I already have an answer for myself, I just want to see if there are others (besides some misinformed souls I recently discussed this with) that disagree with my (correct ) understanding.
OK, Iāll start with some examples. Would you call words (or whatever you want to call them) like HTTP (Hyper Text Transfer Protocol), LOL (laugh out loud), OMG (oh my god), FTP (File Transfer Protocol), etc. Acronyms or Abbreviations?
(correct answer is acronym of course)
When I think of abbreviation I think of words like ft. (foot), Dr. (Doctor), mil. (military) or something like that.
I think think Zeus defines and points out the confusions quite clearly (click the link to see where the confusions are).
[quote=āZeusā][url=http://pao.cnmoc.navy.mil/Educate/zeus/teacher/lesson/langart/abbrev.htm]An abbreviation is merely a shortened form of a word or phrase and is created by omitting some of the letters. For example,
HTTP is not a word. It stands for words, but itās not a word itself. It mightāve stood a chance at evolving into a word if it was actually pronouncable as such and not as a series of letters.
Oh, and I guess an acronym could be considered a kind of abbreviation, but Iād seperate the two myself.
Hey, I donāt think itās unacceptable as a part of English or anything, I just donāt think itās a word, since you can only say it as a string of letters not a coherent whole.
It is a word as defined by all definitions of word Iāve seen thus far. By that definition SCUBA wouldnāt be a word either (because it stands for words). HTTP is pronounceable.
Ima take my DVDs, CDs and LMNOPs and do as I please.
(Ima is an abbreviation. DVDs and CDs are acronyms and I donāt know what the hell LMNOPs is, but I like it )
Is that game, set, match? It does list HTTP and some other as being abbreviations, but I think theyāre just being sloppy. If I were to put HTTP in an abbrev group, Iād choose the acronym one. I can understand that for some HTTP is not a word, but it definitely is for me (like CD and DVD is for everyone in this day and age).
[quote=ā914ā]Iām a firm believer that edumacation and ridicumalous are words.
Ok ok, fine. Iāll accept recredumous too. If you can please define it, MTK.[/quote]
I believe the proper spelling is recrudgumous. The definition of recrudgumous can not be transmitted in written form. It can only be acquired through a guide or master who is highly skilled in the art.
I always thought - and Iām no longer convinced I was right - that an acronym was a pronouncable word made up from the letters, whereas an abbreviation may be the first letters but not make a word.
So acronym is a subset of abbreviation, being those abbreviations that can be spoken as a word. Under this system HTTP would be considered an abbreviation, and NASA would be an acronym.
I looked it up in my Oxford, and their definitions seemed to support Miltown Kid. But then they went and said that āe.g.ā is an abbreviation, as is āHTā (for High Tension) Sorry, they didnāt have HTTP. But they did list NASA and NATO as both being abbreviations too.
In fact, I couldnāt find anything listed as an acronym. This really pisses me off. Here we are, arguing about the rules, and the bloody dictionary doesnāt respect them.
I looked up ānasaā at dictionary.com - itās an abbreviation, but itās also listed as an acronym. So is HTTP.
I give up.
Whatās the name for a bunch of letters from somewhere that can be pronounced as a word, if itās not acronym?
[quote=āthe Collins Cobuild dictionaryā]āAn acronym is a word composed of the first letters of the words in a phrase, especially [note that it does NOT say only] when this is used as a name.ā
abbreviation:
āAn abbreviation is a short form of a word or phrase, made by leaving out some of the letters or by using only the first letter of each word.ā[/quote]
Yeah, but you can actually say āSCUBAā as though it wasnāt an acronym. Try and do that with HTTP. Thatās the difference, far as Iām concerned. Both are equally valid additions to the language, but of a difference sort.
āImaā is a contraction actually, I think. Iām pretty sure āabbreviationā as a category would cover contractions, acronyms, mnemonics, and the ātraditionalā abbreviation.