SNAFU

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This article is about SNAFU as an acronym. For other uses, see Snafu.

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SNAFU is an acronym meaning 'things are in a mess – as usual'. The most commonly accepted rendering is Situation Normal: All Fucked Up, or, in polite use, Situation Normal: All Fouled Up. In modern usage, this rendering is commonly used, as is a "snafu" referring to an otherwise normal situation that suddenly went awry. The acronym is believed to have originated in the US Army during World War II.

1 Use and similar words in the U.S. Army
2 Date of origin
3 Other Uses
4 See also
5 External links

[edit] Use and similar words in the U.S. Army

It is also the name of a cartoon United States Army training video as well as the main character, Private Snafu, in the video. SNAFU's meaning was later modified for more polite conversation. In the Private Snafu cartoons, the narrator hints at its real meaning when reading the word to the audience: "Situation Normal, All... All Fouled Up". There are a number of slang army acronyms that are similar to SNAFU. They include:

AMF YOYO - Alright, Mutha Fuckers... you're on your own. Generally means "see you later." Variation: Adios, Mutha Fucka, you're on your own.
AMIIGAF - Ask me if I give a fuck
BOHICA - Bend over, here it comes again
BOYC - Bitches, obey your commander! (Or "Balls on your chin")
CF - Cluster Fuck
DAS - Dumb as Shit
DILLIGAF/DILLIGAS - Do I Look Like I Give A Fuck/Shit? Interogative form of, "(It) don't mean nothing." Both often heard in Vietnam.
FIGMO - Fuck It, Got My Orders
FISHDO - Fuck It, Shit Happens, Drive On
FUBAR - Fucked Up Beyond All Recognition / Repair / Reason / Redemption / Relief / Reality / Recovery.
FUBB - Fucked Up Beyond Belief
FUBIO - Fuck You Buddy, I'm Out; or Forget You, Bub, It's Over (polite form)
FUGAZI - Fucked Up, Got Ambushed, Zipped In; Refers to out-of-control situation such as a chaotic jungle warfare combat environment
FUMTU - Fucked Up More Than Usual
GFU - General Fuck Up
HMFIC - Head Mother Fucker In Charge
IDGAF - I Don't Give a Fuck
JAAFU or JAAFFU - Joint Army-Air Force Fuck-Up; the use of JANFU combined with a radical increase in joint-forces operations since 1989, has led to the rare but increasing use of JAAFU/JAAFFU
JANFU - Joint Army/Navy Fuck-Up; used by British troops in WWII
MMFD - Miles and Miles of Fucking Desert! British expression
MOE - Man On the Edge - A person that is on the verge of going crazy or acting dangerously
MUBAR - Mash up beyond all recognition. Refers to being proper mash up
NEPUT - Non Electrical Pop Up Target
NFG - No Fucking Good
PNG - Persona Non Grata - someone who has fallen out of favor.
POS- Piece Of Shit
SMUBAR - Semi mash up beyond all recognition. Not quite MUBAR but well on the way
SNAFU - Situation Normal: All Fucked Up
SAMFU - Self Adjusting Military Fuck Up
SUSFU - Situation Unchanged: Still Fucked Up
TARFU - Things Are Really Fucked Up
TINS - This Is No Shit! Often seen in veterans' forums
TOFU - Things Ordinary: Fucked Up
TUIFU - The Ultimate In Fuck Ups
WTF - What the Fuck? (sometimes WTH, the "H" meaning "hell" or "heck")
WTFO - What the Fuck, Over
YUCATAN - You're Under Certain Annihilation Throw A Nuke

Note: In situations where 'fucked' is inappropriate, it is often replaced with 'fouled'

During the Battle of the Bulge in WWII, many American troops were retreating in the face of the German advance around the embattled city of Bastogne, where the 101st Airborne Division were besieged and held off the Germans. Some soldiers from the retreating units were banded together by order of General McAuliffe, then ad-hoc commander of the 101st. They were dubbed Task Force SNAFU.

[edit] Date of origin

SNAFU, simply defined as "Situation normal", was reported in American Notes and Queries in their September 1941 issue, which would argue for an origin date no later than early 1941. Most references, including the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, supply a date range of 1940 - 1944, generally attributing it to the U.S. Army.

[edit] Other Uses

S.N.A.F.U. (in this case standing for 'Society of Nefarious and Felonious Undertakings') is the name of the villain group in The X's.

SNAFU, a BMX Bicycle part and frame manufacturer. [1]

snafu, the name of a German ISP, a division of Inter.net Germany GmbH. [2]

SNAFU, System Null And Flood Unit. A safety device fitted to Royal Navy Submarines.

S.N.A.F.U. According to The Empire S.N.A.F.U. Restoration Project, S.N.A.F.U. was a homeless visionary who constructed iconic devices from refuse in an attempt to initiate a new golden age.

Snafu, an alternate name for Screwball Scramble, a toy made by Tomy

S.N.A.F.U., Southern Nevada Ale Fermenters Union, a Las Vegas area homebrewing club