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Fast food debate: Do you know what Arby's name really means?

Arby's is all about roast beef, but its name is a little more complex than its food.
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/ Source: TODAY

Most people know Arby's for its roast beef, curly fries and unusual meat offerings like sky-high stackers or even venison. But when it comes to the name of the fast food chain, it turns out a lot of people don't know what "Arby's" really means.

For years, customers have posted "mind blown" statuses on social media after realizing the acronym for roast beef, "R-B," sounds like "Arby." And for years, the folks at Arby's have been trying to set the record straight.

On Sunday, the debate arose yet again when a tweeter prompted followers to "name something obvious to most people that you didn't figure out until recently," to which someone replied, "The chain "Arby's" is named after the R and B denoting "roast beef..."

Arby's, however, was quick to clarify that its name isn't about the beef but is actually a nod to the Raffel Brothers, Leroy and Forrest, who founded the Georgia-based fast food chain in 1964.

This only furthered the mind-blowing chain of reactions (nearly as mind-blowing as that time Arby's bought Pharrell Williams' hat for $44,100).

One tweeter couldn't believe she'd never known that fact in all her 58 years.

However, those who have long associated the name with "roast beef" may not be that far off. One pop culture savvy tweeter noted that the common misconception may actually come from a TV spot that aired in the 1980s, in which the chain advertised that Arby's stood for "America's Roast Beef — Yes!" Confusing? Just a little.

And to this tweeter's point:

Ah, nothing like discovering the true meaning of a word ... and watching classic fast food commercials.