Y2K

[ wahy-too-key ]

abbreviation for

1. the year 2000.
2. Also called millennium bug ( ), a bug that could cause computers or software to misinterpret a year after 1999 as having the first two digits 19 instead of 20, due to the coding of dates using only the last two digits of the four-digit year.

adjective

1. relating to or characteristic of the late 1990s and early 2000s:

   The outfit merges Y2K aesthetics with contemporary trends.

Y2K

noun

1. another name for the year 2000 ad (esp referring to the millennium bug)

Word History and Origins

Origin of Y2K¹

First recorded in 1995–2000; Y(ear) + 2 + K symbol for the number 1000

Word History and Origins

Origin of Y2K¹

C20: y ( ear ) + 2 + k (in the sense: thousand)

Example Sentences

For most of us, the repeal of DADT has been Y2K all over: something hyped, but nothing more.

From The Daily Beast

Not likely, since the end-of-millennium Y2K scare was just as hysterical as the response to Irene.

From The Daily Beast

We also must be ready for the 21st century from its very first moment by solving the so-called Y2K computer problem.

From Project Gutenberg