NFC
Abbreviation with 3 meanings
| Stands for | Near-field communication |
|---|---|
| Meanings | 3 |
| Categories | Technology & Computing, Sports, Science & Engineering |
NFC has three meanings. The most common are Near-field communication (telecom) and National Football Conference (American football); it can also stand for Need for cognition.
Meanings of NFC at a glance
| # | NFC stands for | Context |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Near-field communication | Technology & Computing › Telecom |
| 2 | National Football Conference | Sports › American Football |
| 3 | Need for cognition | Science & Engineering › Psychology |
1. Near-field communication
Technology & Computing · Telecom Abbreviations
Short-range wireless technology that lets devices exchange data when held within a few centimeters, used for contactless payments with phones and watches, transit cards, digital keys, pairing headphones and reading smart tags.
Example: Tap your phone on the card reader to pay with NFC.
NFC operates at 13.56 MHz and builds on RFID standards; Sony and Philips (now NXP) developed it in 2002, and the NFC Forum formed in 2004. Google Wallet launched NFC payments on Android in 2011, and Apple Pay followed with the iPhone 6 in 2014. Apple opened NFC payments to third-party apps in the EU in 2024 and later in other markets. Its very short range is a security feature.
2. National Football Conference
Sports · American Football Abbreviations
The other NFL conference, with 16 teams in East, North, South and West divisions, including many of the league's oldest franchises such as the Bears, Packers and Giants. The NFC champion receives the George Halas Trophy and plays in the Super Bowl.
Example: The Eagles beat Washington in the NFC title game to reach the Super Bowl.
Formed in 1970 from the 13 NFL teams that did not join the AFC. The trophy honors the Chicago Bears founder and longtime coach. NFC teams won 13 straight Super Bowls from the 1984 through 1996 seasons.
3. Need for cognition
Science & Engineering · Psychology Abbreviations
Personality trait describing how much a person enjoys and seeks out effortful thinking, such as solving puzzles or weighing arguments. People high in need for cognition are more persuaded by strong arguments and less by superficial cues.
Example: Participants high in NFC were swayed by argument quality, while those low in NFC followed the expert's opinion.
John Cacioppo and Richard Petty introduced the concept and scale in 1982, with an 18-item short form in 1984. It plays a central role in the elaboration likelihood model of persuasion. In technology NFC means near-field communication.
Related abbreviations
More telecom abbreviations
- MSISDN – Mobile Station International Subscriber Directory Number
- MVNO – Mobile virtual network operator
- MWC – Mobile World Congress
- NB-IoT – Narrowband Internet of Things
- NR – New Radio
- OFDM – Orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing
- ONT – Optical network terminal
- OTT – Over-the-top
See all 114 telecom abbreviations →