What does AFAIK mean?
AFAIK stands for “as far as I know.” As it is overwhelmingly found in written use, there is no agreement yet on whether it should be pronounced as an acronym (ah-FAYK), or if it is an initialism, and therefore each one of its letters is fully pronounced.
Examples of AFAIK
Is Intonation and Stress the same thing in French? AFAIK its not the same in other languages, but since French barely has stress, I find it extremely difficult to separate these two concepts specifically for French.
—@SufficientHeight63, Reddit, 10 Apr. 2024
I do wonder whether superheros are modern mythology, because AFAIK the figures of religious belief … and superheros are just not in that category.
—@skottkle, BlueSky, 5 Sept. 2024
The UK is different from (AFAIK) all current EU member states in that it does not have a constitution. Yes, I know, the UK claims to have a constitution. It differs from other constitutions in that there is no safeguard against a simple parliamentary majority changing it.
—SDfromBerlin (letter to the editor), The Independent (United Kingdom), 18 June 2024
Where does AFAIK come from?
AFAWK, AFAIK has been written about since at least the early 1990s and was surely used before then on bulletin board and other computer systems.
AFAIK, computer buffs are the only people who write mainly in capitals. And if you immediately translated that opening into ‘as far as I know’, you probably are one.
—Jack Schofield, The Guardian (London), 17 Jan. 1991
How is AFAIK used?
Although informal, AFAIK has broken the confines of texting and other online forms of online communication to appear even in more formal publications. It is also sometimes styled all lower case as afaik.
Warranties are fantastically profitable for the manufacturer, and I claim this means they area bad deal for you. … A warranty’s sole value is cash. (AFAIK, they rarely give you better treatment when you have a warranty; rather the reverse, in fact, since you’re a cost center.)
—Megan McArdle, The Atlantic, 17 Jan. 2008