acronym vs abbreviation

@mgb people holding bizarre distinction, probably not bizarre people holding distinctions, most likely not any bizarre distinction that is holding down people. @CharlesRoper I don't have any statistics, but a number of years ago I did some searches on Google books for "is an acronym" and sifted through pages and pages of results, looking at the string that preceded the match, and found that about 40% of results were strings that would be pronounced by naming the letters rather than "as a word". There are many ways to form abbreviations. Most importantly, an acronym is pronounced as a word. How do open-source projects prevent disclosing a bug while fixing it? For instance, ASAP (as soon as possible), DIY (do it yourself), FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation), and CEO (chief executive officer). Abbreviation vs. 3. However, some acronyms have been in use for so long that they are considered as individual words. Is an acronym always pronounced as a single word? Who "spent four years refusing to accept the validity of the [2016] election"? I have looked up in a dictionary and here is what it says: Contraction: A word, as won't from will not, or phrase, as o'clock from of the clock, formed by omitting or combining some of the sounds of a longer phrase. Acronym Vs Abbreviation There are many people who get confused between an acronym and an abbreviation. However, they are very often defined (and used) in the same way, just so you're aware. I know that standards were looser in the early days, but '(as the term is commonly used)' needs justifying. for example, prof. for professor, and dr. for doctor. Compare the Difference Between Similar Terms. :). Thus 'BBC' (pronounced differently from the 'British ...') fails to meet this criterion. What does “shortening” mean? The key difference between acronym and abbreviation is that acronym refers to a new word formed from the first letters of a series of words while abbreviation refers to any shortened form of a word or phrase. The key difference between acronym and abbreviation is that acronym refers to a new word formed from the first letters of a series of words while abbreviation refers to any shortened form of a word or phrase. Some examples of acronyms include AIDS, NATO, UNESCO, RAM, and LOL. There are many people who get confused between an acronym and an abbreviation. Abbreviation and acronym are two ways of shortening a long group of words or a large word. To give a clarity on the same, we have compiled a list of a few acronyms and abbreviations that might act as an aid to you: An acronym is an abbreviation used as a word which is formed from the initial components in a phrase or a word. FWIW, Merriam-Webster is not one of them: I would dispute that an acronym is the same as an initialism, and that e.g. The Difference Between Acronyms and Abbreviations (and Acrostics). 2. Proper capitalization of commonly used acronyms and initialisms, Word for abbreviations that have become standard words. Side by Side Comparison – Acronym vs Abbreviation in Tabular Form An acronym is a word or name formed as an abbreviation from the initial components in a phrase or a word, usually individual letters (as in NATO or laser) and sometimes syllables (as in Benelux). Like initialism, it takes up initials of all the words in the phrase or group of words. It only takes a minute to sign up. Or a Hybrid Acronym? Published: 6 Apr, 2018. For reprint rights: Syndications Today, Acronym vs Abbreviation: Difference and examples, 15 Words you can use to compliment someone's looks, NASA: National Aeronautics and Space Administration, AIDS: Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome. @media (max-width: 1171px) { .sidead300 { margin-left: -20px; } } Next part of English Lessons coming on Monday. Olivia is a Graduate in Electronic Engineering with HR, Training & Development background and has over 15 years of field experience. An acronym (sometimes called an initialism) is simply a word formed by taking letters (usually the first) of each word in a phrase to form an abbreviation. The word abbreviation comes from the Latin word breves, which means short. The key difference between acronym and abbreviation is that acronym refers to a new word formed from the first letters of a series of words while abbreviation refers to any shortened form of a word or phrase. Acronym. Main Difference. How can a chess game with clock take 5 hours? Is it different from “abbreviation”? Laser (light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation) and scuba (self-contained underwater breathing apparatus) are examples of such words. The most notable feature of acronyms that sets it apart from other abbreviations is that is it pronounced as a separate word. Initialism, on the other hand, is an abbreviation made by the first letters of a series of words. @nohat: Thanks. Examples: Whether the form is pronounced as a “word” or as letter names or as some combination of the two is a red herring. That's exactly the misconception I'm trying to shed. The key difference is whether the abbreviated form is pronounced differently from the expanded form. Melville's chain of thought in the "great democratic God" passage in "Moby-Dick". Teacher asking my 5 year old daughter to take a boy student to toilet. An acronym is a form of an abbreviation. For instance, the word radar is the shortened form of radio detection and ranging. Dec. for December, Mr for Mister etc. An acronym (as the term is commonly used) is a term that is formed from the initial letters of some longer name and is pronounced differently than the expanded form. Stack Exchange network consists of 176 Q&A communities including Stack Overflow, the largest, most trusted online community for developers to learn, share their knowledge, and build their careers. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); Copyright © 2010-2018 Difference Between. "CEO" is an acronym. Acronyms are generally written in capital letters; for example, AIDS – Acquired Immuno-Deficiency Syndrome, NATO – North Atlantic Treaty Organization, OPEC -Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries. What is an Abbreviation For example; don’t, won’t, I’ve, etc. What is an Acronym Furthermore, there are several methods to form an abbreviation, and acronyms are one such form. The curious case of “UChi” and its pronunciation, Another word for Short form and its Long form of a word. Most dictionaries (ODO, CDO, AHDEL, Collins, Farlex ...) include the 'pronounced as [if it were actually] a word' restriction in the first sense defined. Mnemonic vs Initialism vs Acronym vs Abbreviation . Terms of Use and Privacy Policy: Legal. What are the differences between abbreviation, contraction and acronym? site design / logo © 2020 Stack Exchange Inc; user contributions licensed under cc by-sa. In the far future would weaponizing the sun or parts of it be possible? Acronyms are thus a subset of abbreviations. Mnemonic is the technique of art of memorizing chjain of words, poems, numerical sequences or some long lists, by means of making a an easy sentence or even a word that comprises the first letters of chain of words.