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Rules for abbreviations
Today, due to the rush of everyday life, many people abbreviate words to speed up their communication. Some of them, so used, started to be assumed as correct, but in fact, not all of them are grammatically accepted.
Well, what really matters to us is to show what is correct and there are rules for that. Shall we go to them?
The abbreviations of the words are made as follows:
1. First syllable + first letter of second syllable (if consonant) + dot.
Examples:
- ( bo - tâ -ni-ca)
- ( glos - s á-rio)
- ( Wednesday ) _ _
Note: If the first letter of the second syllable is a vowel we must consider the following letters up to the first consonant.
Examples:
- ( bi - o - q uí-mi-ca)
- capital ( mai- ú s-cu-la)
- ( ne - o - l o-gismo)
2. First syllable + the first two letters of the second syllable (if both are consonants) + dot.
Examples:
- now ( a- gr i-cul-tu-ra)
- ( as - tr o-no-mi-a)
- build ( cons- tr u-tion)
3. If the word contains an accent on the first syllable or hyphen, they must be part of the abbreviation.
Examples:
- -alm. (rear admiral)
- music (song)
- tech (technique)
4. There are abbreviations that arise from the suppression of letters.
Examples:
- (Cashier)
- al (general)
- do or Lic.do (licensed)
5. There are, however, abbreviations that do not follow any of the above rules. Not all, for example, have an abbreviation point and some are spelled with a capital letter.
Examples:
- EM (in hand(s))
- (versus)
- AA. (Your Highnesses)
Finally, it's important to remember that if a sentence ends with an abbreviation, you shouldn't add a full stop.
Examples:
- It is written in N. da E.
- We've been waiting for him for a century.
- Visitors have arrived for VV.SS.
Abbreviation and abbreviation: is there a difference?
Abbreviation and abbreviation are shortened forms of words, but they are not the same thing.
The abbreviation is a resource of writing and abbreviation is a resource of speech.
We have already seen that, as a general rule, abbreviations are formed from the first syllable + first letter of the second syllable + dot.
The same does not happen with abbreviations, in which there are no cuts in the second syllable. Also, they don't even have a period at the end.
Some we use so often that we don't even remember that they are abbreviations.
Examples of abbreviations:
- photo - photography
- motorcycle - motorcycle
- auto - automobile
What about acronyms and symbols?
Acronyms are the initial letters of words.
Examples:
- CPF (Register of Natural Persons
- USA - United States of America
- IBGE - Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics
See also: Abbreviations of Brazilian states
Symbols, in turn, are short forms that represent concepts and are internationally recognized. There are many symbols with the letters K and Y.
Examples:
- kg - kilogram(s)
- km - kilometer(s)
- kW - kilowatt(s)
- N - natural numbers
- W - watt(s)
- y - second unknown (in math)
- Y- yttrium, yttrium
- Yb ytterbium, ytterbium
