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Example (this is the opening of a story that's going to describe parts of Mary's life):

This is how Mary lives in her one-bedroom apartment (aka how she coexists with loneliness).

According to Collins' Dictionary:

aka is used especially when referring to someone's nickname or stage name.

Can I use it, though, like I did above?

If not, what's a better alternative?

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I think that would be correct (certainly in modern usage), but in my mind it doesn't sound brilliant, especially for more formal writing. BUT as pointed out in comments, this meaning is not very common and should probably be avoided.

Alternatives:

'or in other words'

'that is, ...'

'i.e.' (however that wouldn't quite sound right in the context of your sentence)

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  • In other words or that is would be MUCH better choices. I've never seen aka used except with reference to names.
    – Kate Bunting
    Commented Jan 23, 2020 at 13:13
  • I've edited it to reflect that. I have seen it used in that way, but not very often and it probably isn't brilliant English
    – Jacob Lee-Hart
    Commented Jan 23, 2020 at 13:52

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