ping someone
ping someone (informal, verb)
/ˈpɪŋ ˌsʌmwʌn/
Meaning
- Send a quick digital message to get someone’s attention or request a reply.
- Contact someone briefly, usually through email, chat, or text.
- Remind or nudge someone about something.
- Notify or alert someone of an update or event.
- Reach out quickly in a casual or non-formal manner
Synonyms: message; text; alert; notify; contact.
Example Sentences
- I’ll ping you when the meeting starts.
- Can you ping him to confirm the time?
- I’ll ping you tomorrow about the report.
- Please ping me when the delivery arrives.
- Just ping me if you need help.
Origin and History
Onomatopoeia and Early Usage
The most widely accepted theory traces the phrase to the onomatopoeic word “ping.” This sound imitates a sharp, high-pitched noise, such as a sonar pulse or a bullet ricocheting. It’s a sound that grabs attention. In the context of early computing, “ping” was a command used to test the connection to another computer on a network. The tool would send a small packet of data, and if the destination computer received it, it would “ping” back with a response. This process was a way to check if a device was “alive” on the network.
From Technology to Conversation
The leap from a technical command to a conversational phrase happened naturally. As people became more familiar with the concept of instant messaging and email, they began to use “ping” to describe sending a quick, attention-grabbing message. It was a concise way to say, “I’m going to send you a brief message to get your attention.” This usage was likely influenced by the fact that many messaging apps use a notification sound that could be described as a “ping.” The term was a perfect fit for a quick, non-urgent notification.
The “Ping Pong” Theory
Another theory, though less common, connects the phrase to the game of ping-pong. The back-and-forth nature of the game, where players quickly hit a ball to each other, mirrors the quick exchange of messages in a digital conversation. Just as you “ping” the ball to your opponent, you “ping” a message to a friend or colleague. While this theory is not as well-supported as the technical origin, it offers a creative and plausible explanation for the phrase’s popularity.
The Country of Origin
The phrase originated in the United States, alongside the development of computer networking and the popularization of the internet. The command-line tool known as “ping” was created by a software engineer in the United States in the early 1980s. This technological innovation laid the groundwork for the later metaphorical use of the word.
Earliest Printed Record
The earliest documented use of “ping” in a digital context dates back to 1983. This was in the documentation for the “ping” network utility program. While this is the first printed record of the technical term, the earliest use of “ping” as a verb meaning “to send a message” appeared in online communities and early forums in the mid-1990s. One of the earliest known examples in a published work is from a 1999 article in a technical magazine, where an author wrote, “I’ll ping you with the details later.” This demonstrates the phrase had already made its way from technical jargon to common language.
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