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What does OK actually mean?


LadyVin
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i think och aye is a pretty good story. a good story is better than a true story. and scottish just sounds cool, although y'all should come with subtitles.

"y'all" :shock: I thought you were a yankee :!: Isn't it against the law - or at least against nature - for you to use that word :?:

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i think och aye is a pretty good story. a good story is better than a true story. and scottish just sounds cool, although y'all should come with subtitles.

"y'all" :shock: I thought you were a yankee :!: Isn't it against the law - or at least against nature - for you to use that word :?:

i have a special license, lived in north carolina for about 7 years.

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One shall endeavour to stick to the queen's English.

What's the difference between the queen's english and the king's english? :wink: :roll:

I assume that when the monarch of England is a woman we say the Queen's english. When it's a man we say the King's english.

the king's english is the language as spoken by the late elvis aaron presley, the queen's english, as spoken by ladyboys.

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One shall endeavour to stick to the queen's English.

What's the difference between the queen's english and the king's english? :wink: :roll:

I assume that when the monarch of England is a woman we say the Queen's english. When it's a man we say the King's english.

the king's english is the language as spoken by the late elvis aaron presley, the queen's english, as spoken by ladyboys.

And Freddie Mercury.

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One shall endeavour to stick to the queen's English.

What's the difference between the queen's english and the king's english? :wink: :roll:

I assume that when the monarch of England is a woman we say the Queen's english. When it's a man we say the King's english.

the king's english is the language as spoken by the late elvis aaron presley, the queen's english, as spoken by ladyboys.

:D

Gosh you're very sharp tonight. What are you smoking?

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One shall endeavour to stick to the queen's English.

What's the difference between the queen's english and the king's english? :wink: :roll:

I assume that when the monarch of England is a woman we say the Queen's english. When it's a man we say the King's english.

the king's english is the language as spoken by the late elvis aaron presley, the queen's english, as spoken by ladyboys.

And Freddie Mercury.

Unfortunately Freddie Mercury hasn't been doing much speaking or singing of the Queen's English for about 13 or 14 years now.

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Here is what good old Oxford Dictionaries says about "ok"...

What is the origin of the word 'OK'?

There have been numerous attempts to explain the emergence of this curious colloquial expression, which seems to have swept into popular use in the US during the mid-19th century. Most of them are undoubtedly pure speculation. It does not seem at all likely, from the linguistic and historical evidence, that it derives from the Scots expression 'och aye', the Greek ola kala ('it is good'), the Choctaw Indian oke or okeh ('it is so'), the French aux Cayes ('from Cayes', a port in Haiti with a reputation for good rum) or au quai ('to the quay', as supposedly used by French-speaking dockers), or the initials of a railway freight agent called Obediah Kelly who is said to have written them on lading documents he had checked.

The oldest written references to 'OK' result from its adoption as a slogan by the Democratic party during the American Presidential election of 1840. Their candidate, President Martin Van Buren, was nicknamed 'Old Kinderhook' (after his birthplace in New York State), and his supporters formed the 'OK Club'.

This undoubtedly helped to popularize the term (though it did not get President Van Buren re-elected!). During the late 1830s there had been a brief but widespread craze in the US for humorous misspellings, and the form orl korrekt which was among them could explain the initials 'OK'. Such a theory has been supported by more than one distinguished American scholar, and is given in many dictionaries, including Oxford dictionaries.

The only other theory with at least a degree of plausibility is that the term originated among Black slaves of West African origin, and represents a word meaning 'all right, yes indeed' in various West African languages. Unfortunately, historical evidence enabling the origin of this expression to be finally and firmly established may be hard to unearth.

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I found another explanation with Copernic search engine, very interesting and funny too:

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Pushmataha - Choctaw Warrior

Courtesy Dr. John M. Kaye

On the Origin of OK

The following passage is from the book, By the Flow of the Inland River - The Settlement of Columbus, Mississippi to 1825, by Samuel H. Kaye, Rufus Ward, Jr., and Carolyn B. Neault. Columbus, MS 1992.

". . .During the Creek War the Choctaws, principally under the leadership of Pushmataha, not only sided with the Americans but contributed 500 men to Andrew Jackson's army (Niles 1-1-1824)

- Although the Creek war was over, the Choctaw contingent would help the Americans in one last battle. In January, 1815, tradition has it that Pushmataha and his warriors, while serving under Andrew Jackson at the Battle of New Orleans, gave a lasting contribution to the English Language. During the battle, Jackson is said to have asked Pushmataha if the fight against the British was going well for the Choctaw detachment. Pushmataha supposedly answered with a Choctaw word which meant that things were all right. Jackson liked the word and began using it himself. The word was OK. According to the Dictionary of Word Origins, the favored source for the symbol OK ". . seems to be the Choctaw word OKEH, it is so" (Shipley). The use is also attributed to President Andrew Jackson among others." [Rufus Ward intimates it may have actually been Pushmataha's nephew who had this reported exchange with Jackson. Also, it may have been Jackson's adjutant who made the inquiry.]

But I would say that OK is the opposite of KO (than u r definitly not OK) :P

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