OC
Abbreviation with 8 meanings
| Stands for | Orange County, California |
|---|---|
| Meanings | 8 |
| Categories | Geography & Places, Government & Politics, Texting & Internet Slang, Military, Sports, Technology & Computing, Law & Legal |
OC has eight meanings. The most common are Orange County, California (region) and Oleoresin capsicum (police); it can also stand for Original character, Original content, Officer Commanding, Offensive coordinator and Overclocking, plus 1 more listed below.
Meanings of OC at a glance
| # | OC stands for | Context |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Orange County, California | Geography & Places › Region |
| 2 | Oleoresin capsicum | Government & Politics › Police |
| 3 | Original character | Texting & Internet Slang › Fandom and Fan Fiction |
| 4 | Original content | Texting & Internet Slang › Social Media |
| 5 | Officer Commanding | Military › British Military Rank |
| 6 | Offensive coordinator | Sports › American Football |
| 7 | Overclocking | Technology & Computing › Computer Hardware |
| 8 | Opposing counsel | Law & Legal › Litigation |
1. Orange County, California
Geography & Places · Region Abbreviations
County of about 3.2 million people between Los Angeles and San Diego, home to Disneyland, Anaheim, Irvine and Huntington Beach. OC is the everyday local name, used by the county itself.
Example: OC beaches closed for two days after the sewage spill.
The television series The O.C. (2003 to 2007) made the abbreviation famous nationally. Orange counties also exist in Florida, New York and North Carolina, among others.
2. Oleoresin capsicum
Government & Politics · Police Abbreviations
Inflammatory agent derived from hot peppers that is the active ingredient in pepper spray, carried by police and sold for self-defense. OC spray causes intense burning of the eyes and skin and temporary blindness.
Example: The suspect kept fighting even after a burst of OC to the face.
Strength is measured by the concentration of capsaicinoids rather than Scoville units alone. Effects usually wear off within about 30 to 45 minutes. OC replaced CS tear gas as the standard spray for US officers in the 1990s. In everyday usage, OC more often refers to Orange County, California.
3. Original character
Texting & Internet Slang · Fandom and Fan Fiction Abbreviations
Character created by a fan rather than taken from the source material, appearing in fan fiction, fan art and role-play, as in "my OC in the Pokémon universe."
Example: Drew my OC wearing the academy uniform from the anime.
OCs are a cornerstone of fan art communities such as DeviantArt and Toyhouse. Overly perfect OCs may be criticized as "Mary Sues." On Reddit and image boards, OC instead means "original content," and in Southern California the letters mean Orange County, so the setting matters.
4. Original content
Texting & Internet Slang · Social Media Abbreviations
Content created by the person posting it rather than reposted from elsewhere, labeled "[OC]" in Reddit titles, image boards and art communities. It signals ownership and invites credit.
Example: Took this photo of the aurora from my backyard last night [OC].
Reddit communities such as data visualization and photography subreddits require an [OC] tag for creator posts. Reposting without credit is a common complaint, and the tag helps distinguish creators from aggregators. In fandom OC means "original character," a different but related idea.
5. Officer Commanding
Military · British Military Rank Abbreviations
British and Commonwealth title for the commander of a sub-unit such as a company, squadron or battery, usually a major. The term distinguishes sub-unit command from command of a battalion or regiment, whose leader is the commanding officer (CO).
Example: The OC briefed his platoon commanders on the company attack plan.
A British battalion has one CO, a lieutenant colonel, and several OCs. In the US Army, OC more often means officer candidate, a trainee at Officer Candidate School, or observer controller at training centers. Context and nationality usually settle the meaning.
6. Offensive coordinator
Sports · American Football Abbreviations
Assistant coach who designs the offensive game plan and, on many teams, calls the plays during games. Successful coordinators are the most common source of new head coaches.
Example: The OC took over play-calling duties after the offense stalled in the first month.
On some staffs the head coach calls plays and the OC focuses on preparation, a detail that matters when evaluating coordinators for promotion. Outside football, OC means "original character" in fan fiction.
7. Overclocking
Technology & Computing · Computer Hardware Abbreviations
Running a processor, graphics card or memory faster than its rated speed to gain performance, usually by raising multipliers or voltages in the firmware or through software. It increases heat and power use and can reduce stability.
Example: With a mild OC to 5.4 GHz on all cores, the chip passed eight hours of stress testing.
Intel sells unlocked chips with a K suffix for overclocking, while all Ryzen desktop processors are unlocked. Enthusiasts using liquid nitrogen have pushed CPUs past 9 GHz for brief record runs. Memory profiles such as XMP and EXPO are technically overclocks of RAM. Overclocking can void warranties, and too much voltage can permanently degrade a chip. Forum posts often write it "OC'd".
8. Opposing counsel
Law & Legal · Litigation Abbreviations
The lawyer or law firm representing the other side in a lawsuit, negotiation or transaction. The abbreviation is common in emails, case notes and internal memos.
Example: OC agreed to a two-week extension on our responses to the second set of RFPs.
Professional conduct rules forbid lawyers from communicating about the matter directly with a represented opposing party without the consent of that party's lawyer (ABA Model Rule 4.2). Courts expect counsel to meet and confer before filing most discovery motions. In other settings OC can mean Orange County or officer candidate.
Related abbreviations
More region abbreviations
- NoVA – Northern Virginia
- NUTS – Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics
- NWA – Northwest Arkansas
- OBX – Outer Banks
- PNW – Pacific Northwest
- PRD – Pearl River Delta
- PUMA – Public Use Microdata Area
- RGV – Rio Grande Valley
See all 60 region abbreviations →
More police abbreviations
- NCIC – National Crime Information Center
- NFA – No further action
- NIBRS – National Incident-Based Reporting System
- NYPD – New York City Police Department
- OIS – Officer-involved shooting
- OPP – Ontario Provincial Police
- OUI – Operating under the influence
- OWI – Operating while intoxicated
See all 84 police abbreviations →
This entry is for general education and is not legal advice. Abbreviation use varies between institutions; always confirm in context.