Types of abbreviations
In reference materials, abbreviations are often grouped according to their meaning and field of use, for example, technical abbreviations, computer abbreviations, medical abbreviations, legal abbreviations, sports abbreviations, and so on.
|
You can find various lists of English abbreviations in Wikipedia and on other sites; abbreviations and their pronunciation can be found in online dictionaries.
|
Some abbreviations are used only in writing and are pronounced in full in speech. For example, "lb." and "bldg." are used only as written abbreviations; they are read as "pound" and "building". Some other abbreviations are written and read as abbreviations, for example, "a.m., DNA".
|
Several types of abbreviations are described below, with spelling and pronunciation notes.
|
Abbreviations of units of measure
|
Abbreviations of units of measure are a large group that includes abbreviations of units of weight, length, area, volume, time, speed, and so on. Abbreviations of units of measure are most frequently used in tables, lists, catalogs, drawings, and the like.
|
For example: lb. (pound); oz. (ounce); gal. (gallon); ft. (foot); in. (inch); sq. mi. (square mile); cu. in. (cubic inch); sec. (second); min. (minute); hr. (hour); mph (miles per hour).
|
Examples of metric abbreviations: kg (AmE kilogram; BrE kilogramme); l (AmE liter; BrE litre); m (AmE meter; BrE metre); sq m (square meter); cu m (cubic meter).
|
Abbreviations of units of measure are read in full, as their full words. For example, "1 lb." is read as "one pound"; "3 oz." is read as "three ounces"; "5 ft." is read as "five feet"; "2 m" is read as "two meters"; "1 sq. mi." is read as "one square mile"; "2 cu. in." is read as "two cubic inches"; "1 hr." is read as "one hour".
|
Plural ending "s" is not added to written abbreviations of units of measure. For example: 1 in.; 3 in. (read as "one inch; three inches"); 5 lb. (read as "five pounds"); 1 m; 3 m (read as "one meter; three meters").
|
Traditionally, though, English units of measure added "s" to some abbreviations in the plural, and such use may still be found in nontechnical texts. For example: 3 ins. (read as "three inches"); 2 yds. (read as "two yards"); 5 lbs. (five pounds); 10 yrs. (ten years); 2 hrs. (two hours).
|
Abbreviations of metric units of measure are usually written without periods and without plural "s". For example: 5 m (five meters); 4 km (four kilometers); 10 g (ten grams); 2 kg (two kilograms); 3 l (three liters); 2 sq km (two square kilometers); 5 cu cm (five cubic centimeters). Full forms (five meters, four kilometers, ten grams, etc.) are usually considered preferable in formal writing of general character.
|
In technical writing, units of measure are usually abbreviated, written without periods and without plural "s". In formal writing, units of measure are usually written in full, as full words.
|
|
