Judy Vorfeld's OFFICE SUPPORT SERVICES

Writing, editing, photography, technology, and Web development for small businesspeople

  • Home
  • About
  • Articles
    • Snazzy Presentations
    • Homonym Heaven
    • Lists: capitalization and punctuation
  • Contact
  • Blog
You are here: Home / Grammar / What are the Differences Between Abbreviations, Acronyms, and Initialisms?

What are the Differences Between Abbreviations, Acronyms, and Initialisms?

August 16, 2009 By Administrator

An ABBREVIATION is a shortened form of a written word or phrase
used in place of the whole word. Some authorities consider acronyms and initialisms to be abbreviations.

An ACRONYM is a word (such as radar or snafu or NASDAQ) formed
from the initial letter or first few letters of a word or a series
of words (example: radar comes from radio detecting and ranging).

Acronyms are pronounced as complete words.

An INITIALISM is an acronym formed from initial letters (NYSE,
AFL-CIO, NAACP, IRS, SEC).

Initialisms are prounounced letter by letter.

But perhaps more important than designation is this question: When do you use “a” and when do you use “an” in front of an acronyms and initialisms?

Most style guides say that if it is READ as though all the words were spelled out (NAACP, TVA), the acronym is treated as a series of letters, and the choice depends on the pronunciation of the FIRST LETTER (an HMO facility; an M.B.A. degree; an R.S.V.P.; an LA-based company).

If it’s generally PRONOUNCED as though it were a word (NATO, HUD, etc.), the article is determined by the pronunciation of the WORD (a RICO hearing; a MADD chapter; a SWAT team; a FICA increase).

More Resources:

  • The Acronym Finder
  • Abbreviations
  • Military Acronyms, Initialisms, and Abbreviations
  • Acronyms and Initialism: Wikipedia

Filed Under: Grammar Tagged With: abbreviations, acronyms, Grammar, initialisms, Language

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Google+
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter

Subscribe To My Newsletter

Categories

Latest Posts

10 Things to Look for Before Choosing the Best Home Care Assistance

What Should I Look for When Choosing Home Health Care? Guest Post by Nicholas Rubright As your … [Read More...]

How Hiring Freelancers Can Save a Solopreneur’s Sanity

Guest Post by Lance Cody-Valdez If you’re a solopreneur, you may be wondering if you’ll ever have … [Read More...]

How to Achieve a Healthy Work-Life Balance

December 2, 2021 Guest post: Teresa Siqueira If you have a busy … [Read More...]

Tags

4 Paws for Ability Add new tag Arizona Arizona Bridge to Independent Living Arizona Center for Disability Law Autism autism service dog Becky Blanton BL Ochman calamity jan Chancer Christmas Hills Tree Farm Dale Chihuly David Crook Desert Botanical Garden Disabilities Disability Empowerment Center Donnie Kanter Winokur Facebook FASD Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder Grammar hawaii holualoa Iyal Winokur Janet Crook jan pierson Judy Vorfeld Kerrie Simpson Litchfield Park AZ Martha Retallick Morasha Winokur Mossyrock Peoria Peoria AZ Phoenix Photography Ron Simpson Seth Godin Social Networking Sue C Boynton Poetry Contest TED Twitter Wildlife World Zoo Aquarium Writing

Judy Vorfeld's
OFFICE SUPPORT SERVICES

10439 W Royal Palm Rd.
Peoria AZ 85345

Editing and Writing Services

  • Home
  • Newsletter
  • About
  • Articles
  • Contact

Copyright © 1998 ‐ 2019 — Judy Vorfeld's OFFICE SUPPORT SERVICES • All rights reserved.