Acronym
What does AFK mean?
Away from keyboard: a notice that you have left the keys — or the screen — for a while, while the session stays open.
Definition
AFK means away from keyboard. In chat and in games it is the short status: I will not answer now; the character or the cursor sits still. The account can stay online; the person who typed it is the one off the keys. Phones barely have keyboards, and the letters survived as a temporary absence from the device, not a logoff.
BRB (be right back) promises a short return; AFK names the state, two minutes or lunch. People often stack them: “brb afk.” IRL (in real life) is the world off the screen; you can be IRL and still type AFK in the raid. In a group game the line is etiquette: without it, a frozen avatar reads as abandonment. Outside the match, the letters became a metaphor for going quiet in a group without goodbye. Discord has an AFK voice channel; AFK farming is parking a character to gather.
Origin
English from bulletin boards. On 8 May 1989 FidoNews (volume 6, number 19) listed AFK as away from keys, in the same glossary as BRB and BAK (back at keys). On 17 January 1990 Russ Coffman glossed AFK = away from keyboard in rec.humor; the OED used a May 1990 Usenet date.
History
IRC and MMORPGs (Neverwinter, Ultima Online, WoW) made it raid etiquette. From FidoNet the notice reached Discord. In 2020 Among Us sent searches up again: pretending to be AFK became a bluff. On a phone the keyboard in the acronym is a desktop leftover: I am not looking at this screen; I will be back.
How it emerged
On a dial-up line, hanging up to use the bathroom was expensive. Three letters had to say: I am still in the room, I am just not at the keyboard. Away from keys in the 1989 FidoNews fit that line.
Usage examples
AFK 5 min, don't pull the boss.
Going AFK to get the mail.
He has been AFK from this group for weeks.
Translations
- pt AFK / longe do teclado
- en AFK / away from keyboard
- es AFK / lejos del teclado
Synonyms
- away from keyboard
- away
- BRB
- be right back
Acronyms
- AFK