ABBREV.

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ABBREVIATION - shorter spellings of words and expressions we use every day. 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. Mr, Mrs, Dr, mph
(miles per hour) are examples.
ACRONYM - an abbreviation formed from the initial letters of other words and pronounced as a word, e.g. NATO,
UNESCO, AIDS, Gestapo. Gestapo stands for Geheime Staats-Polizei, or "secret state police".
Occasionally an acronym disguises itself so successfully that we forget it is an acronym. Notice:
scuba - self-contained underwater breathing apparatus
laser - light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation
care package - Cooperative for American Remittances to Europe
radar- radio detecting and ranging
sonar sound navigation and ranging
INITIALISM - By contrast, an initialism like OED for Oxford English Dictionary remains pronounced as
separate letters: BBC, UNO, ADHD
GENERAL RULES FOR USING ABBREVIATIONS
1. PRONUNCIATION
Abbreviations are still pronounced the same way, even if they are written as an abbreviation.
o Mr. Hall is pronounced Mister Hall and not M-R Hall.
o 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
sensethey're more like shorthand.
o This rule is only relaxed when the abbreviation is of a word taken from another language like e.g. which actually
stands for exempli gratia. In this case, we say the meaning of the phrase instead of the phrase itself - for example
instead of exempli gratia.
o There are, nevertheless, a few exceptions to this rule. For example, the abbreviation p. for pence is sometimes
pronounced as pee; 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abbreviation becomes more popular than the original termusually because the original is too long or outdated.
Acronyms, on the other hand, are shortened versions of phrases that are most often the names of something. They
are pronounced as their short forms rather than their actual full form. NATO is pronounced NAY-TOE and not as
North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
o They don't just shorten words; they stand for organizations, ideas, and other things you want people to remember.
2. PERIODS

 In British English full stops are uncommon after abbreviations that contain the first and last letters of the full
expression. Examples are: Dr and Mr
In American English, full stops are common, and Mr. and Dr. are preferred.
THOSE ARE TECHNICALLY CONTRACTIONS BECAUSE THE MIDDLE PART IS MISSING LIKE IN
DONT
When an abbreviation appears at the end of a sentence, only one period is used: The capital of the United States
is Washington, D.C.
In some cases periods are optional, as in either US or U.S. for United States, EU or E.U. for European Union, and
UN or U.N. for United Nations. PhD or Ph.D. optional
Terms of mathematical units: 15 in., 15 ft, 15 kg, 15 m, 15 lb - Generally, you would use these abbreviations
only in technical writing. There is a space between the number and the abbreviation. Notice that we do not put an s
after such abbreviations even when the plural is indicated. Also, we do not use a period with such abbreviations except
for in. when it might be confused with the preposition in.

3. PLURAL FORM OF ABBREVIATIONS

To form most common plural abbreviations, add an s: ABCs, CDs, chaps., Drs., IOUs, TVs, UFOs.
Sometimes, an apostrophe may go before the s:
o when the abbreviation has internal periods (M.A.'s, Ph.D.'s),
o when the abbreviation is composed of lowercase letters (pdf's)
o when the abbreviation is a single letter (A's, S's)
o and when the abbreviation would be confusing if only the s were added (OWS's instead of OWSs).
o In the last example, if your readers might misinterpret an abbreviation like OWS's as showing possession, leave
out the apostrophe.
The plural of Mr. is Messrs. (We invited Messrs. Carter, Lincoln, and Ford.) The plural of Dr. is Drs. (We
consulted Drs. Carter, Lincoln, and Ford.) The plural of Mrs. is Mmes or Mmes. (with or without the period).
To indicate the plural of the abbreviation or symbol of a unit of measure, the same form is used as in the singular.
o 1 lb or 20 lb.
o 1 ft or 16 ft.
o 1 min or 45 min.
In Latin, and continuing to the derivative forms in European languages as well as English, single-letter
abbreviations had the plural being a doubling of the letter for note-taking.
o f.
following line or page ff.
following lines or pages
o h.
hand hh.
hands (horse height)
o l.
line
ll.
lines
o MS
manuscript
MSS manuscripts
o p.
page pp.
pages
o s. (or ) section ss. (or )
sections
o v.
volume
vv.
Volumes
4. USE ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS ONLY WHEN IT IS NECESSARY
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.
In the US, the notion of an NWO became popular after the terrorist attacks on the WTC. However, officials in NATO
and the WTO rarely refer to an NWO in proceedings relating to the GATT, and it can be said that the MVTO, the
MFN clause, and SROs have little to do with an NWO.
!!! The only rule universally accepted is that one should be consistent, and to make this easier, publishers express their
preferences in a style guide consult your style guide in case you have any doubts.

5. Finally, while you may often ROFL with your bff about the Chem hw that you need to get done ASAP, please
remember that initialisms and acronyms used in instant messaging are rarely, if ever, appropriate for business or
professional writing.

DISCUSSION
1. MORE HARM THAN GOOD?
WHATS WRONG? - RAS syndrome (Redundant Acronym Syndrome syndrome)
PIN number, please.
Need to use the ATM machine?
Buy a device with LCD display?
acronyms are simple a way for those in authority to keep people in the dark[]If you can persuade people not to
really mind what a word means or mind about using the word in the right time in the right way, you are on the way to
practically controlling that person because he or she has lost the capacity to think really clearly and deeply.
Txt msg n school literacy: does texting and knowledge of text abbreviations adversely affect children's literacy
attainment?
ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATION MAKE IT EASIER AND FASTER - FOR WHOM?
o DOES IT MAKE U UNCOMFORTABLE WHEN U DONT KNOW THE MEANING OF YABA?
o WHAT PROBLEMS MAY TRANSLATORS ENCOUNTER WITH ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS? IS
SHORTER REALLY SHORTER EXERCISE.

YOLO: You Only Live Once

YOLOLO: You Only LOL
Once
YOTROLOLOO: You Only
Trololo Once
YOLOLO NOHOMO: You
Only LOL Once, and I dont
mean that in the gay way
YOWO SOSOPOLOS: You
Only Wear Orange So-So Polos
Youll never win the fashion
competition. YOWO
SOSOPOLOS.
YOWO SOSOPOLOS
SOHOMO: You Only Wear
Orange So-So Polos, and I do
mean that in a very gay way
Youll never win the fashion
competition, sweetbuns. YOWO
SOSOPOLOS SOHOMO.
YOYOKO ONOSOCO: Youre
Only Yoko Ono, So Chill Out
You dont have to create world
peace by yourself. YOYOKO
ONOSOCO. (Must be spoken
only to Yoko Ono)
YOHOHOHO
BOSODOCOCOA: You Only
HoHoHo But Once, So Drink
Our Cocoa (Must be spoken only
to Santa Claus)
YOLOMOFO
HELLOMOTO: You Only Live
Once, Motherfucker (Must be
spoken only by Samuel L. Jackson
in a Motorola commercial)
YOYOYO OSO YOYOSOLO
OWO LOCO PO-PO: You Only
Yo-Yo Once, So Yo-Yo Solo,
Obviously Without Crazy Police
Officers

TRANSTLATION.

wen Pooh saw w@ it wz, he nearly fell dwn, he wz so glad. twas a specl pencl Case. der wr pencils n it
markD "B" 4 Bear, n pencils markD "HB " 4 helpin Bear, n pencils markD "BB" 4 Brave Bear. der wz a
knfe 4 sharpening d pencils, n indiarubber 4 rubin ot NEfin wich u had spelt mal, n a ruler 4 rulin lines 4t
wrds 2 wlk on, n inches markD on d ruler Ncase u wtd 2no hw mnE inches NEfin wz, n blu Pencils n Red
Pencils n Green Pencils 4 sAyn specl fings n blu n red n green. ll deez luvly fings wr n lil pockets of their
own ina specl Case wich shut W a cliK wen u clickd it. n dey wr ll 4 Pooh. "Oh!" z Pooh. "Oh, Pooh!" z
evrybdy Ls Xcpt Eeyore. "Thank-you," growled Pooh. bt Eeyore wz sAyn 2 himself, "This ritN business.
Pencils n what-not. Over-rated, f u ask me. silE stuf. n it."

LATIN ABBREVIATIONS
Abbreviations
Full Form
A.D
Anno Domini
a.m
Ante Meridian
c. / ca.
Circa
C.V
Curriculum Vitae
e.g.
Exempli gratia
Et al.
Et Alii
Etc.
Et cetera
Ibid.
ibidem
i.e.
Id est
p.a
Per Annum
p.m
Post meridian
P.S
Post Scriptum
R.I.P
Requiescat in pace
Sic!
sic erat scriptum
Viz
videlicet

Meaning
In the year of our lord
Before midday
Approximately
Course of Life
For example
And others
And other things
in the same place
In other words / That is
Through the year
After midday

Roku Paskiego; -przed poudniem, rano; -okoo, ok. mniej wicej; cir. circ.
CV
na przykad; np.
Wsplnie z innymi, i inni, i in.
I tak dalej itd. itp.
Tame
czyli, to znaczy, tzn., to jest, tj.
He earns 2 million dollars p.a. - rocznie
Po poudniu
P.S.
Niech spoczywa w pokoju .P.
Tak, tak byo (oznaczajc bd zapisu)

May he/she rest in peace

thus was it written
Namely
MEASUREMENT
tsp or t - teaspoon/teaspoons
lb - pound/pounds
tbs, tbsp or T - tablespoon/tablespoons
pt - pint
c - cup/cups
qt quart
gal gallon

Ave - avenue
Blvd - boulevard
Ln lane

MAP LOCATIONS

Rd road
St street

EDUCATIONAL DEGREES AND JOB TITLES

VP - Vice President
SVP - Senior Vice President
EVP - Executive Vice President
CMO - Chief Marketing Officer
CFO - Chief Financial Officer
CEO - Chief Executive Officer

BA - Bachelor of Arts
BS - Bachelor of Science
MA - Master of Arts
JD - Juris Doctor
DC - Doctor of Chiropractic
PA - Personal Assistant
MD - Managing Director

ATM - Automated Teller Machine

Dept. = Department
FTAA = Free Trade Area of the Americas
GM crops = Genetically Modified crops
('Transgenicos' in Portuguese)
IMF = The International Monetary Fund
IBRD - The International Bank for Reconstruction
and Development
IADB = The Inter-American Development Bank
ILO = International Labour Organisation
IRS = Internal Revenue Service (USA)
GNP = Gross National Product
GDP = Gross Domestic Product

FINANCIAL, BUSSINESS ETC.

GNI = Gross National Income

LED - Light Emitting Diode
Ltd = Limited (company)
NASDAQ = National Association of Securities Dealers
Automated Quotation (system)
PA = Personal Assistant or Public Address (system)
plc = pubic limited company
p.p. = signed on behalf of (from the Latin 'per
procurationem')
VAT = Value Added Tax (Government tax on luxury
goods)
VIP = Very important person

International and governmental organisations

CIA = The Central Intelligence Agency (International

Security USA)
EEC = The European Economic Community
EU = The European Union
FAA = Federal Aviation Administration (USA)
FAO = Food and Agriculture Organisation
FBI = The Federal Bureau of Investigation (Internal
Security USA)
FDA = Food and Drugs Administration (USA)

MP = Military Police or Member of Parliament

Navy SEALs Navy Sea Air Land forces
NGO = Non-governmental organisation
UN = The United Nations
UNO = The United Nations Organisation
UNHCR = Office of the United Nations High
Commissioner for Refugees
WFP = World Food Programme

IAEA = The International Atomic Energy Agency

IOC = The International Olympic Committee

MI5 = Military Intelligence 5 (National Security UK)

MI6 = Military Intelligence 6 (International Security

UK)
NAMES
AIDS = Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome

FIFA = The Federation of International Football

Associations

NATO = The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation

OPEC = Organisation of Petroleum Exporting

Countries
SARS = Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome

TOEFL = Test of English as a Foreign Language

UEFA = Union of European Football Associations

UNCTAD = United Nations Conference on Trade

and Development

UNESCO = United Nations Educational, Scientific

and Cultural Organisation

WHO = The World Health Organisation

WTO = The World Trade Organisation
WWF = The World Wildlife Fund
USA = United States of America

UNICEF = United Nations Children's Fund (formerly

the United Nations International Children's Emergency
Fund)
IOU I owe you - informal document acknowledging
debt skrypt duny, rewers
OWS Occupy Wall Street (a protest) Okupuj Wall
Street
NWO New World Order - Nowy porzdek wiata
(NP)
WTC World Trade Center - wiatowe Centrum
Handlu
NATO - North Atlantic Treaty Organization Organizacja Traktatu Pnocnoatlantyckiego (OTP)
WTO World Trade Organisation wiatowa
Organizacja Handlu

INFO

DOA Dead On Arrival

AIDS - Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome
HIV Human Immunodeficiency Virus
DARE Drug Abuse Resistance Education
ADD Attention Deficit Disorder
ADHD Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
DOB Date Of Birth
OTC Over The Counter
CDC Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
FYI For Your Information

EST Eastern Standard Time

PST Pacific Standard Time
CST Central Standard Time
PPV Pay Per View
SSN Social Security Number
JIT Just In Time
ADL- Activities of Daily Living
AMA- Against Medical Advice
MD- Medical Doctor
ASAP As Soon As Possible

txt-speak, txtese, chatspeak, txt, txtspk, txtk, txto, texting language, txt lingo, SMSish, txtslang, or txt talk
?4U I have a question for
Chem hw chemistry
HBD
Happy
PLZ
please
you.
homework
Birthday
PM Private Message
^^ Read line above
CMB
Call me back hhhhhh
very funny
ROFL
rolling on
121 one-to-one
CMIIW
Correct me if How r u
How are
the floor laughing
I'm wrong
you?
<3 love
RUOK
Are you
CU See you
IC I see
okay?
2
to
CU L8R
See you later
IDK
I don't know
Sup or Zup What's up?
2mrw
tomorrow
CUZ/COS because
IMHO
in my
SYL
See you
4
for
humble opinion
later
CWYL
Chat with
AFK
away from
you later
IK I know
TGIF
Thank
keyboard
goodness it's Friday
DC disconnected
IM Instant Message
AKA
also known
THX or thnx thanks
as
DIY
Do it
IOW
in other
yourself
words
TTFN
ta ta for
ASAP
as soon as
now
possible
DM Direct Message
J/K just kidding
TTYL
Talk to you
A/S/L
F2F face-to-face
K OK
later
age/sex/locat
FAQ
frequently
L8R
later
ion
TYT
Take your
asked questions
(goodbye)
time
AYT
Are you
FYI for your information
LOL
laugh out
there?
u
you
loud
FYEO
for your eyes
B2W
back to work

U2
you too
only
M/F male or female?
B4 before

ur
your / you're
GB goodbye
mins
minutes
BBL
Be back later GF girlfriend
w/ with
MSG
message
BBS
Be back soon GG Gotta go
w/o without
nv nevermind
BF boyfriend
WRU
Where are
GL good luck
OIC Oh, I see
you?
BFF
best friend(s) ZZZ
tired / bored
OTW
on the way
forever
XO hugs and kisses
GR8
great!
P2P person-to-person
BRB
Be right back
BTW
by the way

How short can you make it in Polish???

Ad 1 For sale: sngl fam brk townhouse, ns owner, 4 BR, 2 BA, hdwd flr, fin bsmt, stv, refrig, d/w, CA, nr
schls and shpng, $132,000 negot, call owner at 555-7123
Ad 2 Stu apt. Lg clsts, beaut dec. Sep ent, new appls, wat. Incl., ww crpt, a/c, drps. $225/mo plus dep. Call
345-7799
Ad 3 Furn 1 BR apt. Good nbhd., pvt dr, osp, cen. Air, ww crpt, mod kit, lg lr w. ocean vw. 1 yr lse and sec
dep req. Call for appt 456-7890
Ad 4 Apt for rent: Downtown, 2nd flr, 2 BR, 1 BA, furn, pets OK, osp, kit w. d/w, stv, refrig, avail imm.
Call 555-3214 aft 4pm.
Ad 5 West end of town, lg 6 rm unfurn apt, crpt, fplc in lr. nr to schls, shpng, trans. Ref req. Call 123-4567
aft 6 pm .
Ad 6 For rent: lg 5 BR house, 2 1/2 BA, furn, wd/hkup, d/w, ww crpt, wbfpl, many bk cses, beaut yrd, 2 car
gar, 1 yr lse and 1 mo dep req, $865/mo call agt. 555-962
Ad 7 For rent: 3 BR apt, 2 BA, unfurn, W/D, CA, hdwd flr, priv ent, util incl, pkg, quiet nbhd, $650/mo call
555-2185
GLOSSARY - APARTMENT ADS
A/C = Air Conditioner
aft = after
agt = Agent
appl(s) = Appliance(s)
appt = Appointment
apt = Apartment
avail = Available/availability
beaut = Beautiful(ly)
bk Cses = Bookcases
bldg = Building
brk = Brick
bsmt = Basement
BA = Bathroom
BR = BedRoom
CA or cen. air = Central Air conditioner
util = utilities (such as water, electricity, gas,
sewer, garbage removal)
W/D = Washing machine and tumble Dryer
clsts = Closets
crpt = Carpet
cty = City
d/w or dw = DishWasher
dec = Decorated
dep = Deposit
din rm = Dining Room
dplx = Duplex
dr = Driveway
drps = Drapes / curtains

elec = Electricity

ent or entr = Entrance

fam = Family
fin = Finished
flr = Floor
fpl or fplc = Fireplace
furn = Furnished
gar = garage
hdwd = Hardwood
hi Rise = High Rise building (very tall
with many floors)
hse = House
imm = Immediate
incl = Included
kit = Kitchen
kitchnt = Kitchenette
lr = Living Room
lg = Large
lse = Lease
lux = Luxury
lvly = Lovely
lvs = Lives
mod = Modern
mo = month
nr = near
nbhd = Neighborhood
ns = non smoking or non smoker
negot = negotiable
occ = Occupancy
opt = Option
osp = off street parking (parking in the
street outside your house or apartment)
outdr = Outdoor
pkg or prkg = Parking
prem = Premises
pvt or priv = Private
ref = Reference

refrig = Refrigerator
req = Required
riv = River
rm = Room
schl or schls = School(s)
sec = Security
sm = small
sep = Separate
shpng = Shopping
sngl = Single
spac = Spacious
st = Street
stu = Studio
stv = Stove
terr = Terrace
trans = Transportation
undrgrnd = Underground
unfurn = Unfurnished
unfin = unfinished
upstrs = Upstairs
w/ or w. = with
vw = View
wd/hkup = Washer/dryer Hookup
ww crpt = Wall to Wall Carpet
wat = Water
wbfpl = Wood Burning Fireplace
yr = year
yd or yrd = yard