Abbreviation – Meaning and 43 examples of abbreviation

Introduction

Words are being shortened. Therefore, the shortening of a word or a group of words is known as Abbreviation. It is used to squeeze a word into a little space. It makes word easier and simple to be remembered. It saves time and printing.

What is an abbreviation?

An abbreviation is a shortened form of a word or phrase, by any method. It may consist of a group of letters or words taken from the full version of the word or phrase. Abbreviations are shortened forms of words or lengthy phrases.

Recommended: Acronym -Meaning and 83 examples of acronym

Common Abbreviations used are:

Examples of Abbreviations that are separated with a full stop (.):

1. C.I.D for Criminal Investigation Department
2. C.M.S for Christian Missionary Society
3. M.A for Master of Arts
4. N.B.C for Nigerian Broadcasting Cooperation
5. P.H.C.N for Power Holding Company of Nigeria
6. M.D for Doctor of Medicine
7. P.T.O for Please Turn Over
8. R.I.P for Rest in Peace
9. T.U.C for Trade Union Congress
10. L.L.B for Bachelor of Law
11. H.I.V for Human Immunodeficiency Virus
12. U.K for United Kingdom
13. L. C. M for Lowest Common Multiple
14. H.C.F for Highest Common Factor
15. B.B for Boys’ Brigade
16. P.O for Post Office
17. Y.M. C .A for Young Men’s Christian Association
18. Y.W.C.A for Young Women’s Christian Association
19. C.O.D for Cash on Delivery
20. B. C for Before Christ
21. S.A for Salvation Army
22. R.N for Royal Navy
23. I. O.U for I owe you
24. L.B. W for Leg before wicket
25. V. C for Victoria Cross
26. G. M. T for Greenwich Mean Time
27. R. C . M for Roman Catholic Mission
28. M. P for Member of Parliament
29. N. N for Nigerian Navy
30. R. N for Registered Nurse
31. H. M for His/ Her Majesty
32. F. R. S. C for Federal Road Safety Commission
33. E. R for Elizabeth Regina
34. N. D.L. E.A for Nigerian Drug Law Enforcement Agency
35. N. Y. S. C for National Youth Service Corp
36. C .D .S for Community Development Service
37. U.N for United Nation
38. J. P for Justice of Peace
39. R. C for Roman Catholic
40. N. P. F for Nigerian Police Force
41. N. H. I. S for National Health Insurance Scheme
42. C.R.S for Christian Religious Studies
43. C.R.K for Christian Religious Knowledge

Some words are abbreviated by using the first two or three letters of the word. Examples are:

Also See: Synonyms – meaning and 46 examples of synonym

1. Mrs. for Mistress,
2. p.m for post meridian ( afternoon),
3. Lt. for Lieutenant,
4. Lat for Latitude,
5. etc. which means et cetera for and so on,
6. Viz (videlicet) for namely,
7. Lab for Laboratory,
8. Co. for Company,
9. F. for Fahrenheit,
10. Ltd. for Limited,
11. Cr. for Credit,
12. Dr. for Debit,
13. C. for Centigrade,
14. v. for versus,
15. No. (Numerous) for Number,
16. PhD for Doctor of Philosophy,
17. M.Sc for Master of Science,
18. D.Th for Doctor of Theology,
19. M.Ed for Master of Education,
20. B.Ed for Bachelor of Education,
21. Dept. for Department,
22. Min. for Minutes,
23. Tel. for Telephone,
24. Gen. for Generator,
25. Inc. for Incorporated,
26. Gov. for Governor,
27. Govt. for Government,
28. sec. for seconds,
29. Sec. for Security and Secretary, Min. for Minister and Ministry, Lang. for Language, Bio for Biology, Log for Logic and Logarithm, Eng. for English, Lit. for Literature, Math for Mathematics, Agric. for Agricultural, Sc. for Science, Edu. for Education, Reg. for Registration, Rev. for Reverend, Ans. for Answer, Pst. for Pastor, Ass. for Associate, Evang. for Evangelist, Dec. for Deacon and Deaconess, Fr. for Father, Sr. for Sister, Pharm. for Pharmacy, Est. for Establish, Sub. for Subject and Subscription,Dec. for Decoration, Cal. for Calabar and Calcium, Carb. for Carbohydrates, Bro. for Brother, Sis.

for Sister,

Some months of the year are usually abbreviated. They include: Jan. for January, Feb. for
February, Mar. for March, Apr. for April, Jul. for July, Aug. for August, Sept. for September, Oct.
for October, Nov. for November, and Dec. for December.
In addition, days of the week are also abbreviated. They are Mon. for Monday, Tue. for Tuesday,
Wed. for Wednesday, Thurs. for Thursday, Fri. for Friday, Sat. for Saturday and Sun. for Sunday.
Other examples include:
AKBC for Akwa Ibom Broadcasting Cooperation
NTA for Nigeria Television Authority
NTI for Nigerian Training Institute
PHE for Physical and Health Education
CAT for Continuous Assessment Test
N L C for Nigerian Labour Congress
L O L for Laugh Out Loud
O M G for Oh my God
M O G for Man of God
W O G for Woman of God
G O for General Overseer
N Y S C for National Youth Service Corps.