Which abbreviation is used at the beginning of a sentence or in a subject line
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We use acronyms in emails every day. From P.S. to EOD to ASAP, it’s tough to keep the capital letters and periods straight. (To be clear, an acronym is pronounced as a word (like NASA) and an initialism is pronounced as letters (like FBI). In common usage though, people refer to both things as acronyms.) Here’s a list of thirteen common email acronyms and their meanings. Show
Here’s a tip: Want to make sure your writing shines? Grammarly can check your spelling and save you from grammar and punctuation mistakes. It even proofreads your text, so your work is extra polished wherever you write. 1 ASAPThe letters in ASAP stand for “as soon as possible.” This acronym is useful when you want to assure others that you will complete an action in a timely manner. However, weigh the pros and cons of using it. 2 BCC and CCBCC and CC are acronyms that you will see as options in your email program. CC stands for “carbon copy.” You use it when you want to send a message not only to the main addressee but also to other interested parties. On certain occasions, you may prefer that everyone doesn’t see all of the recipients of a message. In that case, you would enter their email addresses in the field marked BCC, or “blind carbon copy.” 3 EODEOD means “end of day.” You will have to find out how your employer uses this term. For some, it might mean the end of a 24-hour day (i.e., midnight), but others might use it to refer to the closing time of a particular business. 4 EOMEOM means “end of message.” People often use this in the subject line to save readers the trouble of opening an email unnecessarily. For instance, you can leave the rest of the email blank if your subject line says, “Budget meeting 10/11/2019 at 11 am (EOM).” 5 FYIIf you want to share some helpful information, you can use the acronym FYI. It means “for your information.” 6 Ms. or Mx.Have you seen one of these titles introducing a woman’s name? Ms. identifies a person as a woman without revealing if they are married or single (as in the case of Mrs. and Miss), while Mx. is used as a gender-neutral honorific for those who identify outside of the gender binary. Use your discernment when addressing someone in a professional email. >>Read More: Here’s How to Know the Difference Between Miss, Mrs., and Ms., and Mx. 7 NRNIf you send an email and you don’t need a response, you can use the acronym NRN which means “no reply necessary.” If not, people may think you expect an “OK” or “Thanks” as a reply. 8 OOOWhen you are out of the office, you can let coworkers and others know by adding OOO to your auto-reply signature. If they have an urgent question, this acronym will let them know not to expect an immediate reply from you. 9 OTIf this article suddenly began talking about professional attire, you might wonder how this subject relates. In an email, you can easily signal such a change in subject by introducing a new thought with the letters OT. OT stands for “off topic.” 10 PSPerhaps the most quintessential professional acronym, PS is from a Latin expression, “postscriptum.” It means “written after” or “postscript.” It indicates that you added the message following it as an afterthought. Writing guides differ on its use and punctuation, but generally PS with no punctuation is a safe bet. 11 YTDYTD means “year to date.” In a year (calendar or fiscal), you can use YTD to indicate where you are as of the current date. For example, you might present your profit margin in a quarterly email: “We’ve made $800,000 in sales YTD.” 12 TL;DRTL;DR signifies“too long; didn’t read.” It’s often used to signpost a quick summary of a much lengthier email. For example, you’d write, “TL;DR the project timeline is getting pushed very far back.” An abbreviation is a short form of a word or phrase that is usually made by deleting certain letters. In the following sentence, everything underlined is an abbreviation: Dr. Jones, who’s currently undertaking research on DNA, can’t attend the WHO conference being held in the US in Oct. 2016. Not all of the abbreviations used in this example have the same look and feel. This is because while Dr. and Oct. are general abbreviations, who’s and can’t are contractions and DNA, WHO, and US are acronyms. In academic writing, contractions should be avoided, but acronyms are commonly used. Table of contentsContractionsContractions are mostly used to simplify common pronoun/verb combinations. Deleted letters are replaced by an apostrophe. ContractionsCommon pronoun/verb combinationsI’mI amisn’tis notlet’slet usshe’sshe isyou’veyou haveHowever, contractions are generally considered too informal for academic writing. In this context, always write out the full words instead.
AcronymsAcronyms are usually formed using the first letter (or letters) of each word in a phrase. When they are read, some are pronounced as if they are words (such as OPEC); others are read as letters (such as the UK). AcronymFull termBeneluxBelgium, the Netherlands, and LuxembourgFAQFrequently asked questionITInformation technologyMBAMaster of Business AdministrationSWOTStrengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threatsPluralize acronyms by adding “s” without an apostrophe.
Introducing acronymsIntroduce every acronym before using it in the text. The first time you use the term, put the acronym in parentheses after the full term. Thereafter, you can stick to using the acronym. Note that when introducing an acronym, the full term should only be capitalized if it is a proper noun (e.g. the name of an organization).
Do not introduce an acronym unless you will use it a minimum of three or four times. If it only appears once or twice, write out the full term. If you use a lot of acronyms in the document, you can also introduce them in a list of abbreviations. There are some extremely common acronyms that do not need to be introduced. However, the list is small. Some examples of acronyms that don’t need to be spelled out include: CategoryAcronymsCountriesPRC, UAE, UK, USA, USSROrganizationsNASA, NATO, UNESCO, UNICEFScience and technologyAIDS, AM/FM, CD, DVD, HDMI, HIV, laser, PC, radar, TV, USBTimeBC/AD, BCE/CE, time zonesLatin abbreviationse.g., i.e., et al.What can proofreading do for your paper?Scribbr editors not only correct grammar and spelling mistakes, but also strengthen your writing by making sure your paper is free of vague language, redundant words and awkward phrasing.  See editing example Latin abbreviationsThere are some Latin abbreviations that are common in academic writing. AbbreviationMeaningUsageExamplee.g. (exempli gratia)for exampleUsed to give examples in parenthesesMany species of primates (e.g., orangutans) are endangered.i.e. (id est)that isUsed to clarify, specify or restate something in parenthesesMany endangered species (i.e., species that are very likely to become extinct) are primates.etc. (et cetera)and so onUsed at the end of a list in parentheses to indicate more unstated items on the listThere are many species of primates that are endangered (gorillas, orangutans, gibbons, etc.).et al. (et alia)and other peopleUsed after the first author when citing publications with multiple authorsConsumers experience greater risk with online purchases (Writers et al., 2016, p. 47).ibid. (ibidem)in the same placeUsed in footnote and endnote citations when citing the same source and page twice in a row1. Porter, 63-64.2. Ibid. Make sure not to confuse “e.g.” and “i.e.”. In general, it’s best to avoid using these abbreviations in the main text, especially in US English. Instead, put them inside parentheses followed by a comma, or write out full words.
Punctuating abbreviationsPeriods should always be used with Latin abbreviations, but not with contractions or acronyms. For general abbreviations, there are differences in punctuation between US and UK English. USUKMost title abbreviations take a period (e.g. Doctor to Dr., Mister to Mr., Honorable to Hon., Drive to Dr.)Title abbreviations take a period only if the abbreviation does not end on the last letter of the full word (e.g. Doctor to Dr, Mister to Mr, but Honourable to Hon., Drive to Dr.)Abbreviations in legal textsAbbreviations (including acronyms) are heavily used in legal writing. The conventions must be strictly followed, but they vary between countries and universities. If you are writing on a legal topic, you should adhere to the relevant style. Abbreviations in APAIf you are following the APA style guidelines, there are some specific guidelines for certain types of abbreviation. MeasurementsOnly abbreviate statistical terms (such as SD and M) and units of measurement (such as kg and min) if you are also using a number.
PunctuationUse periods if you are abbreviating a Latin term (such as g., a.m., and etc.) or referring to something related to your references (such as ed. or p.). Use periods when US serves as an adjective, but not when it refers to the country.
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Cite this article Is this article helpful?516 68 You have already voted. Thanks :-) Your vote is saved :-) Processing your vote...Sarah VinzSarah's academic background includes a Master of Arts in English, a Master of International Affairs degree, and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science. She loves the challenge of finding the perfect formulation or wording and derives much satisfaction from helping students take their academic writing up a notch. Can I use abbreviation in the beginning of a sentence?While it is acceptable to use abbreviations at the beginning of a sentence, authors may find it preferable to rephrase sentences to avoid starting with abbreviations.
What is abbreviation in a sentence?An abbreviation is a short form of a word or phrase that is usually made by deleting certain letters. In the following sentence, everything underlined is an abbreviation: Dr. Jones, who's currently undertaking research on DNA, can't attend the WHO conference being held in the US in Oct.
What are the 5 types of abbreviations?5 Types of Abbreviations Your Students Need to Know. Abbreviations for People. Often we encounter abbreviations when we see written names of people. ... . Abbreviations for Places. ... . Scientific Abbreviations. ... . Abbreviations for Common Objects and Phrases. ... . Text Abbreviations.. What is it called when you use the first letters of words to abbreviate?An acronym is an abbreviation that forms a word. An initialism is an abbreviation that uses the first letter of each word in the phrase (thus, some but not all initialisms are acronyms).
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