ACK

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/æk/
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A signal that confirms a message was received.
Practice using ACK in conversation until it feels natural

Examples

  • She let out an ack when the cat knocked over the vase.
  • A faulty ACK caused the robot to shut down.
  • You can pipe the output of ACK into other tools.
  • He ACKed the warning and took action.
  • The signalman flashed an ACK during the wartime drill.

Similar words

darn
text finder
grep alternative
rechargeable
dang
code A
acknowledgment
accept
receipt
power pack

Meanings

Acknowledgment signal

technology
neutral
A short signal sent in data communications to confirm that a packet or message has been received successfully.

Examples

  • The client waited for an ACK before sending the next packet.
  • When the router receives the data, it immediately returns an ACK.
  • A missing ACK caused the transmission to be retried.
  • The protocol defines an ACK as a short confirmation signal.
  • During testing, we logged each ACK to verify reliability.
  • If the server does not see an ACK, it assumes the packet was lost.

Similar words

confirmation
receipt
acknowledgment
reply
response
signal

Expression of dismay

social
informal
A brief exclamation used to show annoyance, surprise, or disappointment.

Examples

  • Ack! I spilled coffee on my shirt.
  • Ack, the meeting started without me.
  • She let out an ack when the cat knocked over the vase.
  • Ack—my phone just died.
  • He muttered an ack after hearing the bad news.
  • The crowd shouted ack as the surprise was revealed.

Similar words

dang
shoot
darn
drat
crap
heck

Military signal for the letter A

military
archaic
The code word representing the letter A in historic military signalling.

Examples

  • In the old naval code, an ACK signaled the letter A.
  • The signalman flashed an ACK during the wartime drill.
  • Historical records show an ACK used to convey 'A' in flag semaphore.
  • During the exercise, each ACK was followed by a pause.
  • The telegraph operator transmitted an ACK as part of the message.
  • A series of ACKs marked the start of the coded transmission.

Similar words

signal A
code A
letter A signal

Acknowledged

verb
computing
neutral
To indicate that a message has been received or understood.

Examples

  • I ACK your email and will reply soon.
  • She ACKed the request before the deadline.
  • Please ACK this message so I know you received it.
  • The system automatically ACKs incoming packets.
  • He ACKed the warning and took action.
  • We need everyone to ACK the policy changes.

Similar words

confirm
acknowledge
recognize
note
accept
record

Electric accumulator

noun
electronics
informal
A battery or other device that stores electrical energy.

Examples

  • The drone's flight time depends on a high-capacity ACK.
  • Replace the old ACK to restore power to the device.
  • This model uses a lightweight ACK for longer runs.
  • Charging the ACK takes about two hours.
  • A faulty ACK caused the robot to shut down.
  • We tested the new ACK under extreme temperatures.

Similar words

battery
cell
power pack
energy source
rechargeable
accumulator

Code-searching tool

noun
software
neutral
A program used to search source-code files for text patterns.

Examples

  • I ran ACK to locate all TODO comments in the repo.
  • Developers prefer ACK over grep for faster code searches.
  • The script uses ACK to find function definitions.
  • Running ACK with a regex returned dozens of matches.
  • You can pipe the output of ACK into other tools.
  • The new version of ACK supports Unicode patterns.

Similar words

search tool
grep alternative
code grep
source search utility
text finder
pattern matcher

Etymology

From the abbreviation (clipping) of “acknowledge”.

FAQ

What does ACK mean?

It is a short signal that confirms a message was received.

What does ACK mean in computing or data communications?

It is a brief acknowledgment signal sent to confirm that a packet or message has been received successfully.

How is ACK used as an informal expression?

It is a brief exclamation showing annoyance, surprise, or disappointment.

What does the verb ACK mean?

It means to indicate that a message has been received or understood.

In electronics, what does ACK refer to?

It refers to an electric accumulator, essentially a battery that stores electrical energy.

Where does the abbreviation ACK come from?

It originates from the clipping of the word “acknowledge”.

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