This guide will give you all of the information you need on the acronym FIFY, including its meaning, common usage, example sentences and more!
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Kevin
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January 27, 2021
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Common Questions
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What does FIFY stand for?
According to Cyber Definitions, the term FIFY stands for “fixed it for you.” The acronym FTFY stands for “fixed that for you,” and the two terms can be used interchangeably. FIFY can either be used as shorthand slang to show when someone has fixed or solved something on behalf of someone else, or as a piece of sarcastic internet slang to contradict someone else.
According to Urban Dictionary, the acronym is most often used to slightly tweak another poster or commentor’s work to make a sarcastic joke or comment, if being used for the latter meaning. This is a casual abbreviation that is commonly seen in texting, or on social media sites, message boards, or forums.
How can FIFY be used in a sentence?
FIFY can be used in a couple of different ways, both sincerely and sarcastically. The term is rarely seen spoken aloud, and is usually only written in texts, instant messages, or internet forums.
In this first scenario, the term will be used sincerely. Bella is instant messaging with her IT technician Vivian at work.
Bella: Hi Vivian! My email keeps telling me that my mailbox is almost full, but I delete any messages I don’t need. Is there any way I can fix this?
Vivian: Let me look into that. One moment!
Bella: Thank you!
Vivian: FIFY! It looks like it was still storing it in the cloud. I cleared that out for you.
Bella: You’re the best, thank you!
Here, Vivian uses the phrase FIFY sincerely, to tell Bella she didn’t need to worry about fixing her computer problem, and that Vivian had fixed it for her. Next, Henry and James are in an online debate about the best show of all time.
Henry: I really enjoy watching The Office!
James: “I really enjoy coming home from my boring dead-end job to watch other people work at their own boring dead-end jobs!” FIFY, Henry!
Henry: Very funny, not!
Here, James is using the phrase FIFY sarcastically to poke fun at Henry’s favorite show, while lightly insulting it in the process. This casual phrase should not be used in professional or formal settings.
What are similar phrases to FIFY?
FIFY has a few internet slang synonyms that could be used interchangeably or similarly to FIFY. Online forum sites like Reddit have their own set of slang words and shorthand that are often difficult to decipher at first glance. From Bustle and Mashable, below are synonyms for FIFY alongside other Reddit terms and their definitions.
- FTFY – “Fixed that for you.” Incredibly similar to FIFY, this term is predominantly used sarcastically, not necessarily to fix a mistake but to disagree with someone, according to Urban Dictionary.
- FOFY – “Find out for yourself.” This term is usually used to be less than helpful when someone asks questions the user believes they could have found the answer for on their own, according to Urban Dictionary. Similar to LMGTFY, which stands for “Let Me Google That For You.”
- QFT – “Quote for truth.” This is similar to the slang term “true that,” and is used in a similar way to show agreement or affirmation.
- IANAL – “I am not a lawyer.” This frequently appears on the subreddit, or sub-forum of Reddit, r/legaladvice and is used as a disclaimer to precede a piece of advice.
- IIRC – “If I recall correctly.” This is used to precede a statement that someone believes to be fact, but is not entirely sure of. It is intended as a disclaimer.
- TL;DR – “Too long; didn’t read.” This often appears at the end of lengthy posts before a summary for those who believe the post is too long to read fully.
- ITT – “In this thread.” This is often used to precede commentary on the commenters or posters in a particular thread.
- NSFL – “Not safe/suitable for life.” A play on the common NSFW meaning “not safe for work,” this is used to describe gruesome images that are not only inappropriate for work, but inappropriate for anyone to look at.
- HIFW – “How I feel when…” This is typically used alongside GIFs or reaction images that paint a picture of how someone is feeling when a particular thing happens. Similar to MRW, which stands for “my reaction when.”
- TIL – “Today I learned.” This is a subreddit that includes threads of fun facts people learned, or facts that they feel they should have learned a long time ago but never did.
- AMA – “Ask me anything.” Commonly, celebrities or specialists will host an AMA on Reddit where commenters can ask them questions and they will answer it in the forum.
- DAE – “Does anyone else…” This is commonly used to ask if someone is alone in an opinion or action.
- ELI5 – “Explain it like I’m five.” This is used for complicated concepts that need simplifying.
- FWP – “First world problems.” This is used when someone complains about something that in the grand scheme of life does not matter. It shows that people should be grateful for what they have.
Overall, the definition of FIFY is “fixed it for you.” It is used when someone has solved a problem on your behalf. It is also commonly used on internet forums like Reddit as a contradiction to something another user has said or written. This term can either be used sincerely or sarcastically, depending on the context. Because of this, one should be careful when using the phrase that they are not being offensive!
Sources:
- https://www.bustle.com/articles/73990-what-does-tldr-mean-a-handy-guide-to-reddits-acronyms-infographic
- https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=FTFY
- https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=FOFY
- https://www.cyberdefinitions.com/definitions/FIFY.html#:~:text=FIFY%20means%20%22Fixed%20It%20For,that%20another%20user%20has%20written
- https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=FIFY
