five by five
Five by five is a radio communications expression that means 'loud and clear'. One of the fives represents the S units of reception strength. The other five is a rating of the signal clarity. Five by five is a good, clear signal. The radio use of this expression goes back to the 1950s: "'All right, testing, one-two-three-four. . .' 'Five by five, Mr. Holloran!'" (Hunter,
Blackboard Jungle, 1954).The more metaphorical meaning, popularized by
Faith Lehane from the television show Buffy the Vampire Slayer, wasn't recorded until the 1980s. The use of the word is primarily used in the military, or when discussing something similar.
five by five
by huddaddy on Sep 11, 2003 02:47:31
Loud and clear. From military erminology. Old radios had two readings. Loudness and clarity rated from
0-5. Thus five by five means literally
loud and clear.
five by five
by SpeedoMask on Aug 11, 2003 15:09:26
Term meaning everything is OK.
The term comes from
old radio slang. When communicating over radio, the operator would report the strength and clarity of
the signal on a scale of 1 to 5 each. Therefore, if a radio operator described the signal as "five by five" it meant it was both
loud and clear.
five by five
by jayde on Sep 16, 2004 11:02:10
five by five
by rickysayshi on Jan 02, 2009 06:08:28
five by five
by The Grammar Nazi on Feb 20, 2002 16:19:42
five by five
by Tim Jilbert on Apr 17, 2003 10:54:28
five, five, five, and five
by Dr. P. Hunter on Jul 22, 2008 13:26:41
Five By Five
by tonyhippy on Dec 15, 2011 09:23:21
five-by-five
by Sikozu Sta.-Ána on Sep 04, 2003 14:43:45
Originally an
aeronautical term that is the equivalent to the modern "Loud & Clear". In slang usage, it means "great, fine"; popular in New England, it was made famous in "Buffy:
the Vampire Slayer" from its overuse by
the rogue slayer Faith.