What does “RT” traditionally mean when used on Twitter?

On Twitter, “RT” traditionally means retweet.

A retweet republishes another user’s post to the retweeter’s followers. The abbreviation developed from early Twitter users’ convention of typing “RT” before copied text, often adding the original author’s username. Twitter later built retweeting directly into the service, making the action faster and more consistent.

People sometimes confuse “RT” with a reply because both involve interacting with another account’s post. A reply appears in a conversation with the original post, while a retweet distributes the post to the retweeter’s audience. Twitter also introduced quote posts, which combine a repost with the user’s own comment.

After Twitter rebranded as X in 2023, the platform continued to support reposting, although terminology and interface labels changed in some versions. “RT” remains widely understood in online communication, journalism, and social-media discussions as shorthand for retweet.