# What does the 'fi' stand for in WiFi?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-fi-stand-for-in-wifi/477023>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [December 13, 2008, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-fi-stand-for-in-wifi/477023 "2008-12-13T17:35:11Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Shalmanese](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shalmanese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shalmanese)\
**Post date:** [December 13, 2008, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-fi-stand-for-in-wifi/477023/1 "2008-12-13T17:35:11Z")

</div>

Wikipedia is not much help.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\
**Post date:** [December 13, 2008, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-fi-stand-for-in-wifi/477023/2 "2008-12-13T17:40:09Z")

</div>

[http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/W/Wi\_Fi.html](http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/W/Wi_Fi.html)

> [@](#):
>
> A common misconception is that the term Wi-Fi is short for “wireless fidelity,” however this is not the case. Wi-Fi is simply a trademarked term meaning IEEE 802.11x.

> **[Wi-Fi Definition - What is Wi-Fi?](https://techterms.com/definition/wi-fi)**
>
> A simple definition of Wi-Fi that is easy to understand.

> [@](#):
>
> Short for “Wireless Fidelity.” (Yes, it is pretty much a rip-off of the term “Hi-Fi,” or High Fidelity, which refers to high-quality audio or surround sound.) Wi-Fi refers to wireless network components that are based on one of the Wi-Fi Alliance’s 802.11 standards.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![CWN](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/bc79bd/32.png) [@CWN](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CWN)\
**Post date:** [December 13, 2008, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-fi-stand-for-in-wifi/477023/3 "2008-12-13T17:41:57Z")

</div>

From [Answers.com](http://Answers.com)

Wireless Fidelity (Wi-Fi)  
The popular term for a high-frequency wireless local area network. The consumer-friendly name for the 802.11b engineering standard. It lets home and office users create wireless local networks, which connect two or more computers to each other and a faster Internet line. This way there is no more poking holes in walls or tripping over bulky Ethernet cables. The Wi-Fi technology is rapidly gaining acceptance as an alternative to a wired local area network (LAN)

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Markxxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@Markxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Markxxx)\
**Post date:** [December 13, 2008, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-fi-stand-for-in-wifi/477023/4 "2008-12-13T20:27:43Z")

</div>

It’s probably like the suffix “aholic” once applied to alcohol to form alcoholic, instead of just using “ic” they hadd oholic to form the meanings of addictions. Like shopaholic, chocoholic, etc

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\
**Post date:** [December 13, 2008, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-fi-stand-for-in-wifi/477023/5 "2008-12-13T20:32:31Z")

</div>

So the answer to the question is: _nothing_.