Okay, okay, O-K, um, okay, oh, okay. They can all mean radically different things to different people. Yet we use them almost universally, as if everyone knows exactly what is meant by two to four letters that have become more of a single sound in today’s conversational English than an actual verbal expression.
So, to help with this massive assumption in our society, this is my definition of what I mean when I say “OK” or when I receive an “OK” status from another person:
OK = I am beating 4 of the 5 Threes.
So, I have four of the following:
- More than 3 minutes of air
- More than 3 hours of heat
- More than 3 days of water
- More than 3 weeks of food
- More than 3 seconds of hope