Test your vocabulary with our fun image quizzes. Image credits. Word of the Day sweetheart. Blog Outsets and onsets! Read More. November 08, To top. English American Examples Translations. Sign up for free and get access to exclusive content:. Free word lists and quizzes from Cambridge. Tools to create your own word lists and quizzes.
Word lists shared by our community of dictionary fans. Sign up now or Log in. Definitions Clear explanations of natural written and spoken English. Click on the arrows to change the translation direction. Follow us. Choose a dictionary. Clear explanations of natural written and spoken English. Usage explanations of natural written and spoken English.
Grammar Thesaurus. Word Lists. Choose your language. The important thing to remember is that abbreviations aren't words in the true sense—they're more like shorthand. There are some exceptions that are pronounced differently. For instance, AM , PM , i. 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happens when the abbreviation becomes more popular than the original term—usually because the original is too long or outdated.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. 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. 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. 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:. 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.
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. 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. 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. Abbreviations come in a few different varieties. Both acronyms and initialisms are abbreviations that are formed by combining the first letter of each word in a longer name or phrase. Typically, acronyms and initialisms are written in all capital letters to distinguish them from ordinary words.
When fully spelled out, the words in acronyms and initialisms do not need to be capitalized unless they entail a proper noun. An acronym is pronounced as a single word, rather than as a series of letters. NASA , for instance, is an acronym.
It stands for N ational A eronautics and S pace A dministration. Occasionally, an acronym becomes so commonplace that it evolves into an ordinary word that people no longer think of as an acronym. The words scuba and laser , for instance, originated as acronyms s elf c ontained u nderwater b reathing a pparatus and l ight a mplification by s timulated e mission of r adiation, respectively.
Initialisms are similar to acronyms in that they are also formed using the first letter of each word in a longer phrase. Unlike acronyms, however, initialisms are pronounced as a series of letters. If you need to use an indefinite article before an acronym or initialism, use the initial sound of the word not necessarily the initial letter guide your choice.
Titles such as mister, miss, and doctor , as well as the names of academic degrees such as bachelor of arts and doctor of philosophy are almost always abbreviated. In American English, title abbreviations are followed by a period; in British English, the period is omitted.
0コメント