OK

See also: ok, Ok, -ok, ók, òk, ők, and Appendix:Variations of "ok"

English

Pronunciation
  • (stressed)
  • (unstressed)
    • IPA(key): /əˈkeɪ/
  • Rhymes: -eɪ

Etymology 1

Origin disputed. Wikipedia lists many possible etymologies, of which the most widely accepted is that it is an abbreviation of oll/orl korrect, a comical spelling of all correct, which first appeared in print in The Boston Morning Post on March 23, 1839, as part of a fad for similar fanciful abbreviations in the United States during the late 1830s. The expression became popular through its use in the presidential campaign of Martin Van Buren in 1840, who was nicknamed Old Kinderhook, and then slowly acquired other meanings.

The Choctaw word oke, okeh (“it is so”), common in Choctaw translations of the Bible, could also explain OK's variety of affirmative definitions. Additionally, okeh was the most common etymology of okay in dictionaries until the 1960s, and linguistically predates Boston's O.K.. However, this theory suffers from the fact that the Choctaw language was relatively obscure and generally spoken (sometimes in a pidgin form) mainly with African-American slaves.

Alternative forms

Noun

OK (plural OKs or OK's)

  1. Endorsement; approval; acceptance; acquiescence.
    We can start as soon as we get the OK.
Synonyms
Antonyms
Translations

Verb

OK (third-person singular simple present OKs or OK's, present participle OKing or OK'ing, simple past and past participle OKed or OK'd)

  1. (transitive) To approve; to accept; to acquiesce to.
    I don't want to OK this amount of money.
  2. (transitive, computing) To confirm by activating a button marked OK.
    • 2001, Mike Collins, Pro Tools: Practical Recording, Editing and Mixing for Music Production:
      Type a suitable name for your Marker and OK the dialogue box.
    • 2008, Martin Evening, Adobe Photoshop CS4 for Photographers:
      When you OK the crop, the image size will be adjusted to match the front image resolution.
Synonyms
Translations

Adjective

OK (comparative more OK, superlative most OK)

  1. All right, acceptable, permitted.
    Do you think it's OK to stay here for the night?
  2. Satisfactory, reasonably good; not exceptional.
    The soup was OK, but the dessert was excellent.
  3. Satisfied (with); willing to accept a state of affairs.
    • 2012, Roni Jay, The 10 Most Important Things You Can Do For Your Children:
      If you leave the kids in the creche for one morning on your week's holiday, and they are OK with that, then it's fine.
  4. In good health or a good emotional state.
    He's not feeling well now, but he should be OK after some rest.
    Are you OK?
    • 2022 October 25, L. J. Shrum, Elena Fumagalli, Tina M. Lowrey, “Coping with loneliness through consumption”, in Journal of Consumer Psychology, volume 33, number 2, →DOI, page 452:
      In France, the French postal service La Poste provides a subscription service in which postal workers visit elderly subscribers to make sure they are okay, do not need anything, and provide brief social interaction.
Synonyms
Antonyms
Translations

Adverb

OK (comparative more OK, superlative most OK)

  1. Satisfactorily, sufficiently well.
    The team did OK in the playoffs.
Synonyms
Antonyms
Translations

Interjection

OK

  1. Used to indicate acknowledgement or acceptance.
    Synonyms: okey-dokey, okeh, okey, k, 'kay, m'kay, A-OK, all right
    I promise to give it back. – OK.
    Let's meet again this afternoon. – OK.
    Shut up! – OK, OK.
    OK! I get it! Stop nagging me!
  2. (computing) Used to dismiss a dialog box or confirm a prompt.
  3. Used to introduce a sentence in order to draw attention to the importance of what is being said.
    Synonyms: now, now then
    OK, I'm thinking of a number…
  4. Used in turn-taking, serving as a request to the speaker to grant the turn to the interrupter.
    You always do this to me! When we were at your mother’s, you said that… – OK, OK, …
  5. Used to sarcastically or sardonically indicate agreement with the previous statement.
Derived terms
Translations

Derived terms
term derived from OK

Descendants
  • → Afrikaans: oukei
  • → Arabic: أُوكِي (ʔokey), أُوكَي (ʔukay)
  • → Cantonese: OK (ou1 kei1), O (ou1)
  • → Danish: okay, OK
  • → Dutch: oké
  • → Esperanto: okej
  • → Estonian: okei
  • → Finnish: okei
  • → French: okay
  • → German: okay
  • → Hebrew: אוקי (okéy)
  • → Hindi: ओके (oke)
  • → Hungarian: oké
  • → Icelandic: ókei
  • → Italian: ok
  • → Japanese: OK (ōkē), オーケー (ōkē)
  • → Korean: OK (okei), 오케이 (okei)
  • → Macedonian: океј (okej)
  • → Malay: okey
  • → Mandarin: OK (ōukèi, ōukēi)
  • → Polish: okej
  • → Portuguese: OK
  • → Russian: окей (okej)
  • → Serbo-Croatian:
    Cyrillic script: океј
    Latin script: okej
  • → Spanish: okay, okey
  • → Swedish: okej
  • → Thai: โอเค (oo-kee)
  • → Turkish: okey
  • → Ukrainian: окей (okej)
  • → West Frisian: okee
  • → Yiddish: אָקיי (okey)

See also

References

    Proper noun

    OK

    1. United States postal abbreviation for Oklahoma, a state of the United States of America.
    Alternative forms
    Synonyms

    Etymology 3

    Possibly a shortening of Chinese 卡拉OK. (Can this(+) etymology be sourced?)

    Noun

    OK (plural not attested)

    1. (Hong Kong) Karaoke.
    References
    • Patrick J. Cummings, Hans-Georg Wolf (2011) A Dictionary of Hong Kong English: Words from the Fragrant Harbor, Hong Kong University Press, →ISBN, page 126

    Anagrams

    Chinese

    Alternative forms
    • (Mandarin, one of the ways to transliterate into Chinese characters) 歐克／欧克 (ōukè)
    • ok, Ok

    Etymology

    Borrowed from English OK.

    Pronunciation

    Adjective

    OK

    1. (colloquial, sometimes nonstandard) OK
      你OK嗎？／你OK吗？  ―  Nǐ ōukèi ma?  ―  Are you OK?
      你O唔OK呀？ [Cantonese]  ―  nei5 ou1 m4 ou1 kei1 aa3? [Jyutping]  ―  Are you OK?

    Interjection

    OK

    1. (colloquial, sometimes nonstandard) OK
      上頭說OK就OK了。 [MSC, trad.]
      上头说OK就OK了。 [MSC, simp.]
      Shàngtou shuō ōukèi jiù ōukèi le. [Pinyin]
      If higher authorities say "OK", it means "OK".

    Synonyms

    Adverb

    OK

    1. (Hong Kong Cantonese) moderately; fairly
      呢科都OK易㗎。 [Cantonese, trad. and simp.]
      ni1 fo1 dou1 ou1 kei1 ji6 gaa3. [Jyutping]
      This course is fairly easy.

    Verb

    OK

    1. (Hong Kong Cantonese) to OK; to approve; to accept

    See also

    Dutch

    Pronunciation
    • IPA(key): /oːˈkaː/
    • Audio(file)

    Noun

    OK f (plural OK's)

    1. Abbreviation of operatiekamer.

    Descendants
    • → Indonesian: OK

    Finnish

    Etymology

    < English OK

    Pronunciation
    • IPA(key): /ˈokei̯/, [ˈo̞k̟e̞i̯]
    • IPA(key): /ˈoːkoː/, [ˈo̞ːko̞ː]

    Adjective

    OK

    1. Alternative form of okei

    Interjection

    OK

    1. Alternative form of okei
    2. (computing) OK (in buttons, etc.)
      Synonym: (uncommon) selvä

    Further reading
    • “OK”, in Kielitoimiston sanakirja [Dictionary of Contemporary Finnish]‎ (in Finnish) (online dictionary, continuously updated), Kotimaisten kielten keskuksen verkkojulkaisuja 35, Helsinki: Kotimaisten kielten tutkimuskeskus (Institute for the Languages of Finland), 2004–, retrieved 2023-07-03

    French

    Alternative forms

    Etymology

    Borrowed from English OK.

    Pronunciation
    • IPA(key): /ɔk/, /ɔ.ke/
    • Audio(file)
    • Audio (CAN)(file)

    Interjection

    OK

    1. OK (endorsement; approval)
      Synonyms: d’accord, entendu

    Indonesian

    Etymology

    From Dutch operatiekamer of operatie (“surgery”) +‎ kamer (“room”).

    Noun

    OK (first-person possessive OKku, second-person possessive OKmu, third-person possessive OKnya)

    1. (healthcare, colloquial) operating theatre, operating room.
      Synonym: kamar bedah

    Japanese

    Etymology

    Borrowed from English OK.

    Pronunciation

    Noun

    OK(オーケー) or OK(オッケー) • (ōkē or okkē) 

    1. agreement; approval; okay
      • 2009 January 10, Tsugumi Ohba with Obata, Takeshi, “３ページ ペンとネーム [Page 3: Pens and Names]”, in BAKUMAN(バクマン)。 [BAKUMAN.], volume 1 (fiction), Tokyo: Shueisha, →ISBN, page 104:
        マンガの下(した)描(が)きみたいなもん　まずこれを描(か)いて編(へん)集(しゅう)者(しゃ)に見(み)せてＯ(オー)Ｋ(ケー)が出(で)たら初(はじ)めて原(げん)稿(こう)にできるＯ(オー)Ｋ(ケー)が出(で)るまでは何(なん)度(ど)でも描(か)き直(なお)し　もっともネームで見(み)せていいのはマンガ家(か)としての才(さい)能(のう)を認(みと)められた奴(やつ)な
        Manga no shitagaki mitai na mon Mazu kore o kaite henshūsha ni misete ōkē ga detara hajimete genkō ni dekiru ōkē ga deru made wa nando demo kakinaoshi Motto mo nēmu de misete ii no wa mangaka toshite no sainō o mitomerareta yatsu na
        It’s basically a rough sketch for manga. First you make one and show it to the editor, and only if it’s okayed can you go ahead with the draft. You may have to do it over a couple of times till it gets the okay. Though good mangaka can just pass with the name alone.
    2. no problem
      電(でん)子(し)レンジＯ(オー)Ｋ(ケー)のお皿(さら)
      denshi renji ōkē no o-sara
      microwave-safe plates

    Antonyms

    Adjective

    OK(オーケー) or OK(オッケー) • (ōkē or okkē) -na (adnominal OK(オーケー)な (ōkē na), adverbial OK(オーケー)に (ōkē ni))

    1. OK; all right; fine

    Interjection

    OK(オーケー) or OK(オッケー) • (ōkē or okkē) 

    1. OK
      • 2009 August 25, Kozue Amano, “第(だい)２(に)話(わ) 夢(ゆめ)ヶ丘(おか)高(こう)校(こう) [Chapter 2: Yumegaoka High School]”, in [あまんちゅ](ＡＭＡＮＣＨＵ)！ [AMANCHU!], volume 1 (fiction), Tokyo: Mag Garden, →ISBN, pages 33–38:
        その１(いち)「準(じゅん)備(び)」っ　Ｏ(オッ)Ｋ(ケー)‼その２(に)「位(い)置(ち)」っ　お家(うち)の玄(げん)関(かん)　Ｏ(オッ)Ｋ(ケー)‼その３(さん)「時(じ)間(かん)」っ　７(しち)時(じ)３０(さんじゅっ)分(ぷん)　Ｏ(オッ)Ｋ(ケー)‼その４(よん)「空(くう)気(かん)」っ…………ピッ　Ｏ(オッ)Ｋ(ケー)‼その５(ご)「行(こう)動(どう)」っ　レッツらゴ——！Ｏ(オッ)Ｋ(ケー)‼
        Sono ichi “Junbi”h okkē!! Sono ni “Ichi”h o-uchi no genkan okkē!! Sono san “Jikan”h shichiji sanjuppun okkē!! Sono yon “Kūkan”h... pih okkē!! Sono go “Kōdō”h rettsu ra gō—! Okkē!!
        Number 1 “Preparation”, check!! Number 2 “Location”: Entryway, check!! Number 3 “Time”: 7:30, check!! Number 4 “Air”... Hwee, check!! Number 5 “Action”: Let’s la gooo! Check!!

    References
    1. Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN
    2. NHK Broadcasting Culture Research Institute, editor (1998), NHK日本語発音アクセント辞典 [NHK Japanese Pronunciation Accent Dictionary] (in Japanese), Tōkyō: NHK Publishing, →ISBN
    3. Kindaichi, Kyōsuke et al., editors (1997), 新明解国語辞典 [Shin Meikai Kokugo Jiten] (in Japanese), Fifth edition, Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN

    Korean

    Etymology

    From English OK.

    Pronunciation
    Romanizations
    Revised Romanization?okei
    Revised Romanization (translit.)?okei
    McCune–Reischauer?ok'ei
    Yale Romanization?o.kheyi

    Noun

    OK • (okei) (hangeul 오케이)

    1. (colloquial) good

    Antonyms

    Interjection

    OK • (okei) (hangeul 오케이)

    1. (colloquial) OK

    Portuguese

    Alternative forms

    Etymology

    Unadapted borrowing from English OK.

    Pronunciation
    • (Brazil) IPA(key): /ˌɔˈkej/ [ˌɔˈkeɪ̯]
     

    Interjection

    OK

    1. OK (indicates acknowledgement or acceptance)
      Synonyms: tudo bem, certo, tá

    Noun

    OK m (plural OKs)

    1. OK (an indication of acknowledgement or acceptance)

    Swedish

    Adverb

    OK

    1. OK, okay
      Synonym: okej

    Adjective

    OK

    1. OK, okay
      Synonym: okej

    Interjection

    OK

    1. OK, okay
      Synonym: okej

    References

    Anagrams

    Vietnamese

    Alternative forms
    • ô kê

    Etymology

    From English OK.

    Pronunciation

    Interjection

    OK

    1. (informal) OK, okay (acknowledgement or acceptance)
    2. (computing) OK, okay (dismissal of a dialog box or confirmation of a prompt)

    Synonyms
    • (acknowledgement or acceptance): ờ, ừ, ừm
    • (dismissal of a dialog box or confirmation of a prompt): được

    Antonyms
    • (antonym(s) of “dismissal of a dialog box or confirmation of a prompt”): hủy bỏ, hủy, thôi

    Anagrams
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