Twitter Users Still Confused Between RT, MT & HT

A question I get asked over and over is to explain the difference between RT, MT and HT.

I’ve never actually posted an article about this so thought it’s probably about time.

It’s worth noting one of the main interactions on Twitter is giving credit to other users when they post or reference a particular piece of content. This is how the RT term was started.

In the first few versions of the Twitter site there was no official ReTweet button, users simply copied the tweet and put a ‘RT’ at the front.

RT = Retweet

Many users still prefer to use this old method so they can include some additional commentary at the beginning of their tweet. Twitter also still supports this Quote Retweet feature in their mobile apps, but not on their desktop site. This mobile feature is one I have used for some time.

Another more common Twitter abbreviation we are now seeing is MT.

MT = Modified Tweet

With Twitter’s 140 character limit some users may want to mention your tweet but make some changes or adjustments. Some people also use MT when simply correcting a spelling mistake or typo.

HT = Hat Tip

This is more of a gesture you give to other users when you uncover a great piece of content.

Instead of saying RT you can show your appreciation by giving that user a ‘Hat Tip’. Probably the most flattering of Twitter abbreviations, I don’t see HT all that much probably because most people still don’t understand what it actually means. Maybe it will catch on more over time so share the knowledge!

via @

This also seems to be common Twitter terminology when tweeting another users content.

eg.
“You are reading this article” via @TheirUsername.

This is a common way many publishers setup their tweet buttons (including this site).

I am old fashioned myself – I just like to use the original RT @Username. I also wrote this article previous explaining how Lots of Retweets can give your website a SEO Gain - and this is still very much relevant today, if not more relevant.