Difference between "OK" and "okay"


While typing a post on SO, I noticed that the word "ok" (when used in the sentence "I'm still learning so it is ok") was marked as misspelled (got to love spellcheck!) The first suggestion, however, confused me. The suggestion was "OK" (as opposed to "ok"). Then I thought, what about "okay"?


So, why is "OK" correctly spelled (vs "ok") and what is their relationship to the word "okay"? They all have the same meaning; could "OK" be a form of slang or abbreviation?



Answer



"Okay" is listed as a variant spelling of "OK" in my local dictionary. This previous answer has a good description on the origin of "OK":



According to the OED, it's an initialism of oll (or orl) korrect, first seen in 1839.



I suspect that "ok" is not listed as an acceptable spelling because the origin of the word was "OK" due to its being an initialism. The variant of "okay" is just how one would spell a word with the same pronunciation. With "OK" and "okay", there isn't much need for "ok".


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