Letters that stand for a word

Acronyms are abbreviations spoken or used as if they are words in themselves. Often they are pronounced as words, like the three above; otherwise they are pronounced as individual letters, like CIA or FBI.

an abbreviation formed of the first letters of words in a phrase or name.

TBA- To Be Announced

CIA- Central Intelligence Agency

MST-Mountain Standard Time

USA-United States of America

WWW-World Wide Web

MPH-Miles Per Hour

WFH-Work From Home

NASA-National Aeronautics & Space Agency

I’m not sure if you wanted specific examples of specific things so here’s just some random ones I could think of off the top of my head.

An acronym is a word, name or set of letters created as an abbreviation of a longer phrase or sentence. Usually connectives or words such as ‘and’ or ‘of’ are not included in the abbreviation.

Examples:

  • NASA = National Aeronautics (and) Space Administration
  • DIY = Do It Yourself
  • DNA = Deoxyribonucleic Acid
  • Sim (card) = Subscriber Identity Module

Hope this helps!

Acronyms are a combination of letters that stand for something. For instance, BIOS is an computer acronym, standing for Basic Input/output System. More examples can include

  • NATO: North Atlantic Treaty Organization
  • HTTP: Hyper-Text Transfer Protocol
  • GIF: Graphics Interchange Format
  • LCD: Liquid Crystal Display

I think you get the point here. Acronyms are simply a group of letters in which the letters stand for a word.

Hope this helps!

The
outline of the problem discussed

1.
The main types of words in English and their morphological structure.

2.
Affixation (or derivation).

3.
Compounding.

4.
Conversion.

5.
Abbreviation (shortening).

Word-formation
is the process of creating new words from the material

available
in the language.

Before
turning to various processes of word-building in English, it would be

useful
to analyze the main types of English words and their morphological
structure.

If
viewed structurally, words appear to be divisible into smaller units
which are

called
morphemes.
Morphemes
do not occur as free forms but only as constituents of

words.
Yet they possess meanings of their own.

All
morphemes are subdivided into two large classes: roots
(or
radicals)
and

affixes.
The
latter, in their turn, fall into prefixes
which
precede the root in the

structure
of the word (as in re-real,
mis-pronounce, un-well)
and
suffixes
which

follow
the root (as in teach-er,
cur-able, dict-ate).

Words
which consist of a root and an affix (or several affixes) are called

derived
words
or
derivatives
and
are produced by the process of word-building

known
as affixation
(or
derivation).

Derived
words are extremely numerous in the English vocabulary.

Successfully
competing with this structural type is the so-called root
word
which
has

only
a root morpheme in its structure. This type is widely represented by
a great

number
of words belonging to the original English stock or to earlier
borrowings

(house,
room, book, work, port, street, table, etc.),
and,
in Modern English, has been

greatly
enlarged by the type of word-building called conversion
(e.g.
to
hand,
v.

formed
from the noun hand;
to can,
v.
from can,
n.;
to
pale
,
v. from pale,
adj.;
a
find,

n.
from to
find,
v.;
etc.).

Another
wide-spread word-structure is a compound
word
consisting
of two or

more
stems (e.g. dining-room,
bluebell, mother-in-law, good-for-nothing
).
Words of

this
structural type are produced by the word-building process called
composition.

The
somewhat odd-looking words like flu,
lab, M.P., V-day, H-bomb
are
called

curtailed
words
and
are produced by the way of word-building called shortening

(abbreviation).

The
four types (root words, derived words, compounds, shortenings)
represent

the
main structural types of Modern English words, and affixation
(derivation),

conversion,
composition and shortening (abbreviation) — the most productive ways
of

word-building.

83

The
process of affixation
consists
in coining a new word by adding an affix or

several
affixes to some root morpheme. The role of the affix in this
procedure is very

important
and therefore it is necessary to consider certain facts about the
main types

of
affixes.

From
the etymological point of view affixes are classified into the same
two

large
groups as words: native and borrowed.

Some
Native Suffixes

-er
worker,
miner,
teacher,
painter,
etc.

-ness
coldness,
loneliness,
loveliness,
etc.

-ing
feeling,
meaning,
singing,
reading,
etc.

-dom
freedom,
wisdom,
kingdom,
etc.

-hood
childhood,
manhood,
motherhood,
etc.

-ship
friendship,
companionship,
mastership,
etc.

Noun-forming

-th
length,
breadth,
health,
truth,
etc.

-ful
careful,
joyful,
wonderful,
sinful,
skilful,
etc.

-less
careless,
sleepless,
cloudless,
senseless,
etc.

-y
cozy,
tidy,
merry,
snowy,
showy,
etc.

-ish
English,
Spanish,
reddish,
childish,
etc.

-ly
lonely,
lovely,
ugly,
likely,
lordly,
etc.

-en
wooden,
woollen,
silken,
golden,
etc.

Adjective-forming

-some
handsome, quarrelsome, tiresome, etc.

Verb-

forming

-en

widen,
redden,
darken,
sadden,
etc.

Adverb-

forming

-ly

warmly,
hardly,
simply,
carefully,
coldly,
etc.

Borrowed
affixes, especially of Romance origin are numerous in the English

vocabulary.
We can recognize words of Latin and French origin by certain suffixes
or

prefixes;
e. g. Latin
affixes
:
-ion,
-tion, -ate
,
-ute
,
-ct,
-d(e), dis-, -able, -ate
,
-ant,

ent,
-or, -al, -ar
in
such words as opinion,
union, relation, revolution, appreciate,

congratulate,
attribute, contribute, , act, collect, applaud, divide, disable,
disagree,

detestable,
curable, accurate, desperate, arrogant, constant, absent, convenient,

major,
minor, cordial, familiar
;
French
affixes
–ance,
ewe,
-ment, -age, -ess, -ous,

en-
in
such words as arrogance,
intelligence, appointment, development, courage,

marriage,
tigress, actress, curious, dangerous, enable, enslaver.

Affixation
includes a) prefixation

derivation of words by adding a prefix to

full
words and b) suffixation

derivation of words by adding suffixes to bound

stems.

Prefixes
and suffixes have their own valency, that is they may be added not to

any
stem at random, but only to a particular type of stems:

84

Prefix
un-
is
prefixed to adjectives (as: unequal,
unhealthy),
or
to adjectives

derived
from verb stems and the suffix -able
(as:
unachievable,
unadvisable),
or
to

participial
adjectives (as: unbecoming,
unending, unstressed, unbound);
the
suffix

er
is
added to verbal stems (as: worker,
singer,
or
cutter,
lighter),
and
to substantive

stems
(as: glover,
needler);
the
suffix -able
is
usually tacked on to verb stems (as:

eatable,
acceptable);
the
suffix -ity
in
its turn is usually added to adjective stems

with
a passive meaning (as: saleability,
workability),
but
the suffix —ness
is
tacked on

to
other adjectives, having the suffix -able
(as:
agreeableness.
profitableness).

Prefixes
and suffixes are semantically distinctive, they have their own

meaning,
while the root morpheme forms the semantic centre of a word. Affixes
play

a
dependent role in the meaning of the word. Suffixes have a
grammatical meaning,

they
indicate or derive a certain part of speech, hence we distinguish:
noun-forming

suffixes,
adjective-forming suffixes, verb-forming suffixes and adverb-forming

suffixes.
Prefixes change or concretize the meaning of the word, as: to
overdo
(to
do

too
much),
to underdo
(to
do less than one can or is proper),
to outdo
(to
do more or

better
than),
to undo
(to
unfasten, loosen, destroy the result, ruin),
to misdo
(to
do

wrongly
or unproperly).

A
suffix indicates to what semantic group the word belongs. The suffix
-er

shows
that the word is a noun bearing the meaning of a doer of an action,
and the

action
is denoted by the root morpheme or morphemes, as: writer,
sleeper, dancer,

wood-pecker,
bomb-thrower,
the
suffix -ion/-tion,
indicates
that it is a noun

signifying
an action or the result of an action, as: translation
‘a
rendering from one

language
into another’ (an
act, process)
and
translation
‘the
product of such

rendering’;
nouns with the suffix -ism
signify
a system, doctrine, theory, adherence to

a
system, as: communism,
realism;
coinages
from the stem of proper names are

common,.
as Darwinism.

Affixes
can also be classified into productive
and
non-productive
types.
By

productive
affixes
we
mean the ones, which take part in deriving new words in a

particular
period of language development. The best way to identify productive

affixes
is to look for them among neologisms
and
so-called nonce-words,
i.e.
words

coined
and used only for this particular occasion. The latter are usually
formed on the

level
of living speech and reflect the most productive and progressive
patterns in

word-building.
When a literary critic writes about a certain book that it is an

unputdownable
thriller,
we
will seek in vain this strange and impressive adjective in

dictionaries,
for it is a nonce-word coined on the current pattern of Modern
English

and
is evidence of the high productivity of the adjective-forming
borrowed suffix –

able
and
the native prefix un-,
e.g.: Professor Pringle was a thinnish, baldish,

dyspeptic-lookingish
cove with an eye like a haddock.
(From
Right-Ho, Jeeves by P.G.

Wodehouse)

The
adjectives thinnish
and
baldish
bring
to mind dozens of other adjectives

made
with the same suffix: oldish,
youngish, mannish, girlish, fattish, longish,

yellowish,
etc.
But
dyspeptic-lookingish
is
the author’s creation aimed at a humorous

effect,
and, at the same time, providing beyond doubt that the suffix –ish
is
a live and

active
one.

85

The
same is well illustrated by the following popular statement: “I
don’t like

Sunday
evenings: I feel so Mondayish”. (Mondayish
is
certainly a nonce-word.)

One
should not confuse the productivity of affixes with their frequency
of

occurrence
(use). There are quite a number of high-frequency affixes which,

nevertheless,
are no longer used in word-derivation (e.g. the adjective-forming
native

suffixes
ful,
-ly;
the
adjective-forming suffixes of Latin origin –ant,
-ent, -al
which

are
quite frequent).

Some
Productive Affixes

Some
Non-Productive Affixes

Noun-forming

suffixes

-th,
-hood

Adjective-forming

suffixes

ly,
-some, -en, -ous

Verb-forming
suffix -en

Compound
words
are
words derived from two or more stems. It is a very old

word-formation
type and goes back to Old English. In Modern English compounds

are
coined by joining one stem to another by mere juxtaposition, as
raincoat,
keyhole,

pickpocket,
red-hot, writing-table.
Each
component of a compound coincides

with
the word. Compounds are the commonest among nouns and adjectives.

Compound
verbs are few in number, as they are mostly the result of conversion
(as,

to
weekend)
and
of back-formation (as, to
stagemanage).

From
the point of view of word-structure compounds consist of free stems
and

may
be of different structure: noun stems + noun stem (raincoat);
adjective
stem +

noun
stem (bluebell);
adjective
stem + adjective stem (dark-blue);
gerundial
stem +

noun
stem (writing-table);
verb
stem + post-positive stem (make-up);
adverb
stem +

adjective
stem (out-right);
two
noun stems connected by a preposition (man-of-war)

and
others. There are compounds that have a connecting vowel (as,
speedometer,

handicraft),
but
it is not characteristic of English compounds.

Compounds
may be idiomatic
and
non-idiomatic.
In idiomatic compounds the

meaning
of each component is either lost or weakened, as buttercup
(лютик),

chatter-box
(болтун).

These
are entirely
demotivated compounds.
There
are also motivated

compounds,
as lifeboat
(спасательная
лодка). In non-idiomatic compounds the

Noun-forming

suffixes

er,
-ing
,
ness,
-ism
(materialism),
-ist

(impressionist),
-ance

Adjective-forming

suffixes

y,
-ish, -ed
(learned),
able,
less

Adverb-forming

suffix

ly

Verb-forming

suffixes

ize/-ise
(realize),

ate

Prefixes
un-
(unhappy),re-
(reconstruct),
dis-
(disappoint)

86

meaning
of each component is retained, as apple-tree,
bedroom, sunlight.
There
are

also
many border-line cases.

The
components of compounds may have different semantic relations; from

this
point of view we can roughly classify compounds into endocentric
and

exocentric
compounds.
In endocentric compounds the semantic centre is found

within
the compound and the first element determines the other, as
film-star,
bedroom,

writing-table.
In
exocentric compounds there is no semantic centre, as

scarecrow.
In
Modern English, however, linguists find it difficult to give criteria
for

compound
nouns; it is still a question of hot dispute. The following criteria
may be

offered.
A compound noun is characterized by a) one word or hyphenated
spelling, b)

one
stress, and by c) semantic integrity. These are the so-called
“classical

compounds”.

It
is possible that a compound has only two of these criteria, for
instance, the

compound
words headache,
railway
have
one stress and hyphenated or one-word

spelling,
but do not present a semantic unity, whereas the compounds
motor-bike,

clasp-knife
have
hyphenated spelling and idiomatic meaning, but two even stresses

(‘motor-‘bike,
‘clasp-‘knife
).
The word apple-tree
is
also a compound; it is spelt either

as
one word or is hyphenated, has one stress (‘apple-tree),
but it is not idiomatic. The

difficulty
of defining a compound lies in spelling which might be misleading, as
there

are
no hard and fast rules of spelling the compounds: three ways of
spelling are

possible:
(‘dockyard,
‘dock yard
and
dock-yard).
The
same holds true for the stress

that
may differ from one reference-book to another.

Since
compounds may have two stresses and the stems may be written

separately,
it is difficult to draw the line between compounds proper and nominal

word-combinations
or syntactical combinations. In a combination of words each

element
is stressed and written separately. Compare the attributive
combination

‘black
‘board,
a
board which is black (each element has its own meaning; the first

element
modifies the second) and the compound ‘blackboard’,
a
board or a sheet of

slate
used in schools for teaching purposes (the word has one stress and
presents a

semantic
unit). But it is not always easy as that to draw a distinction, as
there are

word-combinations
that may present a semantic unity, take for instance: green
room

(a
room in a theatre for actors and actresses).

Compound
derivatives
are
words, usually nouns and adjectives, consisting of

a
compound stem and a suffix, the commonest type being such nouns as:
firstnighter,

type-writer,
bed-sitter, week-ender, house-keeping, well-wisher, threewheeler,

old-timer,
and
the adjectives: blue-eyed,
blond-haired, four-storied, mildhearted,

high-heeled.
The
structure of these nouns is the following: a compound stem

+
the suffix -er,
or
the suffix -ing.

Adjectives
have the structure: a compound stem, containing an adjective (noun,

numeral)
stem and a noun stem + the suffix -ed.
In
Modern English it is an extremely

productive
type of adjectives, e.g.: big-eyed,
long-legged, golden-haired.

In
Modern English it is common practice to distinguish also
semi-suffixes, that

is
word-formative elements that correspond to full words as to their
lexical meaning

and
spelling, as -man,
-proof, -like: seaman, railroadman, waterproof, kiss-proof,

ladylike,
businesslike.
The
pronunciation may be the same (cp. proof
[pru:f]
and

87

waterproof
[‘wL:tq
pru:f],
or differ, as is the case with the morpheme -man
(cp.
man

[mxn]
and seaman
[‘si:mqn].

The
commonest is the semi-suffix -man
which
has a more general meaning —

‘a
person of trade or profession or carrying on some work’, as: airman,
radioman,

torpedoman,
postman, cameramen, chairman
and
others. Many of them have

synonyms
of a different word structure, as seaman
— sailor, airman — flyer,

workman
— worker;
if
not a man but a woman
of
the trade or profession, or a person

carrying
on some work is denoted by the word, the second element is woman,
as

chairwoman,
air-craftwoman, congresswoman, workwoman, airwoman.

Conversion
is
a very productive way of forming new words in English, chiefly

verbs
and not so often — nouns. This type of word formation presents one
of the

characteristic
features of Modern English. By conversion we mean derivation of a

new
word from the stem of a different part of speech without the addition
of any

formatives.
As a result the two words are homonymous, having the same

morphological
structure and belonging to different parts of speech.

Verbs
may be derived from the stem of almost any part of speech, but the

commonest
is the derivation from noun stems as: (a)
tube — (to) tube; (a) doctor —

(to)
doctor, (a) face—(to) face; (a) waltz—(to) waltz; (a) star—(to)
star;
from

compound
noun stems as: (a)
buttonhole — (to) buttonhole; week-end — (to) weekend.

Derivations
from the stems of other parts of speech are less common: wrong—

(to)
wrong; up — (to) up; down — (to) down; encore — (to) encore.
Nouns
are

usually
derived from verb stems and may be instanced by such nouns as: (to)
make—

a
make; (to) cut—(a) cut; to bite — (a) bite, (to) drive — (a)
drive; to smoke — (a)

smoke;
(to) walk — (a) walk.
Such
formations frequently make part of verb — noun

combinations
as: to
take a walk, to have a smoke, to have a drink, to take a drive, to

take
a bite, to give a smile
and
others.

Nouns
may be also derived from verb-postpositive phrases. Such formations

are
very common in Modern English, as for instance: (to)
make up — (a) make-up;

(to)
call up — (a) call-up; (to) pull over — (a) pullover.

New
formations by conversion from simple or root stems are quite usual;

derivatives
from suffixed stems are rare. No verbal derivation from prefixed
stems is

found.

The
derived word and the deriving word are connected semantically. The

semantic
relations between the derived and the deriving word are varied and

sometimes
complicated. To mention only some of them: a) the verb signifies the
act

accomplished
by or by means of the thing denoted by the noun, as: to
finger
means

‘to
touch with the finger, turn about in fingers’; to
hand
means
‘to give or help with

the
hand, to deliver, transfer by hand’; b) the verb may have the meaning
‘to act as the

person
denoted by the noun does’, as: to
dog
means
‘to follow closely’, to
cook —
‘to

prepare
food for the table, to do the work of a cook’; c) the derived verbs
may have

the
meaning ‘to go by’ or ‘to travel by the thing denoted by the noun’,
as, to
train

means
‘to go by train’, to
bus —
‘to
go by bus’, to
tube —
‘to
travel by tube’; d) ‘to

spend,
pass the time denoted by the noun’, as, to
winter ‘to
pass
the winter’, to

weekend
‘to
spend the week-end’.

88

Derived
nouns denote: a) the act, as a
knock, a hiss, a smoke;
or
b) the result of

an
action, as a
cut, a find, a call, a sip, a run.

A
characteristic feature of Modern English is the growing frequency of
new

formations
by conversion, especially among verbs.

Note.
A grammatical homonymy of two words of different parts of speech —
a

verb
and a noun, however, does not necessarily indicate conversion. It may
be the

result
of the loss of endings as well. For instance, if we take the
homonymic pair love

to
love
and
trace it back, we see that the noun love
comes
from Old English lufu,

whereas
the verb to
love—
from
Old English lufian,
and
the noun answer
is
traced

back
to the Old English andswaru,
but
the verb to
answer
to
Old English

andswarian;
so
that it is the loss of endings that gave rise to homonymy. In the
pair

bus
— (to) bus, weekend — (to) weekend
homonymy
is the result of derivation by

conversion.

Shortenings
(abbreviations)
are words produced either by means of clipping

full
word or by shortening word combinations, but having the meaning of
the full

word
or combination. A distinction is to be observed between graphical
and
lexical

shortenings;
graphical abbreviations are signs or symbols that stand for the full

words
or combination of words only in written speech. The commonest form is
an

initial
letter or letters that stand for a word or combination of words. But
to prevent

ambiguity
one or two other letters may be added. For instance: p.
(page),
s.
(see),
b.

b.
(ball-bearing).
Mr
(mister),
Mrs
(missis),
MS
(manuscript),
fig.
(figure). In oral

speech
graphical abbreviations have the pronunciation of full words. To
indicate a

plural
or a superlative letters are often doubled, as: pp.
(pages). It is common practice

in
English to use graphical abbreviations of Latin words, and word
combinations, as:

e.
g.
(exampli
gratia), etc.
(et cetera), i.
e.
(id
est). In oral speech they are replaced by

their
English equivalents, ‘for
example’
,
‘and
so on
’,
namely‘,
‘that
is’
,
‘respectively’.

Graphical
abbreviations are not words but signs or symbols that stand for the

corresponding
words. As for lexical
shortenings
,
two main types of lexical

shortenings
may be distinguished: 1) abbreviations
or
clipped
words
(clippings)

and
2) initial
words
(initialisms).

Abbreviation
or
clipping
is
the result of reduction of a word to one of its

parts:
the meaning of the abbreviated word is that of the full word. There
are different

types
of clipping: 1) back-clipping—the
final part of the word is clipped, as: doc

from
doctor,
lab —
from
laboratory,
mag —
from
magazine,
math —
from

mathematics,
prefab

from prefabricated;
2)
fore-clipping

the first part of the

word
is clipped as: plane
from
aeroplane,
phone —
from
telephone,
drome —

from
aerodrome.
Fore-clippings
are less numerous in Modern English; 3) the
fore

and
the back parts of the word are clipped and the middle of the word is

retained,
as: tec
from
detective,
flu —
from
influenza.
Words
of this type are few

in
Modern English. Back-clippings are most numerous in Modern English
and are

characterized
by the growing frequency. The original may be a simple word (as,

grad—from
graduate),
a
derivative (as, prep—from
preparation),
a
compound, (as,

foots
from
footlights,
tails —
from
tailcoat),
a
combination of words (as pub —

from
public
house, medico —
from
medical
student).
As
a result of clipping usually

nouns
are produced, as pram
from
perambulator,
varsity —
for
university.
In
some

89

rare
cases adjectives are abbreviated (as, imposs
from
impossible,
pi —
from

pious),
but
these are infrequent. Abbreviations or clippings are words of one
syllable

or
of two syllables, the final sound being a consonant or a vowel
(represented by the

letter
o), as, trig
(for
trigonometry),
Jap
(for
Japanese),
demob
(for
demobilized),
lino

(for
linoleum),
mo
(for
moment).
Abbreviations
are made regardless of whether the

remaining
syllable bore the stress in the full word or not (cp. doc
from
doctor,
ad

from
advertisement).
The
pronunciation of abbreviations usually coincides with the

corresponding
syllable in the full word, if the syllable is stressed: as, doc
[‘dOk]
from

doctor
[‘dOktq];
if it is an unstressed syllable in the full word the pronunciation

differs,
as the abbreviation has a full pronunciation: as, ad
[xd],
but advertisement

[qd’vq:tismqnt].
There may be some differences in spelling connected with the

pronunciation
or with the rules of English orthoepy, as mike
from
microphone,

bike
from
bicycle,
phiz

from physiognomy,
lube —
from
lubrication.
The
plural

form
of the full word or combinations of words is retained in the
abbreviated word,

as,
pants
from
pantaloons,
digs —
from
diggings.

Abbreviations
do not differ from full words in functioning; they take the plural

ending
and that of the possessive case and make any part of a sentence.

New
words may be derived from the stems of abbreviated words by
conversion

(as
to
demob, to taxi, to perm)
or
by affixation, chiefly by adding the suffix —y,
-ie,

deriving
diminutives and petnames (as, hanky
from
handkerchief,
nighty
(nightie)

— from
nightgown,
unkie —
from
uncle,
baccy —
from
tobacco,
aussie —
from

Australians,
granny
(ie)
— from grandmother).
In
this way adjectives also may be

derived
(as: comfy
from
comfortable,
mizzy —
from
miserable).
Adjectives
may be

derived
also by adding the suffix -ee,
as:
Portugee
for
Portuguese,
Chinee —
for

Chinese.

Abbreviations
do not always coincide in meaning with the original word, for

instance:
doc
and
doctor
have
the meaning ‘one who practises medicine’, but doctor
is

also
‘the highest degree given by a university to a scholar or scientist
and ‘a person

who
has received such a degree’ whereas doc
is
not used in these meanings. Among

abbreviations
there are homonyms, so that one and the same sound and graphical

complex
may represent different words, as vac
(vacation), vac (vacuum cleaner);

prep
(preparation), prep (preparatory school).
Abbreviations
usually have synonyms

in
literary English, the latter being the corresponding full words. But
they are not

interchangeable,
as they are words of different styles of speech. Abbreviations are

highly
colloquial; in most cases they belong to slang. The moment the longer
word

disappears
from the language, the abbreviation loses its colloquial or slangy
character

and
becomes a literary word, for instance, the word taxi
is
the abbreviation of the

taxicab
which,
in its turn, goes back to taximeter
cab;
both
words went out of use,

and
the word taxi
lost
its stylistic colouring.

Initial
abbreviations
(initialisms)
are words — nouns — produced by

shortening
nominal combinations; each component of the nominal combination is

shortened
up to the initial letter and the initial letters of all the words of
the

combination
make a word, as: YCL — Young
Communist League,
MP

Member
of Parliament.
Initial
words are distinguished by their spelling in capital

letters
(often separated by full stops) and by their pronunciation — each
letter gets

90

its
full alphabetic pronunciation and a full stress, thus making a new
word as R.

A.
F. [‘a:r’ei’ef] — Royal
Air Force;
TUC.
[‘ti:’ju:’si:] — Trades
Union Congress.

Some
of initial words may be pronounced in accordance with the’ rules of

orthoepy,
as N. A. T. O. [‘neitou], U. N. O. [‘ju:nou], with the stress on the
first

syllable.

The
meaning of the initial word is that of the nominal combination. In

speech
initial words function like nouns; they take the plural suffix, as
MPs, and

the
suffix of the possessive case, as MP’s, POW’s.

In
Modern English the commonest practice is to use a full combination
either

in
the heading or in the text and then quote this combination by giving
the first initial

of
each word. For instance, «Jack Bruce is giving UCS concert»
(the heading). «Jack

Bruce,
one of Britain’s leading rock-jazz musicians, will give a benefit
concert in

London
next week to raise money for the Upper Clyde shop stewards’ campaign»

(Morning
Star).

New
words may be derived from initial words by means of adding affixes,
as

YCL-er,
ex-PM, ex-POW; MP’ess, or adding the semi-suffix —man,
as
GI-man.
As

soon
as the corresponding combination goes out of use the initial word
takes its place

and
becomes fully established in the language and its spelling is in
small letters, as

radar
[‘reidq]
— radio detecting and ranging, laser
[‘leizq]
— light amplification by

stimulated
emission of radiation; maser
[‘meizq]
— microwave amplification by

stimulated
emission of radiation. There are also semi-shortenings, as, A-bomb
(atom

bomb),
H-bomber
(hydrogen
bomber), U-boat
(Untersee
boat) — German submarine.

The
first component of the nominal combination is shortened up to the
initial letter,

the
other component (or components) being full words.

4.7.
ENGLISH PHRASEOLOGY: STRUCTURAL AND SEMANTIC

PECULIARITIES
OF PHRASEOLOGICAL UNITS, THEIR CLASSIFICATION

The
outline of the problem discussed

1.
Main approaches to the definition of a phraseological unit in
linguistics.

2.
Different classifications of phraseological units.

3.
Grammatical and lexical modifications of phraseological units in
speech.

In
linguistics there are two main theoretical schools treating the
problems of

English
phraseology — that of N.N.Amosova and that of A. V. Kunin. We shall
not

dwell
upon these theories in detail, but we shall try to give the guiding
principles of

each
of the authors. According to the theory of N.N. Amosova. A
phraseological unit

is
a unit of constant context. It is a stable combination of words in
which either one of

the
components has a phraseologically bound meaning — a phraseme: white
lie

невинная
ложь, husband
tea

жидкий чай), or the meaning of each component is

weakened,
or entirely lost – (an idiom: red
tape

бюрократия, mare’s
nest

абсурд).
A. V. Kunin’s theory is based on the concept of specific stability at
the

phraseological
level; phraseological units are crtaracterized by a certain minimum
of

phraseological
stability. A.V. Kunin distinguishes stability of usage, structural
and

semantic
stability, stability of meaning and lexical constituents,
morphological

stability
and syntactical stability. The degree of stability may vary so that
there are

91

several
‘limits’ of stability. But whatever the degree of stability might
be, it is the

idiomatic
meaning that makes the characteristic feature of a phraseological
unit.

There
is one trend more worth mentioning in the theory of English
phraseology

that
of A. I. Smirnitsky. A.I. Smirnitsky takes as his guiding principle
the equivalence

of
a phraseological unit to a word. There are two characteristic
features that make a

phraseological
unit equivalent to a word, namely, the integrity of meaning and the

fact
that both the word and the phraseological unit are ready-made units
which are

reproduced
in speech and are not organized at the speaker’s will.

Whatever
the theory the term phraseology is applied to stable combinations of

words
characterized by the integrity of meaning which is completely or
partially

transferred,
e. g.: to
lead the dance
проявлять
инициативу; to
take the cake

одержать
победу. Phraseological units are not to be mixed up with stable

combinations
of words that have their literal meaning, and are of non
phraseological

character,
e.g. the
back of the head, to come to an end
.

Among
the phraseological units N.N.Amosova distinguishes idioms,
i.e.

phraseological
units characterized by the integral meaning of the whole, with the

meaning
of each component weakened or entirely lost. Hence, there are
motivated

and
demotivated
idioms
.
In a motivated idiom the meaning of each component is

dependent
upon the transferred meaning of the whole idiom, e. g. to
look through

one’s
fingers
(смотреть
сквозь пальцы); to
show one’s cards
(раскрыть
свои

карты).
Phraseological units like these are homonymous to free syntactical

combinations.
Demotivated idioms are characterized by the integrity of meaning as a

whole,
with the meaning of each of the components entirely lost, e. g. white
elephant

(обременительное
или разорительное имущество), or to
show the white feather

(cтpycить).
But there are no hard and fast boundaries between them and there may
be

many
borderline cases. The second type of phraseological units in N.N.
Amosova’s

classification
is a phraseme.
It is a combination of words one element of which has a

phraseologically
bound meaning, e. g. small
years
(детские
годы); small
beer

(слабое
пиво).

According
to A.I. Smirnitsky phraseological units may be classified in respect

to
their structure into one-summit
and
many-summit
phraseological units
.
Onesummit

phraseological
units are composed of a notional and a form word, as, in
the

soup

быть в затруднительном положении, at
hand

рядом, under
a cloud

в

плохом
настроении, by
heart

наизусть,
in the pink

в расцвете. Many-summit

phraseological
units are composed of two or more notional words and form words as,

to
take the bull by the horns

взять быка зарога,
to wear one’s heart on one’s

sleeve

выставлять свои чувства на показ, to
kill the goose that laid the golden

eggs

уничтожить источник благосостояния;
to
know on which side one’s bread

is
buttered

быть себе на уме.

Academician
V.V.Vinogradov’s classification is based on the degree of

idiomaticity
and distinguishes three groups of phraseological units:
phraseological

fusions,
phraseological unities, phraseological collocations.

Phraseological
fusions
are
completely non-motivated word-groups, e.g.: red

tape
– ‘
bureaucratic
methods’; kick
the bucket –
die,
etc. Phraseological
unities
are

92

partially
non-motivated as their meaning can usually be understood through the

metaphoric
meaning of the whole phraseological unit, e.g.: to
show one’s teeth –

‘take
a threatening tone’; to
wash one’s dirty linen in public – ‘
discuss
or make public

one’s
quarrels’.
Phraseological
collocations
are
motivated but they are made up of

words
possessing specific lexical combinability which accounts for a
strictly limited

combinability
of member-words, e.g.: to
take a liking (fancy)
but
not to
take hatred

(disgust).

There
are synonyms among phraseological units, as, through
thick and thin, by

hook
or by crook, for love or money

во что бы то ни стало; to
pull one’s leg, to

make
a fool of somebody

дурачить;
to hit the right nail on the head, to get the

right
sow by the ear

попасть в точку.

Some
idioms have a variable component, though this variability is.
strictly

limited
as to the number and as to words themselves. The interchangeable

components
may be either synonymous, as
to fling (or throw) one’s (or the) cap over

the
mill (or windmill), to put (or set) one’s (or the) best foot first
(foremost, foreward)

or
different words, not connected semantically,
as to be (or sound, or read) like a

fairy
tale
.

Some
of the idioms are polysemantic, as, at
large

1) на свободе, 2) в

открытом
море, на большом пространстве, 3) без
определенной цели, 4) не

попавший
в цель, 5) свободный, без определенных
занятий, 6) имеющий

широкие
полномочия, 7) подробно, во всем объеме,
8) в целом, 9) вообще, не

конкретно.

It
is the context or speech situation that individualizes the meaning of
the

idiom
in each case.

When
functioning in speech, phraseological units form part of a sentence
and

consequently
may undergo grammatical and lexical changes. Grammatical changes

are
connected with the grammatical system of the language as a whole,
e.g.: He
didn’t

work,
and he spent a great deal of money, and
he
painted the town red
.
(W. S.

Maugham)
(to
paint the town red

предаваться веселью). Here
the infinitive is

changed
into the Past Indefinite. Components of an idiom can be used in
different

clauses,
e.g.: …I
had to put up with,
the
bricks
they
dropped,
and their embarassment

when
they realized what they’d done
.
(W. S. Maugham) (to
drop a brick

допустить
бестактность).

Possessive
pronouns or nouns in the possessive case may be also added, as:

the
apple of his uncle’s eye…
(A.
Christie) (the
apple of one’s eye

зеница ока).

But
there are phraseological units that do not undergo any changes, e.
g.: She

was
the friend in adversity; other people’s business was
meat
and drink to her.
(W.

S.
Maugham) (be)
meat and drink (to somebody
)
— необходимо как воздух.

Thus,
we distinguish changeable and unchangeable phraseological units.

Lexical
changes are much more complicated and much more various. Lexical

modifications
of idioms achieve a stylistic and expressive effect. It is an
expressive

device
at the disposal of the writer or of the speaker. It is the integrity
of meaning that

makes
any modifications in idioms possible. Whatever modifications or
changes an

idiom
might’ undergo, the integrity of meaning is never broken. Idioms may
undergo

93

various
modifications. To take only some of them: a word or more may be
inserted to

intensify
and concretize the meaning, making it applicable to this particular
situation:

I
hate the idea of Larry making
such
a mess
of
his life
.
(W. S. Maugham) Here the

word
such
intensifies
the meaning of the idiom. I
wasn’t keen on
washing
this kind of

dirty
linen
in
public.
(C.
P. Snow) In this case the inserted this
kind
makes
the

situation
concrete.

To
make the utterance more expressive one of the components of the idiom

may
be replaced by some other. Compare: You’re
a
dog in the manger
,
aren’t you,

dear?
and: It was true enough: indeed she was
a
bitch in the manger
.
(A.
Christie)

The
word bitch
has
its own lexical meaning, which, however, makes part of the

meaning
of the whole idiom.

One
or more components of the idiom may be left out, but the integrity of

meaning
of the whole idiom is retained, e.g.: «I’ve
never spoken to you or anyone else

about
the last election. I suppose I’ve got to now. It’s better
to
let it lie

said Brown.

(C.
P. Snow) In the idiom let
sleeping dogs lie
two
of the elements are missing and it

refers
to the preceding text.

In
the following text the idiom to
have a card up one’s sleeve
is
modified:

Bundle
wondered vaguely what it was that Bill
had
or thought he had-up in his

sleeve.
(A, Christie) The component card
is
dropped and the word have
realizes
its

lexical
meaning. As a result an, allusive metaphor is achieved.

The
following text presents an interesting instance of modification: She
does

not
seem to think you are
a
snake in the grass
,
though she sees a good deal of grass

for
a snake to be in.
(E.
Bowen) In the first part of the sentence the idiom a
snake in

the
grass
is
used, and in the second part the words snake
and
grass
have
their own

lexical
meanings, which are, however, connected with the integral meaning of
the

idiom.

Lexical
modifications are made for stylistic purposes so as to create an

expressive
allusive metaphor.

LITERATURE

1.
Arnold I.V. The English Word. – М., 1986.

2.
Antrushina G.B. English Lexicology. – М., 1999.

3.
Ginzburg R.Z., Khidekel S.S. A Course in Modern English
Lexicology. – М.,

1975.

4.
Kashcheyeva M.A. Potapova I.A. Practical English lexicology. – L.,
1974.

5.
Raevskaya N.N. English Lexicology. – К., 1971.

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I think you are referring to what is called an «acronym.» For example, the word «Scuba» (as in scuba diving) is an acronym. «Scuba» stands for Self Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus.

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An acronym (pronounced AK-ruh-nihm, from Greek acro- in the sense of extreme or tip and onyma or name) is an abbreviation of several words in such a way that the abbreviation itself forms a pronounceable word. The word may already exist or it can be a new word. Webster’s cites SNAFU and RADAR, two terms of World War Two vintage, as examples of acronyms that were created.

Many organizations and corporate entities use acronyms as names. Furthermore, acronyms, along with related initialisms an abbreviations, are frequently used as industry terms, such as with manufacturing.

How is an acronym defined?

According to the strictest definition of an acronym, only abbreviations that are pronounced as words qualify. So by these standards, for example, COBOL is an acronym because it’s pronounced as a word but WHO (World Health Organization) is not an acronym because the letters in the abbreviation are pronounced individually. However, opinions differ on what constitutes an acronym: Merriam-Webster, for example, says that an acronym is just «a word formed from the initial letters of a multi-word name.»

Frequently, acronyms are formed that use existing words (and sometimes the acronym is invented first and the phrase name represented is designed to fit the acronym). Here are some examples of acronyms that use existing words:

BASIC (Beginner’s All-Purpose Symbolic Instruction Code)
NOW (National Organization for Women)
OASIS (Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards)

Acronyms vs. abbreviations vs. initialisms

Abbreviations that use the first letter of each word in a phrase are sometimes referred to as initialisms. Initialisms can be but are not always acronyms. AT&T, BT, CBS, CNN, IBM, and NBC are initialisms that are not acronyms. Many acronym lists you’ll see are really lists of acronyms and initialisms or just lists of abbreviations. (Note that abbreviations include shortened words like «esp.» for «especially» as well as shortened phrases.)

Summing up:

  • An abbreviation is a shortening of a word or a phrase.
  • An acronym is an abbreviation that forms a word.
  • An initialism is an abbreviation that uses the first letter of each word in the phrase (thus, some but not all initialisms are acronyms).

Other related terms

Related terns to acronyms include the anacronym, recursive acronym, backronym, and apronym.  

  • An acronym so familiar that no one remembers what it stands for is called an anacronym (For example, few people know that COBOL stands for Common Business Oriented Language.)
  • An acronym in which one of the letters stands for the actual word abbreviated therein is called a recursive acronym. (For example, VISA is said to stand for VISA International Service Association.)
  • An acronym in which the short form was original and words made up to stand for it afterwards is called a backronym. (For example, SOS was originally chosen as a distress signal because it lent itself well to Morse code. Long versions, including Save Our Ship and Save our Souls, came later.)
  • An acronym whose letters spell a word meaningful in the context of the term it stands for is called an apronym. (For example, BASIC, which stands for Beginner’s All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code, is a very simple programming language.)

This was last updated in December 2020


Continue Reading About acronym

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An acronym is a word or name consisting of parts of the full name’s words. Acronyms are usually formed from the initial letters of words, as in NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization), but sometimes use syllables, as in Benelux (short for Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg), NAPOCOR (National Power Corporation), and TRANSCO (National Transmission Corporation). They can also be a mixture, as in radar (Radio Detection And Ranging) and MIDAS (Missile Defense Alarm System).

Acronyms can be pronounced as words, like NASA and UNESCO; as individual letters, like CIA, TNT, NPC, BLM, and ATM; or as both letters and words, like JPEG (JAY-peg), CSIS (SEE-sis), and IUPAC (I-U-pak). Some are not universally pronounced one way or the other and it depends on the speaker’s preference or the context in which it is being used, such as SQL (either «sequel» or «ess-cue-el«).

The broader sense of acronym—the meaning of which includes terms pronounced as individual letters— is sometimes criticized, but that is the term’s original meaning,[1] and is still in common use.[2] Dictionary and style-guide editors are not in universal agreement on the naming for such abbreviations, and it is a matter of some dispute whether the term acronym can be legitimately applied to abbreviations which are not pronounced «as words», nor do these language authorities agree on the correct use of spacing, casing, and punctuation.

Abbreviations formed from a string of initials and usually pronounced as individual letters are sometimes more specifically called initialisms[3] or alphabetisms; examples are FBI from Federal Bureau of Investigation, ABS-CBN from Alto Broadcasting System – Chronicle Broadcasting Network, GMA from Global Media Arts, NPC from National Power Corporation, NGCP from National Grid Corporation of the Philippines, and e.g. from Latin exempli gratia.

EtymologyEdit

The word acronym is formed from the Greek roots acr-, meaning «height, summit, or tip» and -onym, meaning «name».[4] This neoclassical compound appears to have originated in German, with attestations for the German form Akronym appearing as early as 1921.[5] Citations in English date to a 1940 translation of a novel by the German writer Lion Feuchtwanger.[6]

NomenclatureEdit

Whereas an abbreviation may be any type of shortened form, such as words with the middle omitted (for example, Rd. for Road or Dr. for Doctor) or the end truncated (as in Prof. for Professor), an acronym is—in the broad sense—formed from the first letter or first few letters of each important word in a phrase (such as AIDS, from acquired immuno-deficiency syndrome, and scuba from self-contained underwater breathing apparatus).[7] However, this is only a loose rule of thumb, as some acronyms are built in part from the first letters of morphemes (word components; as in the i and d in immuno-deficiency) or using a letter from the middle or end of a word, or from only a few key words in a long phrase or name. Less significant words such as in, of, and the are usually dropped (NYT for The New York Times, DMV for Department of Motor Vehicles), but not always (TICA for The International Cat Association, DOJ for Department of Justice).

Abbreviations formed from a string of initials and usually pronounced as individual letters (as in FBI from Federal Bureau of Investigation, and e.g. from Latin exempli gratia) are sometimes more specifically called initialisms[3] or alphabetisms. Occasionally, some letter other than the first is chosen, most often when the pronunciation of the name of the letter coincides with the pronunciation of the beginning of the word (example: BX from base exchange). Acronyms that are usually pronounced as words, such as AIDS and scuba, are sometimes called word acronyms, to disambiguate them more clearly from initialisms, especially since some users of the term «initialism» use «acronym» in a narrow sense meaning only the type sounded out as letters. Another sub-type of acronym (or a related form, depending upon one’s definitions) is the syllabic abbreviation, which is composed specifically of multi-letter syllabic (even multi-syllabic) fragments of the abbreviated words; some examples are FOREX from foreign exchange, and Interpol from international + police, though its full proper name in English is the International Criminal Police Organization. Usually the first syllable (or two) is used from each major component word, but there are exceptions, such as the U.S. Navy term DESRON or DesRon from destroyer squadron.

There is no special term for abbreviations whose pronunciation involves the combination of letter names with words, or with word-like pronunciations of strings of letters, such as JPEG () and MS-DOS (). Similarly, there is no unique name for those that are a mixture of syllabic abbreviations and initialisms; these are usually pronounced as words (e.g., radar from radio detection and ranging, consisting of one syllabic abbreviation and three single letters, and sonar from sound navigation ranging, consisting of two syllabic abbreviations followed by a single acronymic letter for ranging); these would generally qualify as word acronyms among those who use that term. There is also some disagreement as to what to call an abbreviation that some speakers pronounce as letters but others pronounce as a word. For example, the terms URL and IRA (for individual retirement account) can be pronounced as individual letters: and , respectively; or as a single word: and , respectively. The same character string may be pronounced differently when the meaning is different; IRA is always sounded out as I-R-A when standing for Irish Republican Army.

The spelled-out form of an acronym, initialism, or syllabic abbreviation (that is, what that abbreviation stands for) is called its expansion.

Lexicography and style guidesEdit

It is an unsettled question in English lexicography and style guides whether it is legitimate to use the word acronym to describe forms that use initials but are not pronounced as a word. While there is plenty of evidence that acronym is used widely in this way, some sources do not acknowledge this usage, reserving the term acronym only for forms pronounced as a word, and using initialism or abbreviation for those that are not. Some sources acknowledge the usage, but vary in whether they criticize or forbid it, allow it without comment, or explicitly advocate for it.

Some mainstream English dictionaries from across the English-speaking world affirm a sense of acronym which does not require being pronounced as a word. American English dictionaries such as Merriam-Webster,[8] Dictionary.com’s Random House Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary[9] and the American Heritage Dictionary[10] as well as the British Oxford English Dictionary[1] and the Australian Macquarie Dictionary[11] all include a sense in their entries for acronym equating it with initialism, although The American Heritage Dictionary criticizes it with the label «usage problem».[10] However, many English language dictionaries, such as the Collins COBUILD Advanced Dictionary,[12] Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Dictionary,[13] Macmillan Dictionary,[14] Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English,[15] New Oxford American Dictionary,[16] Webster’s New World Dictionary,[17] and Lexico from Oxford University Press[18] do not acknowledge such a sense.

Most of the dictionary entries and style guide recommendations regarding the term acronym through the twentieth century did not explicitly acknowledge or support the expansive sense. The Merriam–Webster’s Dictionary of English Usage from 1994 is one of the earliest publications to advocate for the expansive sense,[19] and all the major dictionary editions that include a sense of acronym equating it with initialism were first published in the twenty-first century. The trend among dictionary editors appears to be towards including a sense defining acronym as initialism: The Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary added such a sense in its eleventh edition in 2003,[20][21] and both the Oxford English Dictionary[22][1] and the American Heritage Dictionary[23][10] added such senses in their 2011 editions. The 1989 edition of the Oxford English Dictionary only included the exclusive sense for acronym and its earliest citation was from 1943.[22] In early December 2010, Duke University researcher Stephen Goranson published a citation for acronym to the American Dialect Society e-mail discussion list which refers to PGN being pronounced «pee-gee-enn,» antedating English language usage of the word to 1940.[24] Linguist Ben Zimmer then mentioned this citation in his December 16, 2010 «On Language» column about acronyms in The New York Times Magazine.[25] By 2011, the publication of the third edition of the Oxford English Dictionary added the expansive sense to its entry for acronym and included the 1940 citation.[1] As the Oxford English Dictionary structures the senses in order of chronological development,[26] it now gives the «initialism» sense first.

English language usage and style guides which have entries for acronym generally criticize the usage that refers to forms that are not pronounceable words. Fowler’s Dictionary of Modern English Usage says that acronym «denotes abbreviations formed from initial letters of other words and pronounced as a single word, such as NATO (as distinct from B-B-C)» but adds later «In everyday use, acronym is often applied to abbreviations that are technically initialisms, since they are pronounced as separate letters.»[27] The Chicago Manual of Style acknowledges the complexity («Furthermore, an acronym and initialism are occasionally combined (JPEG), and the line between initialism and acronym is not always clear») but still defines the terms as mutually exclusive.[28] Other guides outright deny any legitimacy to the usage: Bryson’s Dictionary of Troublesome Words says «Abbreviations that are not pronounced as words (IBM, ABC, NFL) are not acronyms; they are just abbreviations.»[29] Garner’s Modern American Usage says «An acronym is made from the first letters or parts of a compound term. It’s read or spoken as a single word, not letter by letter.»[30] The New York Times Manual of Style and Usage says «Unless pronounced as a word, an abbreviation is not an acronym.»[31]

In contrast, some style guides do support it, whether explicitly or implicitly. The 1994 edition of Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of English Usage defends the usage on the basis of a claim that dictionaries do not make a distinction.[19] The BuzzFeed style guide describes CBS and PBS as «acronyms ending in S».[32]

Comparing a few examples of each typeEdit

  • Pronounced as a word, containing only initial letters
    • NATO: «North Atlantic Treaty Organization»
    • Scuba: «self-contained underwater breathing apparatus»
    • Laser: «light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation»
    • GIF: «graphics interchange format»
    • OWCA: «Organization Without a Cool Acronym»
  • Pronounced as a word, containing a mixture of initial and non-initial letters
    • Amphetamine: «alpha-methyl-phenethylamine»
    • Gestapo: Geheime Staatspolizei (secret state police)
    • Radar: «radio detection and ranging»
    • Lidar: «light detection and ranging»
  • Pronounced as a combination of spelling out and a word
    • CD-ROM: (cee-dee-) «compact disc read-only memory»
    • IUPAC: (i-u- or i-u-pee-a-cee) «International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry»
    • JPEG: (jay- or jay-pee-e-gee) «Joint Photographic Experts Group»
    • SFMOMA: (ess-ef- or ess-ef-em-o-em-a) «San Francisco Museum of Modern Art»
  • Pronounced only as a string of letters
    • BBC: «British Broadcasting Corporation»
    • OEM: «original equipment manufacturer»
    • USA: «United States of America»
    • VHF: «very high frequency»
  • Pronounced as a string of letters, but with a shortcut
    • AAA:
      • (Triple-A) «American Automobile Association»; «abdominal aortic aneurysm»; «anti-aircraft artillery»; «Asistencia, Asesoría y Administración»
      • (Three-As) «Amateur Athletic Association»
    • IEEE: (I triple-E) «Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers»
    • NAACP: (N double-A C P or N A A C P) «National Association for the Advancement of Colored People»
    • NCAA: (N C double-A or N C two-A or N C A A) «National Collegiate Athletic Association»
  • Shortcut incorporated into name
    • 3M: (three M) originally «Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company»
    • W3C: (W-three C) «World Wide Web Consortium»
    • A2DP: (A-two D P) «Advanced Audio Distribution Profile»
    • I18N: («18» stands in for the word’s middle eighteen letters, «nternationalizatio») «Internationalization»
    • C4ISTAR: (C-four Istar) «Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition, and Reconnaissance»[33]
  • Mnemonic acronyms, an abbreviation that is used to remember phrases or principles
    • KISS (Kiss) «Keep it simple, stupid», a design principle preferring simplicity
    • SMART (Smart) «Specific, Measurable, Assignable, Realistic, Time-related», A principle of setting of goals and objectives
    • FAST (Fast) «Facial drooping, Arm weakness, Speech difficulties, Time», helps detect and enhance responsiveness to the needs of a person having a stroke
    • DRY (Dry) «Don’t repeat yourself», A principle of software development aimed at reducing repetition of software patterns
  • Multi-layered acronyms
    • AIM: «AOL Instant Messenger,» in which «AOL» originally stood for «America Online»
    • AFTA: «ASEAN Free Trade Area,» where ASEAN stands for «Association of Southeast Asian Nations»
    • NAC Breda: (Dutch football club) «NOAD ADVENDO Combinatie» («NOAD ADVENDO Combination»), formed by the 1912 merger of two clubs from Breda:
      • NOAD: (Nooit Opgeven Altijd Doorgaan «Never give up, always persevere»)
      • ADVENDO: (Aangenaam Door Vermaak En Nuttig Door Ontspanning «Pleasant by entertainment and useful by relaxation»)[34][35]
    • GIMP: «GNU image manipulation program»
  • Recursive acronyms, in which the abbreviation refers to itself
    • GNU: «GNU’s not Unix!»
    • Wine: «Wine is not an emulator» (originally, «Windows emulator»)
    • These may go through multiple layers before the self-reference is found:
      • HURD: «HIRD of Unix-replacing daemons,» where «HIRD» stands for «HURD of interfaces representing depth»
  • Pseudo-acronyms, which consist of a sequence of characters that, when pronounced as intended, invoke other, longer words with less typing[36] This makes them gramograms.
    • CQ: cee-cue for «seek you», a code used by radio operators
    • IOU: i-o-u for «I owe you»
    • K9: kay-nine for «canine,» used to designate police units using dogs
  • Abbreviations whose last abbreviated word is often redundantly included anyway
    • ATM machine: «automated teller machine» (machine)
    • HIV virus: «human immunodeficiency virus» (virus)
    • LCD display: «liquid-crystal display» (display)
    • PIN number: «personal identification number» (number)
  • Pronounced as a word, containing letters as a word in itself
    • PAYGO: «pay-as-you-go»

Historical and current useEdit

Acronymy, like retronymy, is a linguistic process that has existed throughout history but for which there was little to no naming, conscious attention, or systematic analysis until relatively recent times. Like retronymy, it became much more common in the 20th century than it had formerly been.

Ancient examples of acronymy (before the term «acronym» was invented) include the following:

  • Acronyms were used in Rome before the Christian era. For example, the official name for the Roman Empire, and the Republic before it, was abbreviated as SPQR (Senatus Populusque Romanus). Inscriptions dating from antiquity, both on stone and on coins, use many abbreviations and acronyms to save space and work. For example, Roman first names, of which there was only a small set, were almost always abbreviated. Common terms were abbreviated too, such as writing just «F» for filius, meaning «son», a very common part of memorial inscriptions mentioning people. Grammatical markers were abbreviated or left out entirely if they could be inferred from the rest of the text.
  • So-called nomina sacra (sacred names) were used in many Greek biblical manuscripts. The common words «God» (Θεός), «Jesus» (Ιησούς), «Christ» (Χριστός), and some others, would be abbreviated by their first and last letters, marked with an overline. This was just one of many kinds of conventional scribal abbreviation, used to reduce the time-consuming workload of the scribe and save on valuable writing materials. The same convention is still commonly used in the inscriptions on religious icons and the stamps used to mark the eucharistic bread in Eastern Churches.
  • The early Christians in Rome, most of whom were Greek rather than Latin speakers, used the image of a fish as a symbol for Jesus in part because of an acronym (or backronym): «fish» in Greek is ichthys (ΙΧΘΥΣ), which was construed to stand for Ἰησοῦς Χριστός Θεοῦ Υἱός Σωτήρ (Iesous Christos Theou huios Soter: «Jesus Christ, God’s Son, Savior»). This interpretation dates from the 2nd and 3rd centuries and is preserved in the catacombs of Rome. Another ancient acronym for Jesus is the inscription INRI over the crucifix, for the Latin Iesus Nazarenus Rex Iudaeorum («Jesus the Nazarene, King of the Jews»).
  • The Hebrew language has a centuries-long history of acronyms pronounced as words. The Hebrew Bible («Old Testament») is known as «Tanakh», an acronym composed from the Hebrew initial letters of its three major sections: «Torah» (five books of Moses), «Nevi’im» (prophets), and «K’tuvim» (writings). Many rabbinical figures from the Middle Ages onward are referred to in rabbinical literature by their pronounced acronyms, such as Rambam and Rashi from the initial letters of their full Hebrew names: «Rabbi Moshe ben Maimon» and «Rabbi Shlomo Yitzkhaki».

During the mid- to late 19th century, acronyms became a trend among American and European businessmen: abbreviating corporation names, such as on the sides of railroad cars (e.g., «Richmond, Fredericksburg and Potomac Railroad» → «RF&P»); on the sides of barrels and crates; and on ticker tape and newspaper stock listings (e.g. American Telephone and Telegraph Company → AT&T). Some well-known commercial examples dating from the 1890s through 1920s include «Nabisco» («National Biscuit Company»),[37] «Esso» (from «S.O.», from «Standard Oil»), and «Sunoco» («Sun Oil Company»).

Another field for the adoption of acronyms was modern warfare, with its many highly technical terms. While there is no recorded use of military acronyms dating from the American Civil War (acronyms such as «ANV» for «Army of Northern Virginia» postdate the war itself), they became somewhat common in World War I, and by World War II they were widespread even in the slang of soldiers,[38] who referred to themselves as G.I.s.

The widespread, frequent use of acronyms across the whole range of linguistic registers is relatively new in most languages, becoming increasingly evident since the mid-20th century. As literacy spread and technology produced a constant stream of new and complex terms, abbreviations became increasingly convenient. The Oxford English Dictionary (OED) records the first printed use of the word initialism as occurring in 1899, but it did not come into general use until 1965, well after acronym had become common.

In English, acronyms pronounced as words may be a 20th-century phenomenon. Linguist David Wilton in Word Myths: Debunking Linguistic Urban Legends claims that «forming words from acronyms is a distinctly twentieth- (and now twenty-first-) century phenomenon. There is only one known pre-twentieth-century [English] word with an acronymic origin and it was in vogue for only a short time in 1886. The word is colinderies or colinda, an acronym for the Colonial and Indian Exposition held in London in that year.»[39][40] However, although acronymic words seem not to have been employed in general vocabulary before the 20th century (as Wilton points out), the concept of their formation is treated as effortlessly understood (and evidently not novel) in an Edgar Allan Poe story of the 1830s, «How to Write a Blackwood Article», which includes the contrived acronym «P.R.E.T.T.Y.B.L.U.E.B.A.T.C.H.»

Early examples in EnglishEdit

The use of Latin and Neo-Latin terms in vernaculars has been pan-European and predates modern English. Some examples of acronyms in this class are:

  • A.M. (from Latin ante meridiem, «before noon») and P.M. (from Latin post meridiem, «after noon»)
  • A.D. (from Latin Anno Domini, «in the year of our Lord»), whose complement in English, B.C. [Before Christ], is English-sourced

The earliest example of a word derived from an acronym listed by the OED is «abjud» (now «abjad»), formed from the original first four letters of the Arabic alphabet in the late 18th century.[41] Some acrostics predate this, however, such as the Restoration witticism arranging the names of some members of Charles II’s Committee for Foreign Affairs to produce the «CABAL» ministry.[42]

O.K., a term of disputed origin, dates back at least to the early 19th century and is now used around the world.

Current useEdit

Acronyms are used most often to abbreviate names of organizations and long or frequently referenced terms. The armed forces and government agencies frequently employ acronyms; some well-known examples from the United States are among the «alphabet agencies» (jokingly referred to as «alphabet soup») created under the New Deal by Franklin D. Roosevelt (himself known as «FDR»). Business and industry also coin acronyms prolificly. The rapid advance of science and technology also drives the usage, as new inventions and concepts with multiword names create a demand for shorter, more pronounceable names.[citation needed] One representative example, from the U.S. Navy, is «COMCRUDESPAC», which stands for «commander, cruisers destroyers Pacific»; it is also seen as «ComCruDesPac». Inventors are encouraged to anticipate the formation of acronyms by making new terms «YABA-compatible» («yet another bloody acronym»), meaning the term’s acronym can be pronounced and is not an offensive word: «When choosing a new name, be sure it is ‘YABA-compatible’.»[43]

Acronym use has been further popularized by text messaging on mobile phones with short message service (SMS), and instant messenger (IM). To fit messages into the 160-character SMS limit, and to save time, acronyms such as «GF» («girlfriend»), «LOL» («laughing out loud»), and «DL» («download» or «down low») have become popular.[44] Some prescriptivists disdain texting acronyms and abbreviations as decreasing clarity, or as failure to use «pure» or «proper» English. Others point out that languages have always continually changed, and argue that acronyms should be embraced as inevitable, or as innovation that adapts the language to changing circumstances. In this view, the modern practice is just the «proper» English of the current generation of speakers, much like the earlier abbreviation of corporation names on ticker tape or newspapers.

Exact pronunciation of «word acronyms» (those pronounced as words rather than sounded out as individual letters) often vary by speaker population. These may be regional, occupational, or generational differences, or simply personal preference. For instance, there have been decades of online debate about how to pronounce GIF ( or ) and BIOS (, , or ). Similarly, some letter-by-letter initialisms may become word acronyms over time, especially in combining forms: IP for Internet Protocol is generally said as two letters, but IPsec for Internet Protocol Security is usually pronounced as or , along with variant capitalization like «IPSEC» and «Ipsec». Pronunciation may even vary within a single speaker’s vocabulary, depending on narrow contexts. As an example, the database programming language SQL is usually said as three letters, but in reference to Microsoft’s implementation is traditionally pronounced like the word sequel.

Expansion at first useEdit

In writing for a broad audience, the words of an acronym are typically written out in full at its first occurrence within a given text. Expansion At First Use (EAFU) benefits readers unfamiliar with the acronym.[45]

Another text aid is an abbreviation key which lists and expands all acronyms used, a reference for readers who skipped past the first use. (This is especially important for paper media, where no search utility is available to find the first use.) It also gives students a convenient review list to memorize the important acronyms introduced in a textbook chapter.

Expansion at first use and abbreviation keys originated in the print era, but they are equally useful for electronic text.

JargonEdit

While acronyms provide convenience and succinctness for specialists, they often degenerate into confusing jargon. This may be intentional, to exclude readers without domain-specific knowledge. New acronyms may also confuse when they coincide with an already existing acronym having a different meaning.

Medical literature has been struggling to control the proliferation of acronyms, including efforts by the American Academy of Dermatology.[46]

As mnemonicsEdit

Acronyms are often taught as mnemonic devices: for example the colors of the rainbow are ROY G. BIV (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet). They are also used as mental checklists: in aviation GUMPS stands for gas-undercarriage-mixture-propeller-seatbelts. Other mnemonic acronyms include CAN SLIM in finance, PAVPANIC in English grammar, and PEMDAS in mathematics.

Acronyms as legendary etymologyEdit

It is not uncommon for acronyms to be cited in a kind of false etymology, called a folk etymology, for a word. Such etymologies persist in popular culture but have no factual basis in historical linguistics, and are examples of language-related urban legends. For example, «cop» is commonly cited as being derived, it is presumed, from «constable on patrol»,[47] and «posh» from «port outward, starboard home».[48] With some of these specious expansions, the «belief» that the etymology is acronymic has clearly been tongue-in-cheek among many citers, as with «gentlemen only, ladies forbidden» for «golf», although many other (more credulous) people have uncritically taken it for fact.[48][49] Taboo words in particular commonly have such false etymologies: «shit» from «ship/store high in transit»[39][50] or «special high-intensity training» and «fuck» from «for unlawful carnal knowledge», or «fornication under consent/command of the king».[50]

Orthographic stylingEdit

PunctuationEdit

Showing the ellipsis of lettersEdit

In English, abbreviations have traditionally been written with a full stop/period/point in place of the deleted part to show the ellipsis of letters – although the colon and apostrophe have also had this role – and with a space after full stops (e.g. «A. D.»). In the case of most acronyms, each letter is an abbreviation of a separate word and, in theory, should get its own termination mark. Such punctuation is diminishing with the belief that the presence of all-capital letters is sufficient to indicate that the word is an abbreviation.[51]

Ellipsis-is-understood styleEdit

Some influential style guides, such as that of the BBC, no longer require punctuation to show ellipsis; some even proscribe it. Larry Trask, American author of The Penguin Guide to Punctuation, states categorically that, in British English, «this tiresome and unnecessary practice is now obsolete.»[52]

Pronunciation-dependent style and periodsEdit

Nevertheless, some influential style guides, many of them American, still require periods in certain instances. For example, The New York Times Manual of Style and Usage recommends following each segment with a period when the letters are pronounced individually, as in «K.G.B.», but not when pronounced as a word, as in «NATO».[53] The logic of this style is that the pronunciation is reflected graphically by the punctuation scheme.

Other conventionsEdit

When a multiple-letter abbreviation is formed from a single word, periods are in general not used, although they may be common in informal usage. «TV», for example, may stand for a single word («television» or «transvestite», for instance), and is in general spelled without punctuation (except in the plural). Although «PS» stands for the single word «postscript» (or the Latin postscriptum), it is often spelled with periods («P.S.»).

The slash (‘/’, or solidus) is sometimes used to separate the letters in an acronym, as in «N/A» («not applicable, not available») and «c/o» («care of»).

Inconveniently long words used frequently in related contexts can be represented according to their letter count as a numeronym. For example, «i18n» abbreviates «internationalization», a computer-science term for adapting software for worldwide use. The «18» represents the 18 letters that come between the first and the last in «internationalization». «Localization» can be abbreviated «l10n», «multilingualization» «m17n», and «accessibility» «a11y». In addition to the use of a specific number replacing that many letters, the more general «x» can be used to replace an unspecified number of letters. Examples include «Crxn» for «crystallization» and the series familiar to physicians for history, diagnosis, and treatment («hx», «dx», «tx»).

Representing plurals and possessivesEdit

There is a question about how to pluralize acronyms. Often a writer will add an ‘s’ following an apostrophe, as in «PC’s». However, Kate Turabian, writing about style in academic writings,[54] allows for an apostrophe to form plural acronyms «only when an abbreviation contains internal periods or both capital and lowercase letters». Turabian would therefore prefer «DVDs» and «URLs» and «Ph.D.’s». The Modern Language Association[55] and American Psychological Association[56][57] prohibit apostrophes from being used to pluralize acronyms regardless of periods (so «compact discs» would be «CDs» or «C.D.s»), whereas The New York Times Manual of Style and Usage requires an apostrophe when pluralizing all abbreviations regardless of periods (preferring «PC’s, TV’s and VCR’s»).[58]

Possessive plurals that also include apostrophes for mere pluralization and periods appear especially complex: for example, «the C.D.’s’ labels» (the labels of the compact discs). In some instances, however, an apostrophe may increase clarity: for example, if the final letter of an abbreviation is «S», as in «SOS’s» (although abbreviations ending with S can also take «-es», e.g. «SOSes»), or when pluralizing an abbreviation that has periods.[59][60]

A particularly rich source of options arises when the plural of an acronym would normally be indicated in a word other than the final word if spelled out in full. A classic example is «Member of Parliament», which in plural is «Members of Parliament». It is possible then to abbreviate this as «M’s P».[61][62] (or similar[63]), as used by former Australian Prime Minister Ben Chifley.[64][65][66] This usage is less common than forms with «s» at the end, such as «MPs», and may appear dated or pedantic. In common usage, therefore, «weapons of mass destruction» becomes «WMDs», «prisoners of war» becomes «POWs», and «runs batted in» becomes «RBIs».[67]

The argument that acronyms should have no different plural form (for example, «If D can stand for disc, it can also stand for discs«) is in general disregarded because of the practicality in distinguishing singulars and plurals. This is not the case, however, when the abbreviation is understood to describe a plural noun already: For example, «U.S.» is short for «United States», but not «United State». In this case, the options for making a possessive form of an abbreviation that is already in its plural form without a final «s» may seem awkward: for example, «U.S.», «U.S.’s», etc. In such instances, possessive abbreviations are often forgone in favor of simple attributive usage (for example, «the U.S. economy») or expanding the abbreviation to its full form and then making the possessive (for example, «the United States’ economy»). On the other hand, in speech, the pronunciation «United States’s» is sometimes used.

Abbreviations that come from single, rather than multiple, words – such as «TV» («television») – are usually pluralized without apostrophes («two TVs»); most writers feel that the apostrophe should be reserved for the possessive («the TV’s antenna»).

In some languages, the convention of doubling the letters in the acronym is used to indicate plural words: for example, the Spanish EE.UU., for Estados Unidos (‘United States’). This old convention is still followed for a limited number of English abbreviations, such as SS. for «Saints», pp. for the Latin plural of «pages», paginae, or MSS for «manuscripts».

CaseEdit

All-caps styleEdit

The most common capitalization scheme seen with acronyms is all-uppercase (all caps). Small caps are sometimes used to make the run of capital letters seem less jarring to the reader. For example, the style of some American publications, including the Atlantic Monthly and USA Today, is to use small caps for acronyms longer than three letters;[citation needed] thus «U.S.» and «FDR» in normal caps, but «nato» in small caps. The acronyms «AD» and «BC» are often smallcapped as well, as in: «From 4004 bc to ad 525«.

Sentence-case anacronymsEdit


Sentence case is used for a few acronyms that have linguistically taken on an identity as regular words, with the acronymous etymology of the words fading into the background of common knowledge. This has occurred with the words «scuba», «laser», and «radar»: these are known as anacronyms.[68] Anacronyms should not be confused with anachronyms, which are a type of misnomer.

Mixed-case variantEdit

Words derived from an acronym by affixing are typically expressed in mixed case, so the root acronym is clear. For example, «pre-WWII politics», «post-NATO world», «DNase». In some cases a derived acronym may also be expressed in mixed case. For example, «messenger RNA» and «transfer RNA» become «mRNA» and «tRNA».

Pronunciation-dependent style and caseEdit

Some publications choose to capitalize only the first letter of acronyms, reserving all-caps styling for initialisms, writing the pronounced acronyms «Nato» and «Aids» in mixed case, but the initialisms «USA» and «FBI» in all caps. For example, this is the style used in The Guardian,[69] and BBC News typically edits to this style (though its official style guide, dating from 2003, still recommends all-caps[70]). The logic of this style is that the pronunciation is reflected graphically by the capitalization scheme. However, it conflicts with conventional English usage of first-letter upper-casing as a marker of proper names in many cases; e.g. AIDS stands for acquired immuno-deficiency syndrome which is not a proper name, while Aids is in the style of one.

Some style manuals also base the letters’ case on their number. The New York Times, for example, keeps «NATO» in all capitals (while several guides in the British press may render it «Nato»), but uses lower case in «Unicef» (from «United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund») because it is more than four letters, and to style it in caps might look ungainly (flirting with the appearance of «shouting capitals»).

Numerals and constituent wordsEdit

While abbreviations typically exclude the initials of short function words (such as «and», «or», «of», or «to»), this is not always the case. Sometimes function words are included to make a pronounceable acronym, such as CORE (Congress of Racial Equality). Sometimes the letters representing these words are written in lower case, such as in the cases of «TfL» («Transport for London») and LotR (The Lord of the Rings); this usually occurs when the acronym represents a multi-word proper noun.

Numbers (both cardinal and ordinal) in names are often represented by digits rather than initial letters, as in «4GL» («fourth generation language») or «G77» («Group of 77»). Large numbers may use metric prefixes, as with «Y2K» for «Year 2000» (sometimes written «Y2k», because the SI symbol for 1000 is «k», not «K», which stands for «kelvin», the SI unit for temperature). Exceptions using initials for numbers include «TLA» («three-letter acronym/abbreviation») and «GoF» («Gang of Four»). Abbreviations using numbers for other purposes include repetitions, such as «A2DP» («Advanced Audio Distribution Profile»), «W3C» («World Wide Web Consortium»), and T3 (Trends, Tips & Tools for Everyday Living); pronunciation, such as «B2B» («business to business»); and numeronyms, such as «i18n» («internationalization»; «18» represents the 18 letters between the initial «i» and the final «n»).

Casing of expansionsEdit

Authors of expository writing will sometimes capitalize or otherwise distinctively format the initials of the expansion for pedagogical emphasis (for example, writing: «the onset of Congestive Heart Failure (CHF)» or «the onset of congestive heart failure (CHF)»), but this conflicts with the convention of English orthography, which reserves capitals in the middle of sentences for proper nouns; and would be rendered as «the onset of congestive heart failure (CHF)» when following the AMA Manual of Style.[71]

Changes to (or wordplay on) the expanded meaningEdit

Pseudo-acronyms and Orphan InitialismsEdit

Some apparent acronyms or other abbreviations do not stand for anything and cannot be expanded to some meaning. Such pseudo-acronyms may be pronunciation-based, such as «BBQ» (bee-bee-cue), for «barbecue», or «K9» (kay-nine) for «canine». Pseudo-acronyms also frequently develop as «orphan initialisms»; an existing acronym is redefined as a non-acronymous name, severing its link to its previous meaning.[72][73] For example, the letters of the «SAT», a US college entrance test originally dubbed «Scholastic Aptitude Test», no longer officially stand for anything.[74][75] The US-based abortion-rights organization «NARAL» is another example of this; in that case, the organization changed its name three times, with the long-form of the name always corresponding to the letters «NARAL», before eventually opting to simply be known by the short-form, without being connected to a long-form.

This is common with companies that want to retain brand recognition while moving away from an outdated image: American Telephone and Telegraph became AT&T[72] and British Petroleum became BP.[73][76] Russia Today has rebranded itself as RT. American Movie Classics has simply rebranded itself as AMC. Genzyme Transgenics Corporation became GTC Biotherapeutics, Inc.; The Learning Channel became TLC; and American District Telegraph became simply known as ADT. «Kentucky Fried Chicken» went partway, re-branding itself with its acronym «KFC» to de-emphasize the role of frying in the preparation of its signature dishes, although in this case, «KFC» remains a true acronym which still officially stands for «Kentucky Fried Chicken».[77][a]

Pseudo-acronyms may have advantages in international markets:[according to whom?] for example, some national affiliates of International Business Machines are legally incorporated with «IBM» in their names (for example, IBM Canada) to avoid translating the full name into local languages.[citation needed] Likewise, UBS is the name of the merged Union Bank of Switzerland and Swiss Bank Corporation,[78] and HSBC has replaced the long name Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation. Some companies which have a name giving a clear indication of their place of origin will choose to use acronyms when expanding to foreign markets: for example, Toronto-Dominion Bank continues to operate under the full name in Canada, but its U.S. subsidiary is known as TD Bank, just as Royal Bank of Canada used its full name in Canada (a constitutional monarchy), but its U.S. subsidiary is called RBC Bank. The India-based JSW Group of companies is another example of the original name (Jindal South West Group) being re-branded into a pseudo-acronym while expanding into other geographical areas in and outside of India.

Redundant acronyms and RAS syndromeEdit

Rebranding can lead to redundant acronym syndrome, as when Trustee Savings Bank became TSB Bank, or when Railway Express Agency became REA Express. A few high-tech companies have taken the redundant acronym to the extreme: for example, ISM Information Systems Management Corp. and SHL Systemhouse Ltd. Examples in entertainment include the television shows CSI: Crime Scene Investigation and Navy: NCIS («Navy» was dropped in the second season), where the redundancy was likely designed to educate new viewers as to what the initials stood for. The same reasoning was in evidence when the Royal Bank of Canada’s Canadian operations rebranded to RBC Royal Bank, or when Bank of Montreal rebranded their retail banking subsidiary BMO Bank of Montreal.

Another common example is «RAM memory», which is redundant because «RAM» («random-access memory») includes the initial of the word «memory». «PIN» stands for «personal identification number», obviating the second word in «PIN number»; in this case its retention may be motivated to avoid ambiguity with the homophonous word «pin». Other examples include «ATM machine», «EAB bank», «HIV virus», Microsoft’s NT Technology, and the formerly redundant «SAT test», now simply «SAT Reasoning Test»). TNN (The Nashville/National Network) also renamed itself «The New TNN» for a brief interlude.

Redefined acronymsEdit

In some cases, while the initials in an acronym may stay the same, for what those letters stand may change. Examples include the following:

  • DVD was originally an acronym for the unofficial term «digital video disc», but is now stated by the DVD Forum as standing for «Digital Versatile Disc»[citation needed]
  • GAO changed the full form of its name from «General Accounting Office» to «Government Accountability Office»[79]
  • GPO changed the full form of its name from «Government Printing Office» to «Government Publishing Office»[80]
  • RAID was originally an acronym for «Redundant Array of Inexpensive Disks» but has since been redefined as «Redundant Array of Independent Disks»[81]
  • The UICC was founded as the «International Union Against Cancer»,[82] and its initials originally came from the Romance-language versions of that name (such as French Union Internationale Contre le Cancer). The English expansion of its name has since been changed to «Union for International Cancer Control» so that it would also correspond to the UICC acronym.
  • WWF was originally an acronym for «World Wildlife Fund», but now stands for «World Wide Fund for Nature» (although the organization’s branches in the U.S. and Canada still use the original name)[83]

BackronymsEdit

A backronym (or bacronym) is a phrase that is constructed «after the fact» from a previously existing word. For example, the novelist and critic Anthony Burgess once proposed that the word «book» ought to stand for «box of organized knowledge».[84] A classic real-world example of this is the name of the predecessor to the Apple Macintosh, the Apple Lisa, which was said to refer to «Local Integrated Software Architecture», but was actually named after Steve Jobs’s daughter, born in 1978.

Backronyms are oftentimes used for comedic effect[citation needed]. An example of creating a backronym for comedic effect would be in naming a group or organization, the name «A.C.R.O.N.Y.M.» stands for (among other things) «a clever regiment of nerdy young men».

Contrived acronymsEdit

Acronyms are sometimes contrived, that is, deliberately designed to be especially apt for the thing being named (by having a dual meaning or by borrowing the positive connotations of an existing word). Some examples of contrived acronyms are USA PATRIOT, CAN SPAM, CAPTCHA and ACT UP.[citation needed] The clothing company French Connection began referring to itself as fcuk, standing for «French Connection United Kingdom». The company then created T-shirts and several advertising campaigns that exploit the acronym’s similarity to the taboo word «fuck».

The U.S. Department of Defense’s Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is known for developing contrived acronyms to name projects, including RESURRECT, NIRVANA, and DUDE. In July 2010, Wired magazine reported that DARPA announced programs to «… transform biology from a descriptive to a predictive field of science» named BATMAN and ROBIN for «Biochronicity and Temporal Mechanisms Arising in Nature» and «Robustness of Biologically-Inspired Networks»,[85] a reference to the Batman and Robin comic-book superheroes.

The short-form names of clinical trials and other scientific studies constitute a large class of acronyms that includes many contrived examples, as well as many with a partial rather than complete correspondence of letters to expansion components. These trials tend to have full names that are accurately descriptive of what the trial is about but are thus also too long to serve practically as names within the syntax of a sentence, so a short name is also developed, which can serve as a syntactically useful handle and also provide at least a degree of mnemonic reminder as to the full name. Examples widely known in medicine include the ALLHAT trial (Antihypertensive and Lipid-Lowering Treatment to Prevent Heart Attack Trial) and the CHARM trial (Candesartan in Heart Failure: Assessment of Reduction in Mortality and Morbidity). The fact that RAS syndrome is often involved, as well as that the letters often don’t entirely match, have sometimes been pointed out by annoyed researchers preoccupied by the idea that because the archetypal form of acronyms originated with one-to-one letter matching, there must be some impropriety in their ever deviating from that form. However, the raison d’être of clinical trial acronyms, as with gene and protein symbols, is simply to have a syntactically usable and easily recalled short name to complement the long name that is often syntactically unusable and not memorized. It is useful for the short name to give a reminder of the long name, which supports the reasonable censure of «cutesy» examples that provide little to no hint of it. But beyond that reasonably close correspondence, the short name’s chief utility is in functioning cognitively as a name, rather than being a cryptic and forgettable string, albeit faithful to the matching of letters. However, other reasonable critiques have been (1) that it is irresponsible to mention trial acronyms without explaining them at least once by providing the long names somewhere in the document,[86] and (2) that the proliferation of trial acronyms has resulted in ambiguity, such as 3 different trials all called ASPECT, which is another reason why failing to explain them somewhere in the document is irresponsible in scientific communication.[86] At least one study has evaluated the citation impact and other traits of acronym-named trials compared with others,[87] finding both good aspects (mnemonic help, name recall) and potential flaws (connotatively driven bias).[87]

Some acronyms are chosen deliberately to avoid a name considered undesirable: For example, Verliebt in Berlin (ViB), a German telenovela, was first intended to be Alles nur aus Liebe (All for Love), but was changed to avoid the resultant acronym ANAL. Likewise, the Computer Literacy and Internet Technology qualification is known as CLaIT,[88] rather than CLIT. In Canada, the Canadian Conservative Reform Alliance (Party) was quickly renamed to the «Canadian Reform Conservative Alliance» when its opponents pointed out that its initials spelled CCRAP (pronounced «see crap»). Two Irish Institutes of Technology (Galway and Tralee) chose different acronyms from other institutes when they were upgraded from Regional Technical colleges. Tralee RTC became the Institute of Technology Tralee (ITT), as opposed to Tralee Institute of Technology (TIT). Galway RTC became Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology (GMIT), as opposed to Galway Institute of Technology (GIT). The charity sports organization Team in Training is known as «TNT» and not «TIT». Technological Institute of Textile & Sciences, however, is still known as «TITS». George Mason University was planning to name their law school the «Antonin Scalia School of Law» (ASSOL) in honor of the late Antonin Scalia, only to change it to the «Antonin Scalia Law School» later.[89]

Macronyms/nested acronymsEdit

A macronym, or nested acronym, is an acronym in which one or more letters stand for acronyms (or abbreviations) themselves. The word «macronym» is a portmanteau of «macro-» and «acronym».

Some examples of macronyms are:

  • XHR stands for «XML HTTP Request», in which «XML» is «Extensible Markup Language», and HTTP stands for «HyperText Transfer Protocol»
  • POWER stands for «Performance Optimization With Enhanced RISC», in which «RISC» stands for «Reduced Instruction Set Computing»
  • VHDL stands for «VHSIC Hardware Description Language», in which «VHSIC» stands for «Very High Speed Integrated Circuit»
  • XSD stands for «XML Schema Definition», in which «XML» stands for «Extensible Markup Language»
  • AIM stands for «AOL Instant Messenger», in which «AOL» originally stood for «America Online»
  • HASP stood for «Houston Automatic Spooling Priority», but «spooling» itself was an acronym: «simultaneous peripheral operations on-line»
  • VORTAC stands for «VOR+TACAN», in which «VOR» is «VHF omnidirectional range» (where VHF = Very High Frequency radio) and «TAC» is short for TACAN, which stands for «Tactical Air Navigation»
  • Global Information Assurance Certification has a number of nested acronyms for its certifications, e.g. «GSEC» is an acronym for «GIAC Security Essentials»
  • RBD stands for «REM Behavior Disorder», in which «REM» stands for «Rapid Eye Movement»

Some macronyms can be multiply nested: the second-order acronym points to another one further down a hierarchy. In an informal competition run by the magazine New Scientist, a fully documented specimen was discovered that may be the most deeply nested of all: RARS is the «Regional ATOVS Retransmission Service»; ATOVS is «Advanced TOVS»; TOVS is «TIROS operational vertical sounder»; and TIROS is «Television infrared observational satellite».[90] Fully expanded, «RARS» might thus become «Regional Advanced Television Infrared Observational Satellite Operational Vertical Sounder Retransmission Service», which would produce the much more unwieldy acronym «RATIOSOVSRS».

Another example is VITAL, which expands to «VHDL Initiative Towards ASIC Libraries» (a total of 15 words when fully expanded).

However, to say that «RARS» stands directly for that string of words, or can be interchanged with it in syntax (in the same way that «CHF» can be usefully interchanged with «congestive heart failure»), is a prescriptive misapprehension rather than a linguistically accurate description; the true nature of such a term is closer to anacronymic than to being interchangeable like simpler acronyms are. The latter are fully reducible in an attempt to «spell everything out and avoid all abbreviations», but the former are irreducible in that respect; they can be annotated with parenthetical explanations, but they cannot be eliminated from speech or writing in any useful or practical way. Just as the words laser and radar function as words in syntax and cognition without a need to focus on their acronymic origins, terms such as «RARS» and «CHA2DS2–VASc score» are irreducible in natural language; if they are purged, the form of language that is left may conform to some imposed rule, but it cannot be described as remaining natural. Similarly, protein and gene nomenclature, which uses symbols extensively, includes such terms as the name of the NACHT protein domain, which reflects the symbols of some proteins that contain the domain – NAIP (NLR family apoptosis inhibitor protein), C2TA (major histocompatibility complex class II transcription activator), HET-E (incompatibility locus protein from Podospora anserine), and TP1 (telomerase-associated protein) – but is not syntactically reducible to them. The name is thus itself more symbol than acronym, and its expansion cannot replace it while preserving its function in natural syntax as a name within a clause clearly parsable by human readers or listeners.

Recursive acronymsEdit

A special type of macronym, the recursive acronym, has letters whose expansion refers back to the macronym itself. One of the earliest examples appears in The Hacker’s Dictionary as MUNG, which stands for «MUNG Until No Good».

Some examples of recursive acronyms are:

  • GNU stands for «GNU’s Not Unix!»
  • LAME stands for «LAME Ain’t an MP3 Encoder»
  • PHP stands for «PHP: Hypertext Preprocessor»
  • WINE stands for «WINE Is Not an Emulator»
  • HURD stands for «HIRD of Unix-replacing daemons», where HIRD itself stands for «HURD of interfaces representing depth» (a «mutually recursive» acronym)

Non-English languagesEdit

Specific languagesEdit

ChineseEdit

In English language discussions of languages with syllabic or logographic writing systems (such as Chinese, Japanese, and Korean), «acronyms» describe the short forms that take selected characters from a multi-character word.

For example, in Chinese, «university» (大學/大学, literally «great learning») is usually abbreviated simply as («great») when used with the name of the institute. So «Peking University» (北京大学) is commonly shortened to 北大 (lit. «north-great») by also only taking the first character of Peking, the «northern capital» (北京; Beijing). In some cases, however, other characters than the first can be selected. For example, the local short form of «Hong Kong University» (香港大學) uses «Kong» (港大) rather than «Hong».

There are also cases where some longer phrases are abbreviated drastically, especially in Chinese politics, where proper nouns were initially translated from Soviet Leninist terms. For instance, the full name of China’s highest ruling council, the Politburo Standing Committee (PSC), is «Standing Committee of the Central Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China» (中国共产党中央政治局常务委员会). The term then reduced the «Communist Party of China» part of its name through acronyms, then the «Standing Committee» part, again through acronyms, to create «中共中央政治局常委«. Alternatively, it omitted the «Communist Party» part altogether, creating «Politburo Standing Committee» (政治局常委会), and eventually just «Standing Committee» (常委会). The PSC’s members full designations are «Member of the Standing Committee of the Central Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China» (中国共产党中央政治局常务委员会委员); this was eventually drastically reduced to simply Changwei (常委), with the term Ruchang (入常) used increasingly for officials destined for a future seat on the PSC. In another example, the word «全国人民代表大会» (National People’s Congress) can be broken into four parts: «全国» = «the whole nation», «人民» = «people», «代表» = «representatives», «大会» = «conference». Yet, in its short form «人大» (literally «man/people big»), only the first characters from the second and the fourth parts are selected; the first part («全国«) and the third part («代表«) are simply ignored. In describing such abbreviations, the term initialism is inapplicable.[original research?]

Many proper nouns become shorter and shorter over time. For example, the CCTV New Year’s Gala, whose full name is literally read as «China Central Television Spring Festival Joint Celebration Evening Gala» (中国中央电视台春节联欢晚会) was first shortened to «Spring Festival Joint Celebration Evening Gala» (春节联欢晚会), but eventually referred to as simply Chunwan (春晚). Along the same vein, CCTV or Zhongguo Zhongyang Dianshi Tai (中国中央电视台) was reduced to Yangshi (央视) in the mid-2000s.

KoreanEdit

Many aspects of academics in Korea follow similar acronym patterns as Chinese, owing to the two languages’ commonalities, like using the word for «big» or «great» i.e. dae (), to refer to universities (대학; daehak, literally «great learning» although «big school» is an acceptable alternate). They can be interpreted similarly to American university appellations such as, «UPenn» or «Texas Tech.»

Some acronyms are shortened forms of the school’s name, like how Hongik University (홍익대학교, Hongik Daehakgyo) is shortened to Hongdae (홍대, «Hong, the big [school]» or «Hong-U») Other acronyms can refer to the university’s main subject, e.g. Korea National University of Education (한국교원대학교, Hanguk Gyowon Daehakgyo) is shortened to Gyowondae (교원대, «Big Ed.» or «Ed.-U»). Other schools use a Koreanized version of their English acronym. The Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (한국과학기술원, Hanguk Gwahak Gisulwon) is referred to as KAIST (카이스트, Kaiseuteu) in both English and Korean. The 3 most prestigious schools in Korea are known as SKY (스카이, seukai), combining the first letter of their English names (Seoul National, Korea, and Yonsei Universities). In addition, the College Scholastic Ability Test (대학수학능력시험, Daehak Suhang Neungryeok Siheom) is shortened to Suneung (수능, «S.A.»).

JapaneseEdit

The Japanese language makes extensive use of abbreviations, but only some of these are acronyms.

Chinese-based words (Sino-Japanese vocabulary) uses similar acronym formation to Chinese, like Tōdai (東大) for Tōkyō Daigaku (東京大学, Tokyo University). In some cases alternative pronunciations are used, as in Saikyō for 埼京, from Saitama + Tōkyō (埼玉+東京), rather than Sai.

Non-Chinese foreign borrowings (gairaigo) are instead frequently abbreviated as clipped compounds, rather than acronyms, using several initial sounds. This is visible in katakana transcriptions of foreign words, but is also found with native words (written in hiragana). For example, the Pokémon media franchise’s name originally stood for «pocket monsters» (ポケット·モンスター [po-ke-tto-mon-su-tā] → ポケモン), which is still the long-form of the name in Japanese, and «wāpuro» stands for «word processor» (ワード·プロセッサー [wā-do-pu-ro-se-ssā]→ ワープロ).

GermanEdit

To a greater degree than English does, German tends toward acronyms that use initial syllables rather than initial single letters, although it uses many of the latter type as well. Some examples of the syllabic type are Gestapo rather than GSP (for Geheime Staatspolizei, ‘Secret State Police’); Flak rather than FAK (for Fliegerabwehrkanone, anti-aircraft gun); Kripo rather than KP (for Kriminalpolizei, detective division police). The extension of such contraction to a pervasive or whimsical degree has been mockingly labeled Aküfi (for Abkürzungsfimmel, strange habit of abbreviating). Examples of Aküfi include Vokuhila (for vorne kurz, hinten lang, short in the front, long in the back, i.e., a mullet) and the mocking of Adolf Hitler’s title as Gröfaz (Größter Feldherr aller Zeiten, «Greatest General of all Times»).

HebrewEdit

It is common to take more than just one initial letter from each of the words composing the acronym; regardless of this, the abbreviation sign gershayim ⟨״⟩ is always written between the second-last and last letters of the non-inflected form of the acronym, even if by this it separates letters of the same original word. Examples (keep in mind Hebrew reads right-to-left): ארה״ב (for ארצות הברית, the United States); ברה״מ (for ברית המועצות, the Soviet Union); ראשל״צ (for ראשון לציון, Rishon LeZion); ביה״ס (for בית הספר, the school). An example that takes only the initial letters from its component words is צה״ל (Tzahal, for צבא הגנה לישראל, Israel Defense Forces). In inflected forms the abbreviation sign gershayim remains between the second-last and last letters of the non-inflected form of the acronym (e.g. «report», singular: דו״ח, plural: דו״חות; «squad commander», masculine: מ״כ, feminine: מ״כית).

IndonesianEdit

There is also a widespread use of acronyms in Indonesia in every aspect of social life. For example, the Golkar political party stands for «Partai Golongan Karya», Monas stands for «Monumen Nasional» (National Monument), the Angkot public transport stands for «Angkutan Kota» (city public transportation), warnet stands for «warung internet» (internet cafe), and many others. Some acronyms are considered formal (or officially adopted), while many more are considered informal, slang or colloquial.

The capital’s metropolitan area (Jakarta and its surrounding satellite regions), Jabodetabek, is another infamous acronym. This stands for «Jakarta-Bogor-Depok-Tangerang-Bekasi». Many highways are also named by the acronym method; e.g. Jalan Tol (Toll Road) Jagorawi (Jakarta-Bogor-Ciawi) and Purbaleunyi (Purwakarta-Bandung-Cileunyi), Joglo Semar (Jogja-Solo-Semarang).

In some languages, especially those that use certain alphabets, many acronyms come from the governmental use, particularly in the military and law enforcement services. The Indonesian military (TNI – Tentara Nasional Indonesia) and Indonesian police (POLRI – Kepolisian Republik Indonesia) are infamous for heavy acronyms use. Examples include the Kopassus (Komando Pasukan Khusus; Special Forces Command), Kopaska (Komando Pasukan Katak; Frogmen Command), Kodim (Komando Distrik Militer; Military District Command – one of the Indonesian army’s administrative divisions), Serka (Sersan Kepala; Head Sergeant), Akmil (Akademi Militer; Military Academy – in Magelang) and many other terms regarding ranks, units, divisions, procedures, etc.

MalayEdit

Although not as common as in Indonesian, a number of Malay words are formed by merging two words, such as tadika from «taman didikan kanak-kanak» (kindergarten) and pawagam from «panggung wayang gambar.» This, however, has been less prevalent in the modern era, in contrary to Indonesian. It is still often for names such as organisation names, among the most famous being MARA from Majlis Amanah Rakyat (People’s Trust Council,) a government agency in Malaysia.

Some acronyms are developed from the Jawi (Malay in Arabic script) spelling of the name and may not reflect its Latin counterpart such as PAS from Parti Islam Se-Malaysia (Malaysian Islamic Party) which originated from the Jawi acronym ڤاس from ڤرتي إسلام سمليسيا, with the same pronunciation, since the first letter of the word «Islam» in Jawi uses the letter Aleph, which is pronounced like the letter A when in such position as in the acronym.

Rules in writing initialisms in Malay differ based on its script. In its Latin form, the initialism would be spelt much like in English, using capitals written without any spacing, such as TNB for Tenaga Nasional Berhad.

In Jawi, however, the way initialisms are different depending on the source language. For Malay initialisms, the initial Jawi letters would be written separated by a period such as د.ب.ڤ for ديوان بهاس دان ڤوستاک.[91] If the initialism is from a different language, however, it would be written by transliterating each letter from the original language, such as عيم.سي.عيم.سي. for MCMC, or الفا.ڤي.ثيتا for Α.Π.Θ.[92]

RussianEdit

Acronyms that use parts of words (not necessarily syllables) are commonplace in Russian as well, e.g. Газпром (Gazprom), for Газовая промышленность (Gazovaya promyshlennost, «gas industry»). There are also initialisms, such as СМИ (SMI, for средства массовой информации sredstva massovoy informatsii, «means of mass informing», i.e. ГУЛаг (GULag) combines two initials and three letters of the final word: it stands for Главное управление лагерей (Glavnoe upravlenie lagerey, «Chief Administration of Camps»).

Historically, «OTMA» was an acronym sometimes used by the daughters of Emperor Nicholas II of Russia and his consort, Alexandra Feodorovna, as a group nickname for themselves, built from the first letter of each girl’s name in the order of their births: «Olga, Tatiana, Maria and Anastasia».

SwahiliEdit

In Swahili, acronyms are common for naming organizations such as «TUKI», which stands for Taasisi ya Uchunguzi wa Kiswahili (the Institute for Swahili Research). Multiple initial letters (often the initial syllable of words) are often drawn together, as seen more in some languages than others.

VietnameseEdit

In Vietnamese, which has an abundance of compound words, initialisms are very commonly used for both proper and common nouns. Examples include TP.HCM (Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh, Ho Chi Minh City), THPT (trung học phổ thông, high school), CLB (câu lạc bộ, club), CSDL (cơ sở dữ liệu, database), NXB (nhà xuất bản, publisher), ÔBACE (ông bà anh chị em, a general form of address), and CTTĐVN (các Thánh tử đạo Việt Nam, Vietnamese Martyrs). Longer examples include CHXHCNVN (Cộng hòa Xã hội chủ nghĩa Việt Nam, Socialist Republic of Vietnam) and MTDTGPMNVN (Mặt trận Dân tộc Giải phóng miền Nam Việt Nam, Viet Cong). Long initialisms have become widespread in legal contexts in Vietnam, for example TTLT-VKSNDTC-TANDTC.[93] It is also common for a writer to coin an ad hoc initialism for repeated use in an article.

Each letter in an initialism corresponds to one morpheme, that is, one syllable. When the first letter of a syllable has a tone mark or other diacritic, the diacritic may be omitted from the initialism, for example ĐNA or ĐNÁ for Đông Nam Á (Southeast Asia) and LMCA or LMCÂ for Liên minh châu Âu (European Union). The letter «Ư» is often replaced by «W» in initialisms to avoid confusion with «U», for example UBTWMTTQVN or UBTƯMTTQVN for Ủy ban Trung ương Mặt trận Tổ quốc Việt Nam (Central Committee of the Vietnamese Fatherland Front).

Initialisms are purely a written convenience, being pronounced the same way as their expansions. As the names of many Vietnamese letters are disyllabic, it would be less convenient to pronounce an initialism by its individual letters. Acronyms pronounced as words are rare in Vietnamese, occurring when an acronym itself is borrowed from another language. Examples include SIĐA (pronounced [s̪i˧ ˀɗaː˧]), a respelling of the French acronym SIDA (AIDS); VOA (pronounced [vwaː˧]), a literal reading of the English initialism for Voice of America; and NASA (pronounced [naː˧ zaː˧]), borrowed directly from the English acronym.

As in Chinese, many compound words can be shortened to the first syllable when forming a longer word. For example, the term Việt Cộng is derived from the first syllables of «Việt Nam» (Vietnam) and «Cộng sản» (communist). This mechanism is limited to Sino-Vietnamese vocabulary. Unlike with Chinese, such clipped compounds are considered to be portmanteau words or blend words rather than acronyms or initialisms, because the Vietnamese alphabet still requires each component word to be written as more than one character.

General grammatical considerationsEdit

DeclensionEdit

In languages where nouns are declined, various methods are used. An example is Finnish, where a colon is used to separate inflection from the letters:

  • An acronym is pronounced as a word: Nato [ˈnɑto]Natoon [ˈnɑtoːn] «into Nato», Nasalta «from NASA»
  • An acronym is pronounced as letters: EU [ˈeːˌʔuː]EU:hun [ˈeːˌʔuːhun] «into EU»
  • An acronym is interpreted as words: EU [euroːpan unioni]EU:iin [ˈeu̯roːpɑnˌunioniːn] «into EU»

The process above is similar to the way that hyphens are used for clarity in English when prefixes are added to acronyms: thus pre-NATO policy (rather than preNATO).

LenitionEdit

In languages such as Scottish Gaelic and Irish, where lenition (initial consonant mutation) is commonplace, acronyms must also be modified in situations where case and context dictate it. In the case of Scottish Gaelic, a lower-case h is often added after the initial consonant; for example, BBC Scotland in the genitive case would be written as BhBC Alba, with the acronym pronounced VBC. Likewise, the Gaelic acronym for telebhisean ‘television’ is TBh, pronounced TV, as in English.

See alsoEdit

  • Acronyms in healthcare
  • Acronyms in the Philippines
  • Acrostic
  • Amalgamation (names) – Name formed by combining several previously existing names
  • List of astronomy acronyms
  • Initialized sign
  • Internet slang – Slang languages used by different people on the Internet
  • Lists of abbreviations
  • List of abbreviations in photography
  • Lists of acronyms
  • List of fictional espionage organizations
  • List of Japanese Latin alphabetic abbreviations
  • -onym – Suffix used in linguistics
  • Syllabic abbreviation – Shortened form of a word or phrase

Explanatory notesEdit

  1. ^ This change was also applied to other languages, with Poulet Frit Kentucky becoming PFK in French Canada.

ReferencesEdit

  1. ^ a b c d «acronym, n.» Oxford English Dictionary (Third ed.). Oxford University Press. December 2011. Archived from the original on January 22, 2020. Retrieved January 22, 2020.

    acronym, n.

    Pronunciation: Brit. /ˈakrənɪm/, U.S. /ˈækrəˌnɪm/
    Origin: Formed within English, by compounding; modelled on a German lexical item.
    Etymons: acro- comb. form, -onym comb. form.
    Etymology: < acro- comb. form + -onym comb. form, after German Akronym (1921 or earlier).
    Originally U.S.
    1. A group of initial letters used as an abbreviation for a name or expression, each letter or part being pronounced separately; an initialism (such as ATM, TLS).
    In the O.E.D. the term initialism is used for this phenomenon. (See sense 2 for O.E.D. use of the word.)

    • 1940

      W. Muir & E. Muir tr. L. Feuchtwanger Paris Gaz.

      iii. xlvii. 518     Pee-gee-enn. It’s an acronym [Ger. Akronym], that’s what it is. That’s what they call words made up of initials.

    • 1947

      T. M. Pearce in Word Study May 8/2     The acronym DDT..trips pleasantly on the tongue and is already a household byword.

    • 1959 Rotarian May 43/1     DDD, an acronym that sounds more like a cattle brand.

    • 1975 Jet 24 July 9/1     The puns on the acronym, ‘CIA’, were spawned by recent disclosures about the intelligence agency.

    • 1985

      C. Jencks Mod. Movements in Archit. (ed. 2) i. 75     Called by the acronym SCSD (Schools Construction System Development).

    • 2008 Atlantic Monthly June 104/2     The acronym TSS—Tout Sauf Sarkozy (‘Anything But Sarkozy’).

    2. A word formed from the initial letters of other words or (occasionally) from the initial parts of syllables taken from other words, the whole being pronounced as a single word (such as NATO, RADA).

    • 1943 Amer. Notes & Queries Feb. 167/1     Words made up of the initial letters or syllables of other words..I have seen..called by the name acronym.

    • 1947 Word Study 6(title)     Acronym Talk, or ‘Tomorrow’s English’.

    • 1950

      S. Potter Our Lang. 163     Acronyms or telescoped names like nabisco from National Biscuit Company.

    • 1959 Times 1 Sept. 22/3     New words which are constructed out of initial letters are called, I understand, acronyms.

    • 1961 Electronics 21 Apr. 51/2     Colidar, an acronym from coherent light detecting and ranging.

    • 1976

      P. R. Hutt in IBA Techn. Rev.

      ix. 4/2     The author hit on the idea of the name ‘oracle’..and it was not long before it was made into an acronym for ‘Optional Reception of Announcements by Coded Line Electronics’.

    • 2009 N.Y. Times (National ed.) 16 Apr.

      a2/2     Turning tea into an acronym for Taxed Enough Already, demonstrators were expected to attend more than 750 rallies to protest government spending.

  2. ^ «Acronym». The Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary. Merriam-Webster Inc. January 22, 2020. Archived from the original on January 22, 2020. Retrieved January 22, 2020.

    Some people feel strongly that acronym should only be used for terms like NATO, which is pronounced as a single word, and that initialism should be used if the individual letters are all pronounced distinctly, as with FBI. Our research shows that acronym is commonly used to refer to both types of abbreviations.

  3. ^ a b Brinton, Laurel J.; Brinton, Donna M. (2010). The Linguistic Structure of Modern English. Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing Company. p. 110. ISBN 9789027288240. Retrieved April 3, 2022.
  4. ^ «acronym». en.wiktionary.org. Archived from the original on January 17, 2020. Retrieved January 28, 2020.
  5. ^ «Akronym». Brockhaus Handbuch des Wissens in vier Bänden (in German). Vol. 1. Leipzig: F. A. Brockhaus AG. 1921. p. 37. Archived from the original on April 5, 2020. Retrieved February 22, 2020. Agfa (Aktien-Gesellschaft für Anilinfabrikation).
  6. ^ Feuchtwanger, Lion (1940). «Chapter 47: Beasts of Prey». Paris Gazette [Exil] (in German). Translated by Muir, Willa; Muir, Edwin. New York: Viking Press. pp. 665–66. ISBN 1135370109.

    His first glance at the Paris German News told Wiesener that this new paper was nothing like the old P.G.. «They can call it the P.G.N. if they like», he thought, «but that’s the only difference. Pee-gee-enn; what’s the word for words like that, made out of initials? My memory is beginning to fail me. Just the other day there was a technical expression I couldn’t remember. I must be growing old. «P.G. or P.G.N., it’s six of one and half a dozen of the other…. Pee-gee-enn. It’s an acronym, that’s what it is. That’s what they call words made up of initials. So I remember it after all; that’s at least something.

  7. ^ Brinton, Laurel J.; Brinton, Donna M. (2010). The Linguistic Structure of Modern English. Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing Company. p. 109. ISBN 9789027288240. Retrieved April 3, 2022.
  8. ^ «Acronym». The Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary. Merriam-Webster Inc. January 22, 2020. Archived from the original on January 22, 2020. Retrieved January 22, 2020.

    acronym noun
    ac·​ro·​nym | ˈa-krə-ˌnim
    Definition of acronym
    : a word (such as NATO, radar, or laser) formed from the initial letter or letters of each of the successive parts or major parts of a compound term
    also : an abbreviation (such as FBI) formed from initial letters : initialism

  9. ^ «Acronym». Dictionary.com. January 22, 2020. Archived from the original on January 22, 2020. Retrieved January 22, 2020. 2. a set of initials representing a name, organization, or the like, with each letter pronounced separately; an initialism.
  10. ^ a b c «Acronym». The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (Fifth ed.). Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. November 2011. Archived from the original on January 22, 2020. Retrieved January 22, 2020.

    ac·ro·nym (ăkrə-nĭm′)
    n.
    1. A word formed by combining the initial letters of a multipart name, such as NATO from North Atlantic Treaty Organization or by combining the initial letters or parts of a series of words, such as radar from radio detecting and ranging.
    2. Usage Problem An initialism.
    [acr(o)- + -onym.]
    ac′ro·nymic, a·crony·mous (ə-krŏn′ə-məs) adj.
    Usage Note: In strict usage, the term acronym refers to a word made from the initial letters or parts of other words, such as sonar from so(und) na(vigation and) r(anging). The distinguishing feature of an acronym is that it is pronounced as if it were a single word, in the manner of NATO and NASA. Acronyms are often distinguished from initialisms like FBI and NIH, whose individual letters are pronounced as separate syllables. While observing this distinction has some virtue in precision, it may be lost on many people, for whom the term acronym refers to both kinds of abbreviations.

  11. ^ «acronym». Macquarie Dictionary. Macmillan Publishers Australia. Archived from the original on March 3, 2020. Retrieved January 22, 2020.

    acronym
    /ˈækrənɪm/ (‘say’ ‘akruhnim)
    noun 1. a word formed from the initial letters of a sequence of words, as radar (from radio detection and ranging) or ANZAC (from Australian and New Zealand Army Corps). Compare initialism.
    2. an initialism.
    [acro- + (o)nym; modelled on synonym]

  12. ^ «acronym». Collins COBUILD Advanced English Dictionary. HarperCollins Publishers. Archived from the original on February 8, 2020. Retrieved January 22, 2020. An acronym is a word composed of the first letters of the words in a phrase, especially when this is used as a name. An example of an acronym is ‘NATO’, which is made up of the first letters of the ‘North Atlantic Treaty Organization’.
  13. ^ «acronym». Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Dictionary & Thesaurus. Cambridge University Press. Archived from the original on February 8, 2020. Retrieved January 22, 2020. an abbreviation consisting of the first letters of each word in the name of something, pronounced as a word
  14. ^ «acronym». Macmillan Dictionary. Macmillan Education Limited. Archived from the original on April 5, 2020. Retrieved January 22, 2020. an abbreviation consisting of letters that form a word. For example, NATO is an acronym for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
  15. ^ «acronym». Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English. Pearson Longman. Archived from the original on April 5, 2020. Retrieved January 22, 2020. a word made up from the first letters of the name of something such as an organization. For example, NATO is an acronym for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
  16. ^ New Oxford American dictionary (3rd ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. 2010. p. 15. ISBN 978-0-19-539288-3. OCLC 614990378.

    ac·ro·nym /ˈakrəˌnim/ ▸ n. an abbreviation formed from the initial letters of other words and pronounced as a word (e.g. ASCII, NASA).
    origin 1940s: from Greek akron ‘end, tip’ + onoma ‘name,’ on the pattern of homonym.

  17. ^ «acronym». Webster’s New World College Dictionary, Fifth Edition. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. 2014. Archived from the original on April 5, 2020. Retrieved January 22, 2020. a word formed from the first (or first few) letters of a series of words, as radar, from radio detecting and ranging
  18. ^ «acronym». Lexico.com. Oxford University Press. Archived from the original on December 22, 2019. Retrieved January 22, 2020. An abbreviation formed from the initial letters of other words and pronounced as a word (e.g. ASCII, NASA).
  19. ^ a b Merriam-Webster, Inc. Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of English Usage, 1994. ISBN 0-87779-132-5. pp. 21–22:

    acronyms  A number of commentators (as Copperud 1970, Janis 1984, Howard 1984) believe that acronyms can be differentiated from other abbreviations in being pronounceable as words. Dictionaries, however, do not make this distinction because writers in general do not:

    «The powder metallurgy industry has officially adopted the acronym ‘P/M Parts'»—Precision Metal Molding, January 1966.
    «Users of the term acronym make no distinction between those pronounced as words … and those pronounced as a series of characters» —Jean Praninskas, Trade Name Creation, 1968.
    «It is not J.C.B.’s fault that its name, let alone its acronym, is not a household word among European scholars»—Times Literary Supp. 5 February 1970.
    «… the confusion in the Pentagon about abbreviations and acronyms—words formed from the first letters of other words»—Bernard Weinraub, N.Y. Times, 11 December 1978.

    Pyles & Algeo 1970 divide acronyms into «initialisms», which consists of initial letters pronounced with the letter names, and «word acronyms», which are pronounced as words. Initialism, an older word than acronym, seems to be too little known to the general public to serve as the customary term standing in contrast with acronym in a narrow sense.

  20. ^ Merriam-Webster’s collegiate dictionary (Tenth ed.). Springfield, Massachusetts, U.S.A.: Merriam-Webster. 1993. p. 11. ISBN 0-87779-708-0. OCLC 27432416.

    ac·ro·nym ˈa-krə-ˌnim n [acr- + -onym] (1943) : a word (as NATO, radar, or snafu) formed from the initial letter or letters of each of the successive parts or major parts of a compound term— ac·ro·nym·ic ˌa-krə-ˈni-mik adjac·ro·nym·i·c·al·ly -mi-k(ə-)lē adv

  21. ^ Merriam-Webster’s collegiate dictionary (Eleventh ed.). Springfield, Massachusetts, U.S.A.: Merriam-Webster. 2003. p. 12. ISBN 0-87779-809-5. OCLC 51764057.

    ac·ro·nym ˈa-krə-ˌnim n [acr- + -onym] (1943) : a word (such as NATO, radar, or laser) formed from the initial letter or letters of each of the successive parts or major parts of a compound term; also : an abbreviation (such as FBI) formed from initial letters : initialismac·ro·nym·ic ˌa-krə-ˈni-mik adjac·ro·nym·i·c·al·ly -mi-k(ə-)lē adv

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External linksEdit

  • Acronyms at Curlie

Words from Letters FAQ

What Words Can I Make With These Letters?

That is the, «To be, or not to be,» question of all word games. There are usually many words you can make. Sometimes, there won’t be many at all. Just remember, sometimes it pays to make a word with fewer than the maximum number of points possible because it sets you up better for your next turn.

What Is the Longest English Word?

In the Oxford English Dictionary, the longest word is FLOCCINAUCINIHILIPILIFICATION, which means «the act of deeming or estimating something as worthless. Other dictionaries contain the word PNEUMONOULTRAMICROSCOPICSILICOVOLCANOCONIOSIS, which is coal miners’ «black lung disease.»

If you think that’s bad, German is worse. The longest word in German is DONAUDAMPFSCHIFFFAHRTSELEKTRIZITÄTENHAUPTBETRIEBSWERKBAUUNTERBEAMTENGESELLSCHAFT. FLOCCI…, at 29 letters, and PNEUMONO …, at 45 letters, combined aren’t that long! None of these words will fit on a crossword game board. Scrabble boards are 15 letters across, so the longest word, which also doubles as the word worth the most points, possible is OXYBENPHUTAZONE. It requires eight letters already be placed, none of them on any of the three triples or the double-letter squares, and it scores 1,778 points. No one has ever achieved it.

How Do You Find Words With Letters Missing?

The best way is to use our tool. Of course, you should never use it while playing competitive games because it would count as looking up words in the Official Scrabble Player’s Dictionary prior to playing. But, if you wanted to ask yourself, «Which words from letters in my rack can I make?» during a friendly Words With Friends game, then that would not be bad form. Outside of competition, study as many words as you want using the website. It’s an invaluable training tool!

An acronym is an abbreviation made up of the initial letters of other words and pronounced as a single word. The word acronym comes from Greek (via German) and is made up of the Greek roots ‘acr-‘ meaning summit or tip and ‘-onym’ meaning name.

  • The word ‘laser’ stands for ‘light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation’.

  • The word ‘radar’ stands for ‘radio detection and ranging’.

  • The word ‘quasar’ stands for ‘quasi star’.

Types of Acronyms

Acronyms can vary and be divided into smaller groups. Here are some acronym examples:

Word acronyms

These common acronyms use initials of words to form one new word:

  • RAM — Random Access Memory

  • NASA — National Aeronautics and Space Administration

  • Laser — Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation

  • Scuba — Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus

  • POTUS — President of the United States

  • PAWS — Progressive Animal Welfare Society

  • NATO — North Atlantic Treaty Organization

  • ASAP — As Soon As Possible.

  • AWOL — Absent Without Official Leave (or Absent Without Leave)

  • IMAX — Image Maximum

  • GIF — Graphics Interchange Format

  • PIN — Personal Identification Number

  • TIME magazine — The International Magazine of Events

  • MASH — Mobile Army Surgical Hospital

Some acronyms have interesting origins:

The word ‘taser’ was invented by Jack Cover in the 1970s. He named his invention after his favourite children’s book character, Tom Swift, who was also an inventor. So, taser is the acronym of ‘Thomas A Swift Electric Rifle’.

The word ‘IKEA’ also has an interesting story. A Swedish businessman called Ingvar Kamprad, with the help of his father, set up a retail store. The name of the company was made of the initials of his name and the place he was living (Ingvar Kamprad from Elmtaryd in Agunnaryd).

The word ‘spam’ was originally associated with the tinned meat launched in the US by the Hormel Corporation in 1937. But, according to the company’s Spam Museum, the name spam was created by Ken Digneau, the brother of Hormel executive. It stands for Spiced Ham.

Fun fact: We say ‘spam’ now to mean junk or unsolicited emails — but did you know that its current meaning comes from a Monty Python sketch? (The sketch is about the tinned meat spam which is endlessly repeated on a restaurant menu).

Some acronyms have become such a part of everyday use that many people do not know or remember what they stand for, e.g., scuba, taser, radar, sonar. These would be called anacronyms, (from anachronism and acronym).

Acronyms - Scuba diver - StudySmarterFig. 1 — Scuba is both an acronym and an anacronym.

Three-letter acronyms

TLAs, or three-letter acronyms, are a way of shortening three-word phrases; for example, the word ‘FAQ’ stands for Frequently Asked Questions.

Three-letter acronyms also include countries, people, and communication, and are popular in computer language.

  • Countries: CAR (Central African Republic), USA (United States of America) UAE (United Arab Emirates)
  • People: FDR (Franklin D. Roosevelt), JFK (John F. Kennedy), MLK (Martin Luther King)
  • Computer: CPU (Central Processing Unit), DOS (Disk Operating System), RAM (Random-Access Memory)
  • File types: JPG (Joint Photographic Group) PDF (Portable Document Format)
  • TV networks: ABC (American Broadcasting Company), BBC (British Broadcasting Company)
  • Currency: USD (United States Dollars), GBP (Great British Pounds)
  • Shorthand texting: LOL, OMG

Syllabic Acronyms

Syllabic Acronyms use syllables of words instead of initials to make new words.

  • FOREX comes from ‘Foreign Exchange’.
  • Interpol comes from ‘International’ + ‘Police’ (full name: International Criminal Police Organization).
  • NaNoWriMo comes from ‘National Novel Writing Month’, an annual creative-writing challenge that takes place in November.

Acronyms - A creative writer - StudySmarterFig. 2 — NaNoWriMo stands for National Novel Writing Month.

In syllabic acronyms, usually, the first syllable (or two) is used from each main word:

In the UK, there are two regulatory offices called:

  • Ofcom (Office of Communications)
  • Oftel (Office of Telecommunications)

Some neighbourhoods in New York City are named by syllabic abbreviation, such as:

  • Tribeca (Triangle below Canal Street)
  • SoHo (South of Houston Street)

Other American cities and regions have followed this habit:

  • SoMa (South of Market) in San Francisco

  • LoDo (Lower Downtown) in Denver.

  • SoCal (Southern California)

There are exceptions to the use of the first syllables, such as the US Navy term DESRON or DesRon from ‘destroyer squadrons’.

Other groups

Some acronyms combine initials with words:

  • JPEG — Joint Photographic Experts Group (pronounced jay-peg)

  • MS-DOS — Microsoft Disk Operating System (pronounced em-es-dos)

Another group of acronyms combines syllabic abbreviations with initialisms and are also pronounced as words. Both of the following acronyms consist of two syllabic abbreviations followed by a single acronymic letter for ‘ranging’:

  • Radar — radio detection and ranging

  • Sonar — sound navigation ranging

Some acronyms are pronounced as letters, while others are pronounced as words:

  • The term ‘URL’ can be pronounced as letters (URL) or as a single word (‘url’).

  • The acronym ‘LOL’ (laughing out loud) first evolved on Usenet and has since been added to the Oxford English Dictionary. It is considered both an initialism (i.e., using initials only) and an acronym when it is pronounced aloud as a word ‘lol’.

The fully written form of an acronym, initialism, or syllabic abbreviation is called its expansion. So, ‘Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus’ is the expansion of the acronym ‘scuba’.

Backronyms

A backronym (also called an apronym or reverse acronym) is an acronym deliberately created for a word that isn’t an acronym, often for comic effect. Backronyms often turn up in topics surrounding transport, communication and business.

  • Cadet — Can’t Add, Doesn’t Even Try

  • Banana — Built Absolutely Nothing Anywhere Near Anyone

  • BANJO — Bang Another Nuisance Job Out

  • APE — Attentive, Peripheral, Empathic. The three main types of listening

  • Ark — A Random act of Kindness

The Backronym BANANA - StudySmarterFig. 3 — Build Absolutely Nothing Anywhere Near Anyone.

Adidas is a brand thought to be an acronym for ‘All Day I Dream About Sport’, however, it is in fact named after the company founder Adolf ‘Adi’ Dassler. So, this makes ‘All Day I Dream About Sport’ the backronym, as it was thought of after the original trade name.

Another example is Wiki, which is normally believed to stand for ‘What I Know Is’. In fact, Wiki is derived from the Hawaiian phrase wiki-wiki meaning ‘fast’.

Macronyms

Macronyms (from macro + acronyms) are where one or more letters stand for acronyms or abbreviations themselves.

  • AIM stands for ‘AOL Instant Messenger’, in which ‘AOL’ originally stood for ‘America Online’.

Recursive acronyms

A recursive acronym is an acronym that refers to itself. Usually, the first letter stands for the acronym itself.

Some organizations have recursive acronyms:

  • BWIA — BWIA West Indies Airways (formerly British West Indian Airways)
  • FARM — Farm Animal Rights Movement
  • VISA — Visa International Service Association

The RAS syndrome

The RAS syndrome is where the acronym is repeated together with all or a part of its own abbreviated form. For example, RAS Syndrome stands for Redundant Acronym Syndrome (so is an example of what it stands for, i.e. ‘syndrome’ is repeated).

The term was coined in 2001 by ‘New Scientist’ writer Stanley Newman in a humorous diagnosis of people who added extra words to acronyms.

  • PIN number (Personal Identification Number number)
  • ATM machine (Automated Teller Machine machine)
  • LCD display (Liquid Crystal Display display)
  • DC Comics (Detective Comics comics)

Many style guides advise against using redundant acronyms like these, but they continue to be widely used in colloquial speech.

Portmanteau:

A portmanteau is a type of word that could seem like an acronym but works a bit differently.

Portmanteau was originally a leather travelling bag that opened into two equal parts, however, it later came to be used to describe the combination of two words and their sounds into one.

Lewis Carroll first used portmanteau in this sense in Through the Looking-Glass (1871). We can find examples in the poem ‘Jabberwocky’, such as ‘slithy’ (which means ‘slimy and lithe’) and ‘mimsy’ (which means ‘miserable and flimsy’).

In one scene, Alice meets Humpty Dumpty who explains to Alice the practice of combining words in various ways:

You see it’s like a portmanteau — there are two meanings packed up into one word.

Carroll uses the word portmanteau again in the introduction to his later poem ‘The Hunting of the Snark’:

Humpty Dumpty’s theory, of two meanings packed into one word like a portmanteau, seems to me the right explanation for all. For instance, take the two words ‘fuming’ and ‘furious’. Make up your mind that you will say both words, but leave it unsettled which you will say first … if you have the rarest of gifts, a perfectly balanced mind, you will say ‘frumious’.

(Carroll, ‘Introduction to Hunting of the Snark’, 1876)

 Acronyms - Humpty Dumpty explains portmanteau to Alice - StudySmarterFig. 4 — Alice and Humpty Dumpty portmanteau illustration.

The following are considered as portmanteaus by some, and as acronyms by others.

  • Smog (smoke and fog)

  • Motel (motor(way) and hotel)

  • Chortle (chuckle and snort)

  • Brunch (breakfast and lunch)

  • Mockumentary (mock and documentary)

  • Spork (spoon and fork)

Portmanteau is similar to a syllabic acronym in that it takes syllables and morphemes from different words. However, portmanteau creates a blend of two words, where two meanings and sounds are fused together. Syllabic acronyms, on the other hand, are representative of existing words or concepts.

Acronyms - A 'spork' - StudySmarterFig. 5 — ‘Spork’ is an example of a portmanteau.

Acronyms — Key takeaways

    • An acronym is made up of the initial letters of other words and is pronounced as a word.

    • Acronyms can be divided into groups: word acronyms, syllabic acronyms, TLAs, etc.

    • Word acronyms use initials of words to form one new word (i.e., POTUS, scuba).

    • Syllabic acronyms use syllables of words instead of initials to make new words.

    • Other acronym groups combine initials with syllables or words (i.e., jpeg, sonar).

    • A recursive acronym is an acronym that refers to itself. Usually, the first letter of a recursive acronym stands for the acronym itself.

Lesson 12: Abbreviations and Acronyms

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Abbreviations and acronyms

Abbreviations and acronyms are shorter versions of existing words and phrases. They’re designed to save time and take up less space (whether you’re typing or writing by hand), and can even make your writing easier to read.

What is an abbreviation?

Abbreviations are all around us, from common titles like Dr. and Prof. to the abbreviations you see on street signs. Specifically, abbreviations are shorter spellings of words and expressions we use every day.

Presenting: Mr. and Mrs. Thor the Barbarian

What is an acronym?

You might already know some acronyms, like NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) and ATM (automated teller machine). An acronym is a stand-in for a string of words, usually an organization name, slogan, or something else equally wordy. Unlike abbreviations, they aren’t shorter spellings of words—they’re made up of the words’ initials.

I'm thinking of joining the CIA. / LOL // CIA Chief Intelligence Agency / LOL laugh out loud

Using abbreviations

Abbreviations are usually formed using the most recognizable letters from the word or expression. This makes them easier to remember, and easy for others to read. It’s almost like the letters are clues that point to the original word or expression.

Mister = Mr. / Boulevard = Blvd. / corporation = corp. / miles per hour = mph / New York = NY

Some abbreviations look like acronyms (for example, mph and NY), but it’s really just a coincidence. Technically, these are initialisms, which is a type of abbreviation. Thankfully, you don’t have to know whether something is an abbreviation, initialism, or acronym to use it properly. You just have to know what the term means, and how to spell it—everything else will usually fall into place.

Now that you know how abbreviations are formed, you may be wondering how they’re pronounced. Most of the time, they’re pronounced the same as the original word—whether you’re reading it aloud or in your head.

For example, Prof. Snape would be pronounced Professor Snape (not Prof Snape). The abbreviation etc. would be pronounced et cetera (not e-t-c). The important thing to remember is that abbreviations aren’t words in the true sense—they’re more like shorthand.

The suspect's address is 555 South La Vista Parkway, Los Angeles, California. // John Conner, 555 S. La Vista Pkwy., Los Angeles, CA

There are some exceptions that are pronounced differently. For instance, AM, PM, i.e., and PhD are pronounced exactly the way they’re spelled. This happens when the abbreviation becomes more popular than the original term—usually because the original is too long or outdated. For example, AM stands for Ante Meridiem. (That’s Latin for before noon. Who knew?)

Luckily, there aren’t many exceptions like this, so you don’t have to worry too much about making a mistake. Most abbreviations are pronounced the same as the word they’re based on, like hr, min, and sec (that’s hour, minute, and second).

Period vs. no period

This is one of the most common questions people have about abbreviations: Do you have to use a period at the end when writing it out? There’s no strict rule that says you do—it’s kind of up to you.

Sometimes adding a period is expected and can make the abbreviation easier to read. Take the example below. Pop. is the abbreviation for the word population—without a period, it might just look like pop (as in pop goes the weasel).

Welcome to Bachelor Town, pop. 1

On the other hand, some abbreviations never use a period; for example, state postal abbreviations like NY, CA, and TX. The abbreviation for United States of America can be written with a period between each letter, but it’s much more common without. The same goes for measurement abbreviations like ft, in, and cm.

USA! USA! USA!

Common abbreviations

There are abbreviations for so many different things, it would be impossible to list them all here. Here are some of the most common abbreviations you’ll see and use:

common abbreviations

You may have noticed that the abbreviations for ounce (oz) and pound (lb) are a little different from the rest. They’re spelled using letters that aren’t part of the original word. This is because the abbreviations are based on older forms of each word—ounce comes from the Italian word onza, and pound from the Roman word libra.

What about chat terms like LOL (laugh out loud), BRB (be right back), and plz (please)? Many blur the line between abbreviations and acronyms, but they’re abbreviations nonetheless. In other words, they abbreviate something in a contemporary way, using initials, slang, and other shorthand. They make it possible to communicate quickly, and that’s what makes them a form of abbreviation.

Is it OK to use abbreviations?

Look closely at the heading above, and you may find your answer. Believe it or not, OK is an abbreviation too, and we use it on the site all the time.

A good rule for abbreviations is to put the reader first. Ask yourself: Will the abbreviation make the sentence easier to read, or will it confuse the reader (for example, if the abbreviation is too obscure)? If an abbreviation still sounds like a good idea, next consider the context. Abbreviations are perfectly OK in personal and casual writing—they’re often OK in formal writing too. You might want to ask your boss or your teacher if you’re unsure.

Using acronyms

As you read earlier, acronyms are used in place of a phrase or string of words. They’re almost always made up of the words’ initials and are spelled in all caps. They can represent all kinds of things, from organizations to mnemonics to sandwiches.

United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund = UNICEF / National Assoc. for the Advancement of Colored People = NAACP / President of the United States = POTUS / Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally (order of operations) = PEMDAS / very important person = VIP / bed and breakfast = B&B / bacon, lettuce, and tomato = BLT

Like abbreviations, there’s a lot of overlap between acronyms and initialisms—but remember, this doesn’t really matter when it comes to using them. It might help to think of acronyms as something catchier than abbreviations (after all, they represent longer phrases, so it helps if they’re memorable). They don’t just shorten words; they stand for organizations, ideas, and other things you want people to remember.

Acronyms are read differently from abbreviations. Take the word BLT. If you saw that on the menu at your favorite restaurant, there’s a good chance you’d just order a BLT, not a bacon, lettuce, and tomato sandwich. You wouldn’t pronounce it built or belt either; you would say B-L-T. This is what makes acronyms unique—you can read them as they appear, even though they stand for something else.

I could really go for a BLT. / Sure, let me get on that ASAP. // BLT bacon, lettuce, and tomato / ASAP as soon as possible

The pronunciation of acronyms can vary, however. While some are pronounced literally like the example above, others can actually be pronounced as a word, like UNICEF, POTUS, and NASA.

Sometimes it’s just a question of, «Can the acronym be pronounced as a word?» A lot of acronyms can’t because they don’t have the right combination of vowels and consonants. However, there’s no set rule that governs this. Knowing how to pronounce acronyms depends a lot your awareness of the world around you, but it’s not the end of the world if you make a mistake.

When and how to use acronyms

Sometimes you may need to explain the acronym when using it in writing. Style guides suggest that you write the acronym first, followed by the full name or phrase in parentheses. You can also write them in the opposite order—whatever makes more sense. In short, if the acronym is more widely known, list it first; if it’s more obscure, you may want to start with the entire phrase.

Dogs aren't allowed in the NBA (National Basketball Association). / I once got arrested at the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA).

A lot of contemporary acronyms might need to be explained for different reasons (this also applies to the chat abbreviations that we discussed earlier). Not everyone will be familiar with slang like NIMBY (not in my back yard) and TGIF (thank goodness it’s Friday). As always, this type of slang can be OK in certain contexts, but it might leave some readers feeling confused.

So the party's at my place, but keep it on the DL. It's BYOB. This is gonna be awesome. YOLO! / ? // DL down low / BYOB bring your own "beverage" / YOLO you only live once

As you now know, abbreviations and acronyms can save time and space, and they can make your writing easier to read. Below is a sample that contains the full form of several different words, phrases, and expressions. Do you know which acronyms and abbreviations could be used as substitutes?

labeled graphic

Also known as = AKA

AKA is an acronym for also known as. Even though it could be pronounced as a word (it has the right combination of consonants and vowels), it’s always pronounced literally—A-K-A.

Junior = Jr.

Jr. is the abbreviation for Junior. It can be used to refer to someone who is a junior in name (for example, Martin Luther King, Jr.), or a junior in high school or college.

Sr. (Senior) is a related abbreviation—as in Martin Luther King, Sr.

Répondez s’il vous plaît = RSVP

RSVP stands for répondez s’il vous plaît. If you’ve heard the acronym before, but never knew what it stood for, that’s OK.

This is one of those special cases where the acronym is now more common than the original phrase. Not only is répondez s’il vous plaît long and sort of old-fashioned—it’s also in a completely different language!

Orange juice = OJ

OJ stands for orange juice—yet another term that we didn’t cover in this lesson, but it’s easy to see the connection. Did you get this one right?

OJ is more of a slang term than an official abbreviation or acronym. It’s used almost exclusively in conversation and casual writing (and your weekly shopping list).

Peanut butter and jelly = PB&J

PB&J stands for peanut butter and jelly. Like OJ, it’s more like slang than an official acronym.

The interesting thing about PB&J is that it’s sort of its own «thing,» because the acronym is so memorable and symbolic. In other words, you don’t have to say «PB&J sandwich»—you can just say PB&J.

Miscellaneous = misc.

Misc. is the abbreviation for miscellaneous. Good guess if you got this one right.

Misc. is a very common substitute for miscellaneous—even in formal writing—simply because the original word is so long.

Minute = min

Min is the abbreviation for minute. Notice that it’s not capitalized in the sentence, and it doesn’t use a period either.

This is common for certain types of abbreviations (especially those related to time and measurement). However, in your own writing, feel free to add a period if it makes the abbreviation easier to read.

Captain = Capt.

Capt. is the abbreviation for Captain. Maybe you’ve seen it spelled a different way on a certain cereal box—ever heard of Cap’n Crunch?

That’s more of a slang abbreviation, used in conversation and casual writing (sometimes as a joke). Capt. is the official abbreviation; it’s used in the military, police force, and other organizations.

Incorporated = Inc.

Inc. is the abbreviation for Incorporated. It’s one of the few abbreviations that can be pronounced literally (as in rhymes with «ink»), or the same as the word it’s based on.

It often depends on the business’ branding, and how they prefer to be known to the public.

Post Meridiem = PM

PM is the abbreviation for Post Meridiem. Good job if you got this one correct! If you didn’t, that’s OK—the abbreviation is far more common than the expression it’s based on.

Luckily, you don’t have to remember exactly what PM stands for. It’s much easier to think of it as an abbreviation for afternoon.

February = Feb.

Feb. is a common abbreviation for February. We didn’t discuss this in the lesson, but if you look closely at the abbreviation, you can probably see where it comes from—it’s simply the first three letters of the word.

There’s an abbreviation for almost every month, from January (Jan.) to December (Dec.). Some months don’t have an abbreviation because the spelling is already so short (May, June, and July).

Very important person = VIP

VIP is an acronym for very important person(s). It’s common for clubs to have VIP lounges or services, but people can be VIPs too (i.e., the person is a very important person).

VIP is pronounced literally (V-I-P) rather than «vip» or «veep.»

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