{Wiktionary-inline}} * {{Commonscatinline}}
{{Internet slang}} {{Pornography}}
Category:Internet censorship Category:Internet slang Category:Internet terminology Category:Internet trolling Category:Media content ratings systems Category:Pornography