I don’t know about you, but the longer I’m in the cloth diapering world, the more I forget how completely overwhelming it can be when you are first trying to learn everything about this new adventure. I can’t believe it’s been THREE years since we’ve shared a blog post about one of the most difficult obstacles to overcome when researching cloth diapers – the lingo! Sure, it may just look like someone is typing what happened when their toddler spilled the alphabet blocks, but it actually does mean something.

With online forums, blogs and all sorts of mobile devices it’s easy to start using the abbreviations and jargon and completely forget that it looks and sounds like a foreign language to a new parent. There are many terms, but here are some of the most common to get you started:

AIO – All-In-One, a diaper with a waterproof outer and absorbent inner all in one piece like bumGenius Freetime or Elemental

AI2 – Al-in-Two, a two-piece cloth diapering system, like Flip Diapering System

BG – bumGenius cloth diaper brand

brick and mortar – refers to a local retail store, rather than an online only retailer

CD – cloth diaper

FB – Fuzzibunz cloth diaper brand

Flats – Birdseye Flats, a single layer diaper you can fold in a variety of ways for to adjust fit and absorbency

Fitted – cloth diaper with sides cut for legs so they don’t have to be folded and elastic in the legs, these still require a cover to be waterproof; like Kissaluvs 2.0

Fluffy Mail – mail containing cloth diapers

Hook and Loop – generic term for a closure – think Velcro (aka aplix); like Kleenex is a brand of facial tissues

DH (or DW, DS, DD) – Dear husband/wife/son/daughter; similiarly SO is significant other

EBF – exclusively breast fed; baby’s diet can affect care of cloth diapers, especially in laundry routines

FF – formula fed baby

FSOT – for sale or trade

GN – gender neutral, in reference to colors or print styles

Inserts – the absorbent pad that goes inside a pocket diaper

ISO – In search of, commonly seen on resale websites or groups where the poster is looking for a specific item(s) to buy or trade

MF – microfiber, a type of polyester fabric commonly used in modern cloth diapers

Nappy – European word for diapers

OS – one size diaper that will adjust to fit your baby as he/she grows, like bumGenius, Flip and Econobum products

PF – prefold diapers

Pocket diaper – a diaper-shaped, waterproof shell sewn to a fabric inner. One edge is left open, creating a pocket. The pocket is then stuffed with one or more inserts, like bumGenius 4.0 cloth diapers

PUL – polyurethane laminate, a common fabric for waterproof outer layers and covers for cloth diapers

SAHM/SAHD – stay at home mom/stay at home dad

sposies – disposable diapers

stash – a collection of cloth diapers that someone owns

WAHM/WAHD – Work at home mom/dad; can also refer to small batch cloth diaper companies.

Those are just a few of the common ones, do you have any phrases or acronyms you haven’t quite figured out yet? Let us know in the comments below and we’ll be glad to help.