25 American English Abbreviations You Need to Know | English Vocabulary


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It is common in American English to use standard abbreviations for a large number of everyday things. If you are learning American English, you’ll need to know these. They will often appear on written documents, forms, email and of course, before email, they were often used in letters.

You’ll find these in all areas of life, not just professional but personal. As a matter of fact, we have an abbreviation for the word abbreviation itself: Abbr.

Keep in mind that some abbreviations become acronyms. Acronyms are still abbreviations but they conveniently form a word. When an abbreviation is not an acronym, but is spelled out, it is called an initialism.

Some of these abbreviations are only used in writing, never spoken, but many are used verbally more often than the words are names they stand for. For example, we don’t often say, I’m taking my dog to the veterinarian. We say “I’m taking my dog to the vet.”

And, we all hate going to the Motor Vehicles Administration or the Department of Motor Vehicles. The MVA or the DMV.

Here are some of the most commonly used abbreviations in the United States, and whether they are used in writing only or in both written and verbal communication. Note that not all of these are exclusive to American English.

Everyday American English Abbreviations

approx. – approximately (mostly written)

appt. – appointment (always written)

apt. – apartment (always written)

A.S.A.P. – as soon as possible

B.Y.O.B. – Bring your own bottle or bring your own beer. c/o – care ofThis means through someone or by way of someone. dept. – department

D.I.Y. – Do it Yourself. est. – established E.T.A. – estimated time of arrival. min. – minute or minimum (usually only written)

Mr. – Mister (formal term of address for an adult male)

Ms. and Mrs. – Miss or Mistress (we usually pronounce this Missus in America.) no. – number (the hashtag symbol # is also used for number)

tel. – telephone (only written)

vet. – veteran or veterinarian (both are commonly spoken)

vs. – versus

Locations and Directions

Ave. – Avenue (avenue is often called just ave)

Blvd. – Boulevard

Cyn. – Canyon

Dr. – Drive

Ln. – Lane

Rd. – Road

St. – Street

Directions

E – east

N – north

NE – northeast

NW – northwest

S – south

SE – southeast

SW – southwest

W – west

Academic Titles

BA – Bachelor of Arts (basic 4-year university degree)

BS – Bachelor of Science (basic 4-year degree in science)

MA – Master of Arts (post-secondary, post-bachelor degree)

MS – Master of Science

Ph.D. – Doctor of Philosophy (highest university degree)

Job Titles

PA – Personal Assistant

MD – Managing Director

VP – Vice President

SVP – Senior Vice President

EVP – Executive Vice President

CMO – Chief Marketing Officer

CFO – Chief Financial Officer

CEO – Chief Executive Officer

Additional Latin Abbreviations

Am and PM

AM = morning

PM = evening

AM actually stands for ante meridiem (before noon) and PM stands for post meridiem (after noon).

BC = before Christ. It refers to the time before the coming of Christ.

BCE = before the common (or current) era. It is a religiously neutral replacement for BC.

AD = Anno Domini It means “The Year of Our Lord.” We use it to refer to the time we live in, the era after BC or BCE.

CE is a religiously neutral replacement for AD, it stands for ‘common (or current) era.’

e.g. = exempli gratia It is often used in writing before giving an example. It stands for exempli gratia. I’ve made a separate video to cover e.g. and i.e., two abbreviations that are often confused.

etc = et cetera It means “and other things.” I use etc often in my videos when there are too many items to individually list and I want to tell you that other similar things are also possible.

i.e. – i.e. stands for id est, meaning, “that is.” n.b. – It stands for nota bene, which means “take notice,” or “note well.” It’s sometimes written at the end of a message that you really want someone to take seriously.

P.S. = postscript It is often included at the end of a letter or email before adding an additional comment. It is short for postscript, which means “written after.”

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