[ak-ruh-nim] 
| 1. | a word formed from the initial letters or groups of letters of words in a set phrase or series of words, as Wac from Women's Army Corps, OPEC from Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, or loran from long-range navigation. |
| 2. | an acrostic. |
| 3. | to make an acronym of: The committee's name has been acronymed MIKE. |
| ac·ro·nym (āk'rə-nĭm') n. A word formed from the initial letters of a name, such as WAC for Women's Army Corps, or by combining initial letters or parts of a series of words, such as radar for radio detecting and ranging. [acr(o)- + -onym.] ac'ro·nym'ic, a·cron'y·mous (ə-krŏn'ə-məs) adj. |
A word formed by combining the beginning letters of a name or phrase, as in WASP for white Anglo-Saxon Protestant, or by combining the initial syllables of a series of words, as in radar, which stands for radio detecting and ranging.
Note: Acronyms are often less clumsy than the complete expressions they represent and are easier to write and remember.
acronym jargon
An identifier formed from some of the letters (often the initials) of a phrase and used as an abbreviation. This dictionary contains a great many acronyms; see the contents page for a list.
See also TLA.
(1995-03-15)
rə