m'kay
See also: mkay
English
[edit]Alternative forms
[edit]Etymology
[edit]Nasalized variant of okay. Perhaps popularized by Mr. Mackey's catchphrase in South Park; earlier, apparently chiefly in linguistic transcriptions of speech.
Pronunciation
[edit]Interjection
[edit]m'kay
- (informal) Okay; an expression of acknowledgment or affirmation, now sometimes used in an ironic or condescending sense.
- spelling mkay
- 1991, Barbara A. Fox, “Cognitive and Interactional Aspects of Correction in Tutoring,” in Teaching Knowledge and Intelligent Tutoring, Peter Goodyear ed. [1]:
- In these tutoring sessions we have found that, when the tutor agrees with the student’s displayed understanding, her signal of confirmation comes quickly after the student’s turn, as in:
S. Mkay.
hh. And I know it’s negative, just to follow your thought process, because I know that the sine is positive.
T. Mhm
- In these tutoring sessions we have found that, when the tutor agrees with the student’s displayed understanding, her signal of confirmation comes quickly after the student’s turn, as in:
- 1993, Herbert H Clark, Arenas of Language Use [2]
- [...] the director would go on only when both were satisfied the matcher had understood, as here:
D. The long view of the quad uh walkway
M. those
M. ┌ numbers right?
D. └ is number 5
M. Mkay
D. Yeah with the numbers on the bottom.
- [...] the director would go on only when both were satisfied the matcher had understood, as here:
- 1995, Charles Conrad and Lucinda Sinclair-James, “Institutional Pressures, Cultural Constraints, and Communication in Community Mediation Organizations,” in Conflict and Organizations, Anne Maydan Nicotera ed.
- M1: Mkay. Let me point us back to. This is related to um what we were talking about and how you’re going to um sort of report what happened here tonight.
- 2004, Gordon Atkinson, RealLivePreacher.com [3]:
- My bold, Crocodile Hunter “Absolutely” withered into “mkay” with the end of the word lilted up like a desperate question.
- 2004, Deanna Kizis, How to Meet Cute Boys [4]:
- That has nothing to do with star-power crap and everything to do with keeping it real, mkay?
- 1991, Barbara A. Fox, “Cognitive and Interactional Aspects of Correction in Tutoring,” in Teaching Knowledge and Intelligent Tutoring, Peter Goodyear ed. [1]:
- spelling mmkay
- 1997: Christina S. Beck, Partnership for Health (dead link):
- C: I want you to re:st (.) re:st (.) as much as you can do (.) is just re:st (.) hhh when >you go< home (.) >you tell< your husband you make dinner honey (.) hhh you take care of me (.) . . . I need >to set< down (.) I need >to rest< (.)
P: mmkay (.)
C: and >get down< (.) watch your sodium (.) the salt=
- C: I want you to re:st (.) re:st (.) as much as you can do (.) is just re:st (.) hhh when >you go< home (.) >you tell< your husband you make dinner honey (.) hhh you take care of me (.) . . . I need >to set< down (.) I need >to rest< (.)
- 2004, Abbe Diaz, PX This (dead link):
- well i used to have some skilled sticky fingers of my own back in the day so i know a shoplifted dress when i see one mmkay.
- 2005, Catherine Delaney, The Rosameorns (dead link):
- I looked back to him...mmkay brown hair dark eyes...high cheek bones that lucky monkey I wonder if he has some native American.
- 2005, Jenny Colgan, Boy I Loved Before (dead link)
- She was sitting perched on her desk, in that nonchalant, ‘mmkay?’ way teachers do when they’re trying to pretend they’re down with the kids.
- 1997: Christina S. Beck, Partnership for Health (dead link):
- spelling mmmkay
- 1999, “It's Easy, MMMKay.” [title, in soundtrack] South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut
- 2004, Victoria Schmitz, If It’s Not One Thing It’s the Other [5]:
- Let’s get all this straight. He took me to a place he hates to see if I like it. Mmmkay.
- 2004, Stephanie Lehmann, Are You in the Mood [6]
- He told her she could sleep in if she liked. “Mmmkay,” she said without opening her eyes, and he kissed her good-bye.
- spelling m’kay
- 1999, Tom Bradley, Black Class Cur [7]:
- “I’ll tell you a secret if you promise not to tell anybody, not even the missus, m’kay?”
“M’kay.”
- “I’ll tell you a secret if you promise not to tell anybody, not even the missus, m’kay?”
- 2003, Bill Hunt and Todd Doogan, The Digital Bits: Insider’s Guide to DVD [8]:
- But do keep in mind that this film [viz. South Park] is not for the faint of heart, and it ain’t for kids, m’kay?
- 1999, Tom Bradley, Black Class Cur [7]:
- spelling mm-kay
- spelling mmm-kay
- 2005, Michael Collins, Hot Lights, Cold Steel[11]:
- “Well, I’m going to take a picture of your arm and then this nice doctor is going to fix it for you, okay?”
“Mmm-kay.”
- spelling mkay
Usage notes
[edit]- Spellings with initial h, suggesting reanalysis as hmm + 'kay, are common on the Internet, though print citations are yet lacking.