Nationwide asked 2,000 people whether they understood common abbreviations such as APR and ATM - and said it found the results "alarming."

Only half knew that APR stands for Annual Percentage Rate - with more than a third admitting to 'nodding' along when discussing such terms because they didn't understand what was being said.

The building society said 79% of those questioned correctly interpreted LOL, slightly ahead of OMG.

In the financial world, the most understood acronym was PAYE (Pay As You Earn), with 66% getting that right.

There were just 36% who got AER, Annual Equivalent Rate - used to help people compare savings accounts.

Andrew Baddeley-Chappell, Nationwide's head of mortgage and savings policy, said: "Organisations such as banks, building societies, insurers have been using abbreviations for many years, but it's alarming to see that people still don't have a grasp of the basic financial terminology.

"It's important for people to take some time and understand all the acronyms when applying for products, such as a mortgage, savings account or credit card.

"After all, a lack of understanding of text speak is not going to cost you financially, but not knowing financial terms will."