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How to correctly write abbreviations, abbreviations and acronyms

As important as a scientific work prepared according to the standards of academic normalization, is the formal use of the Portuguese language in the writing of the content.

A topic in the Portuguese language that is fundamental for the communication of certain specific information, but for which the rules for its use often go unnoticed, is the one that deals with the reduction of words or expressions through abbreviations, abbreviations and acronyms.

Reduction is part of the word formation process, and consists of suppressing the letters and/or syllables of a given term, without any harm to its understanding, as a way of optimizing the communication process.

These are reductions:

Abbreviation - consists of reducing the complete word in a few syllables, forming a new word as a variant. Example:

motorcycle = motorcycle

Cine = Cinema

Photo = Photography

Tire = Pneumatic

Auto = Automobile

Abbreviation - consists of reducing a complete word or expression in a few letters. It is easily identified by the use of the abbreviated full stop and because it usually ends in a consonant. There is a consensus on the use of abbreviations of certain words and expressions, and that incorrect use can cause ambiguity or obscurity of information. Examples of abbreviations are:

adj. - adjective

Et. al. - Et alii (Latin expression meaning “and others”)

Ie - Id est (Latin expression meaning “this is”)

Ms - Manuscript

M.Sc. - Master of science.

Within this convention, there are the abbreviations of academic titles:

Bachelor's degree: use “B.el.” for “bachelor”;

Degree: “L.do” is used for “licensed” and “L.da” for “licensed”;

Master: “Me” is used for “master”, and “M.ª” for “master”. For “master of science”, use “Sc.M.” or "M.Sc.";

Doctorate: “Dr” is used for “doctor”, and “D.ra” for “doctor”;

Acronyms - are representations of a set of words through their initial letters or initial syllables. The latter are also known as acronyms, as they acquire characteristics of words. As with abbreviations, there are also conventions for spelling acronyms. For example:

1 - Capitalize the initial letters of each word, regardless of whether the acronym is pronounceable or not:

UECE - State University of Ceará

UN - United Nations

IBGE - Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics

ABNT - Brazilian Association of Technical Standards

CEP - Postal Address Code

2 - Use only the first capital letter in acronyms:

Sudene - Superintendence for the Development of the Northeast

Unifor - University of Fortaleza

Funai - National Indian Foundation

Detran - State Department of Traffic

Embrapa - Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation

3 - The first citation of an acronym in an essay must be preceded by its writing in full; then, the acronym must be written in parentheses or after a dash:

Federal Highway Police (PRF)

National Library Foundation - FBN.

Some acronyms escape the writing rule, to differentiate themselves from other similar acronyms:

CNP - National Product Registry

CNPq - National Research Council (currently the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development, with the old acronym kept).

In NBR ABNT 14724:2011, a standard that deals with the structure of academic work, the “List of abbreviations and acronyms” is an optional pre-textual element. To understand more about mandatory and optional pre-textual elements, access the post about here.