‘FAFO’ has been the common refrain among many after US forces captured Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores on January 3. The two were flown out to the US after being captured on orders of President Donald Trump. The White House commemorated the moment with a post that read “No games. FAFO.” They shared a photo of Trump with the word emblazoned across.

Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro was captured by US forces and flown out of the country on President Donald Trump's orders. (X/@TrumpTruthOnX) Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro was captured by US forces and flown out of the country on President Donald Trump’s orders. (X/@TrumpTruthOnX)

Eric, the president’s son added “The ‘FAFO’ era continues,” sharing a screenshot of Trump’s Truth Social post where he spoke about the operations in Venezuela.

Interestingly the term has a military link.

What is FAFO? Acronym explained

FAFO is an acronym for “f— around and find out” or “fool around and find out”. Several people on X including owner of the social media platform, Elon Musk, posted ‘FAFO’ messages in relation to the US operations in Venezuela.

“Now for the find out part of FAFO,” Musk wrote.

FAFO military link explained

While ‘FAFO’ is used otherwise, and has been a term of choice with the Trump administration and its supporters, the acronym has a military link.

It has been used by people in the military for years, as per multiple reports. The r/Military subreddit which has several people who were or are in the armed forces, has numerous instances where the acronym has been used. FAFO military merch is also readily available.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth in his October 2025 address to the military commanders had used the slang as well. He said, “Should our enemies choose foolishly to challenge us, they will be crushed by the violence, precision, and ferocity of the War Department. In other words, to our enemies, FAFO. If necessary, our troops can translate that for you.”

While Maduro remains in a New York City jail cell, Trump reportedly said of Delcy Rodríguez, that “if she doesn’t do what’s right, she is going to pay a very big price, probably bigger than Maduro,” as per The Atlantic.