Do you know what an abbreviation is? This article will provide you with all of the information you need on abbreviations, including the definition, usage, example sentences, and more!
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According to Collins English Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, and the American Heritage Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language, an abbreviation is a shortened form of a word or phrase, where instead of using the whole word, only a part is used for convenience.. This is not to be confused with an acronym like NATO, NASA, REM or LASER, which use the first letter of each word to form a new word or something that could use the last letters of a word. These are often used in British English and American English.
Many different languages also contain words that mean abbreviation. You may notice that some of these translations of abbreviation look and sound similar to one another. These are called cognates, which are words and phrases in different languages that likely have the same root or language of origin, causing them to sound the same. The below list of translations of abbreviation is provided by Word Sense.
An abbreviation can be used in many different contexts in the English language. Trying to use a word or literary technique in a sentence is one of the best ways to memorize what it is, but you can also try making flashcards or quizzes that test your knowledge. Try using this term of the day in a sentence today! Below are a couple of examples of abbreviation that can help get you started incorporating this tool into your everyday use. Take a look at these abbreviation examples from Your Dictionary and see how many you know!
M.PHIL or MPHIL – Master of Philosophy
EVP – Executive Vice President
Dr. – Drive
Ln. – Lane
FBI – Federal Bureau of Investigation
Cm – Centimeters
FT – FaceTime
USA – United States of America.
Kg – Kilo grams
ATM – Automated Teller Machine
CA – California
Mrs. – Mistress (pronounced Missus)
B.Y.O.B. – bring your own bottle
CMO – Chief Marketing Officer
appt. – appointment
tsp or t – teaspoon/teaspoons
SE – southeast
approx. – approximately
c/o – care of, used when sending mail to someone who’s not at their usual address
PA – Personal Assistant
Ave. – Avenue
NP – no problem
CFO – Chief Financial Officer
tel. – telephone
CEO – Chief Executive Officer
W – west
E – east
CCC – The Civilian Conservation Corps
SSA – The Social Security Administration.
apt. – apartment
ROFL – rolling on the floor laughing
AFK – away from keyboard
vs. – versus
LOL – laugh out loud
NE – northeast
E.T.A. – estimated time of arrival
Blvd. – Boulevard
MD – Managing Director
BA – Bachelor of Arts
NRA – The National Recovery Administration
SVP – Senior Vice President
lb – pound/pounds
A.S.A.P. – as soon as possible
temp. – temperature or temporary
FDIC – The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.
BS – Bachelor of Science
no. – number
ACE – a cool experience
VP – Vice President
Mr. – Mister
AAA – The Agricultural Adjustment Act
FHA – The Federal Housing Administration
BBC – British Broadcasting Company (United Kingdom)
dept. – department
JD – Juris Doctor
ANI – age not important
MA – Master of Arts
CUL – see you later
vet. – veteran or veterinarian
BRB – be right back
misc. – miscellaneous
CWYL – chat with you later
TY – thank you
SW – southwest
tbs, tbsp or T – tablespoon/tablespoons
TX – Texas
COVID – COVID-19/Coronavirus
IQ – ignorance quotient
AFAIK – as far as I know
N – north
NW – northwest
D.I.Y. – Do it yourself
min. – minute or minimum
St. – Street
pt – pint
R.S.V.P. – Répondez, s’il vous plait
CWA – The Civil Works Administration
DC – Doctor of Chiropractic
WC – wrong conversation
PA – Pennsylvania
NY – New York
HR – Human Resources
APA – American Psychological Association
gal – gallon
AD – awesome dude
est. – established
qt – quart
Rd. – Road
c – cup/cups
S – south
IIRC – if I recall/remember correctly
Cyn. – Canyon
What are other literary techniques and devices?
There are many different grammatical and literary techniques and devices that you might see when you are reading poetry or prose. Knowing these devices is very important because they are always used in writing or speech for some purpose. Knowing these devices can help readers and listeners understand the speaker or author’s deeper meaning and why they are using such a device. Take a look at the below list of literary devices from Reedsy and see how many you know! Then try researching ones that are unfamiliar to you.
Foreshadowing
Tone
Alliteration
Tragicomedy
Archetype
Anaphora
Repetition
Isocolon
Euphemism
Chiasmus
Malapropism
Symbolism
Anthropomorphism
Litotes
Oxymoron
Tautology
Anastrophe
In Medias Res
Soliloquy
Exposition
Point of view
Flashback
Polysyndeton
Juxtaposition
Imagery
Hypophora
Metonymy
Hyperbole
Satire
Colloquialism
Zoomorphism
Simile
Allegory
Personification
Dramatic irony
Anachronism
Frame story
Paradox
Irony
Metaphor
Motif
Cumulative sentence
Tmesis
Allusion
Aphorism
Onomatopoeia
Synecdoche
Overall, the word abbreviation is a shortened form of a word.
Kevin Miller is a growth marketer with an extensive background in Search Engine Optimization, paid acquisition and email marketing. He is also an online editor and writer based out of Los Angeles, CA. He studied at Georgetown University, worked at Google and became infatuated with English Grammar and for years has been diving into the language, demystifying the do's and don'ts for all who share the same passion! He can be found online here.
Kevin
December 22, 2021
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