fnord
1. <convention> A word used in electronic mail and news messages to tag
utterances as surrealist mind-play or humour, especially in connection with
Discordianism and elaborate conspiracy theories. "I heard that David Koresh is
sharing an apartment in Argentina with Hitler. (Fnord.)" "Where can I fnord get
the Principia Discordia from?"
2. <programming> A metasyntactic variable, commonly used by hackers with
ties to Discordianism or the Church of the SubGenius.
The word "fnord" was invented in the "Illuminatus!" trilogy by Robert Shea and
Robert Anton Wilson.
[Jargon File]
(1995-02-28)
Nearby terms:
FMV « FNAL « FNC « fnord » FN tunnelling » fo » FOAD
