Understanding the nuances of abbreviations requires distinguishing between their various forms:
In professional or academic contexts, such as those governed by APA Style , specific rules ensure clarity: APA Abbreviation Usage and Format abbreviation
: Abbreviations formed from the first letters of a phrase but pronounced letter-by-letter (e.g., FBI , UN , MRI ). These are generally discouraged in formal academic writing
: Words created by cutting off the end of a longer word (e.g., gym for gymnasium, memo for memorandum). Best Practices for Formal and Academic Writing gym for gymnasium
: Shortened forms created by omitting letters from the middle of a word, often using an apostrophe (e.g., can’t , won’t , it’s ). These are generally discouraged in formal academic writing.
: Abbreviations formed from the first letters of a multi-word phrase that are pronounced as a single word (e.g., NASA , OPEC , laser ).