3 ms·

The "no" might be short for "I know".

• bjt 11y ago
  From the article: > Or maybe—and this is the theory I like best, but can least substantiate—“No, totally” is really a contraction of “I know, totally.” That is linguistically improbable; I know of no instance in the English language where a homophonic slippage of this sort has taken place. But I like the theory anyway, because it captures what is often the semantic intent of “No, totally” with uncanny precision: I understand, and I am fully in accord.
  • bitJericho 11y ago
    When I say or read no, totally, I don't think "know" in my mind. I think above comments nailed it. It means "no question" or "no need to go on" to me.
• harperlee 11y ago
  As a counterexample, in spanish, we say "No, claro", and we don't have anything similar to "know".
  • hfsktr 11y ago
    saber/conocer? Unless I'm missing something?
    • jeorgun 11y ago
      The crucial point is that "yo sé" couldn't be shortened to "no", in the same way that "I know" can be shortened to "no" (via "I know" -> "know" -> "no").