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Abbreviations, acronyms and acronyms in English

With the growing popularity of smartphones and text message conversations, the use of acronyms, acronyms, and other abbreviations in English is also on the rise in everyday life. They range from the most formal (" The WHO has issued a warning about the dangers of eating red meat ") to the most colloquial (" OMG! WTF?! ") and, if you are learning English and don't know them or don't know how are used, they can give you a few headaches. In this post we are going to show you some of the most common in different contexts, both formal and informal.

1. Business environment

Companies and their managers tend to adopt their own business jargon (sometimes called “ management speak ” or “ jargon”), which is often punctuated with abbreviations, acronyms and acronyms. The most normal thing is that they vary in each company or sector, but here is a list of some of the most frequent examples:

ASAP	As soon as possible Cuanto antes	“ Please get back to me ASAP ”.“ Please, get in touch with me as soon as possible”.
BTW	By the way Por cierto	“ BTW, can you send me that content when you have it? ”. "By the way, can you send me that information when you have it?"
FYI	For your information For your information	“ FYI - the meeting room has changed to Room 2 ”. "For your information, the meeting room has been moved to Room 2."
CEO	Chief Executive Officer (the boss) Director ejecutivo (el jefe)	“ Our new CEO is from Russia ”. "Our new CEO is Russian."
AND	Estimated Time of Arrival Estimated Time of Arrival	“ Our ETA at the hotel is 17.30, as the flight lands at 16.30 ”. "Our approximate arrival time at the hotel is 5: 30 p.m., since the plane lands at 4: 30 p.m."
SWOT	Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats Debilidades, Amenazas, Fortalezas, Oportunidades (DAFO)	“ We need to do a SWOT analysis before we make a final decision on this investment ”. "We need to do a SWOT analysis before making the final decision on this investment."
TL; DR	Too long, didn't read	“ Sorry - TL; DR ”. “Sorry: too long, I haven't read it” (used when someone sends messages or attachments that are too long).
PC	Personal computer Ordenador personal	“ I really need a new PC - mine keeps crashing ”. "I really need a new computer - mine keeps crashing."

2. Official abbreviations and acronyms used in everyday contexts

Some abbreviations and acronyms are used frequently in different contexts, both formal and informal, and it is often assumed that everyone is familiar with them, so it is important to know what they mean. Here are some of the most common:

AD / CE	Anno Domini Year of the Lord, that is, “after Christ” (AD). It is also known as "CE" or "Common Era" (e. c. or common era).	“He was born in the 5th century AD”. “Nació en el siglo V d. C.”.
BC / BCE	Before Christ Before Christ (BC). It is also known as Before Common Era or BCE (aec or before the common era).	“ These ancient ruins date back from the 5th century BCE ”. "These ancient ruins date back to the fifth century before the common era."
AM	Ante-Meridiem Before noon (a.m.)	“ The flight leaves at 7.00 AM, so we need to be up very early ”. “The flight leaves at 7.00 a.m. m., so we have to get up very early.”
PM	Post-Meridian After noon (p.m.)	“I’ll meet you after lunch at four thirty PM”. “Os veré después de comer, a las 16.30 h”.
BA / BSc	Bachelor of Arts / Bachelor of Sciences Graduate (Lcdo. / Lcda.) or graduate (in a discipline “of letters” or in a “sciences”).	“ He's got a BA in music, and his sister has a BSc in Psychology ”. "He has a bachelor's degree [or he has a degree] in music, and his sister has a bachelor's degree [or he has a degree] in psychology."
MA / MSc	Master of Arts / Master of Sciences Master (in a discipline “of letters” or in a “of sciences”)	“ I'm studying for an MA in Communications at the moment ”. "Now I'm studying a master's degree in communication."
PhD	A doctorate degree Doctorado	“ Maddy has a PhD in neuroscience, so she is very specialized”. "Maddy has a Ph.D. in neuroscience, so she has very specialized training."
GDP	Gross Domestic Product Producto Interior Bruto (PIB)	“ Italy's GDP continued to grow during the early 20th century ”. "Italy's GDP continued to grow during the early 20th century."
GNP	Gross National Product Gross National Product (GNP)	“ Our GNP has failed since the collapse of the coal industry ”. "Our GNP has gone down since the collapse of the coal industry."
FAQs	Frequently Asked Questions Preguntas frecuentes	“ If you can't find the answer, take a look at the FAQs page ”. "If you can't find the answer, take a look at the FAQ page."
SPF	Solar Protection Factor Solar Protection Factor (SPF)	“ With your skin, you should always wear SPF 50 sun cream ”. "With skin like yours, you should always use cream with SPF 50."
NGO	Non-Governmental Organization Non-Governmental Organization (NGO)	“ She likes to support NGOs working for climate justice ”. She “she likes to collaborate with NGOs that work for climate justice”.

3. Official bodies

Many times the press talks about international organizations, but their abbreviations or acronyms may vary depending on the country in which we find ourselves. In Spanish, for example, they are often formed by doubling letters (as in "USA"), or that they vary in position compared to English, due to the order that words follow in each language. Let's see some of the most used:

A	United Nations United Nations (UN)	“ The UN is having an emergency meeting to discuss the crisis ”. "The UN is going to hold an emergency meeting to discuss the crisis."
NATO	The North Atlantic Treaty Organization North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)	“ NATO have agreed to act together on the issue ”. "NATO has decided to act jointly on that issue."
I	European Union European Union (EU)	“ The EU elections are coming up next month - who are you voting for? ”. “The European elections are next month. Who are you voting for?".
WHO	World Health Organization World Health Organization (WHO)	“ The WHO recommends that people switch to a plant-based diet ”. "The WHO recommends that the population follow a diet based on plant-based products."

4. Informal and everyday abbreviations

These days it's rare to read an email or especially a text message that doesn't contain some kind of abbreviation (not to mention emoticons!). They are usually informal in nature, and are inserted to save valuable characters or typing time. Do you know what these informal abbreviations mean? Read on to find out.

CU
WTF
OMG
IDK
IMO / IMHO
LOL
ROFL
DIY
AKA
YOLO
DM / PM me
HMU

• CU: Of course, if you read those two letters in English you will immediately see that they mean “ see you ”. It's a good way to say goodbye in a text if you're in a rush.
• WTF: literally it is “ What the f***? ” (“What the **?”), and is used to show great surprise (or disgust). Although most likely it only has a place in the most informal contexts, the truth is that it is used a lot. Despite this, do not forget that in English it is still considered quite rude!
• OMG: means “ Oh my God! ” (“Oh, my God!”), and is used in different situations to express a strong impression or surprise. You will often hear people say it letter by letter even orally, “ OMG ”.
• IDK: “ I don't know ” (that's what it means, I'm not saying I don't know).
• IMO / IMHO: “In my opinion”, “in my humble opinion”(in my opinion, in my humble opinion). The second is a bit more modest, but it can also have an ironic meaning, and is often found in email conversations.
• ROFL: alludes to “ Rolling on the Floor Laughing ” (literally, “rolling on the floor with laughter”), so it goes one step further than the popular “LOL” (“Laughing out loud” or “laughing out loud”).
• DIY: the abbreviation for DIY lovers, since it means “ do it yourself ”. DIY superstores abound in the UK with everything handymen need to fix things around the house or build things.
• AKA: similar to our “alias”, since it comes from “ also known as ”. It is often used ironically: for example, “' Who told you to do this? ' ' My boss - AKA the most annoying person in the office '”.
• YOLO: Itseems to be the motto of the millennial generation, “ You Only Live Once ”… so it had better be worth it!
• DM / PM me: means “ Direct Message ” or “ Private Message me ” (“send me a direct message” or “answer me privately”), and is often used on social networks to ask someone to send a message only to you so that everyone else doesn't see it.
• HMU: “ Hit me up ”, which is equivalent to “give me a touch”; for example, “ HMU for coffee tomorrow! ” (“Give me a touch for coffee tomorrow”).

I hope that now some of the most frequent abbreviations, acronyms and acronyms in English are more familiar to you and that you start using them too. There are many more, of course, and in any case remember that the context is important and can give you clues. BFN (Bye for now)!