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Language Arts - Miscellaneous - Abbreviations

Abbreviations

We use abbreviations all the time. Some abbreviations are even more commonly used than the full versions of the words they are derived from.

Here are some of the most commonly used abbreviations: 


	WORD			ABBREVIATION

 	 Mister			 Mr.
	 Doctor			 Dr.
	 Junior			 Jr.
	 Road			 Rd.
	 Avenue			 Ave.
	 Street			 St.
Often you do not use a period at the end of an abbreviation. Here are some examples: 

	WORD(s)			ABBREVIATION

	 etcetera		 etc
	 words per minute	 wpm
	 junction		 jct
	 point			 pt
	 amount			 amt
	 abbreviation		 abbr
	 especially		 esp
	 UFO			 Unidentified Flying Object
	 USA			 United States of America
	 psi			 pounds per square inch
	 DNA			 deoxyribonucleic acid
	 rpm			 revolutions per minute
The names of many organizations are more well-known by their abbreviations than by their full names. Consider these examples: 

	ABBREVIATION		NAME
	 FBI			Federal Bureau of Investigation
	 BLM			Bureau of Land Management
	 USDA			United States Department of Agriculture
	 CIA			Central Intelligence Agency
	 USFS			United States Forest Service
Names of organizations which are abbreviated are sometimes also called initializations.

The days of the week all have standard abbreviations: 


	ABBREVIATION		FULL WORD
	 Mon.			 Monday
	 Tues.			 Tuesday
	 Wed.			 Wednesday
	 Thurs.			 Thursday
	 Fri.			 Friday
	 Sat.			 Saturday
  	 Sun.			 Sunday
Here are some abbreviations for the months of the year: 

	ABBREVIATION		FULL WORD
	 Jan.			 January
	 Feb.			 February
	 Mar.			 March
	 Apr.			 April
	 Aug.			 August
	 Sept.			 September
	 Oct.			 October
	 Nov.			 November
	 Dec.			 December
You should also be aware of some common abbreviations for elements. 

	ABBREVIATION		FULL WORD

	  O			 oxygen
	  C			 carbon
	  H			 hydrogen
	  He			 helium
	  N			 nitrogen
	  Mg			 mercury
	  Cu			 copper

Acronyms are very much like abbreviations. Here are some examples: 



	PIN: Personal Identification Number

	SCUBA:  Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus

	AIDS: Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome

	NASA: National Aeronatics and Space Administration
The special thing about acronyms is that instead of saying the letters separately (as in N-A-S-A), you say them as a word or a name (as in NASA). 


	NATO: North Atlantic Treaty Organization

	SWAT: Special Weapons Action Team

	SNAFU: situation normal, all fouled up

	RIF: Reading is Fundamental
Acronyms are always written as all capitals. 

	RAM: Random-Access Memory

	ROM: Read-Only Memory

	AWOL: Absent WithOut Leave

	OPEC: Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries
Remember that an acronym is said as a word (not as a sequence of letters).

MORE FUN ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS: 


	USDA: United States Department of Agriculture 
	
	USFS: United States Forest Service
	
	ASAP: As Soon As Possible
	
	IDK: I Don't Know
	
	NYOB: None Of Your Business
	
	DOB: Date Of Birth
	
	FYI: For Your Information
	
	AKA: Also Known As
	
	DMV: Department of Motor Vehicles
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