English abbreviations. Abbreviations in English

A contraction is a combination of two or more words into one whole, while letters, such as vowels, are removed from the words. In writing, an apostrophe is written instead of missing letters. Abbreviations in English language , as a rule, are used in informal settings (in conversation, in writing). Their goal is to simplify spoken language. They save time in modern society.

English abbreviations- These are abbreviated forms of parts of speech. It is very difficult to imagine a modern foreign language without them. Young people came up with these abbreviations for quick communication and data transfer. Absolutely everyone uses them now. If we compare the Internet correspondence of an English teenager and our schoolboy, then teenagers abroad use abbreviations hundreds of times more. There was even such a case that one girl was so carried away by abbreviations that she wrote an entire essay in the form of special abbreviations and symbols, which could not be immediately read without auxiliary decodings. Therefore, it is necessary to become more familiar with this interesting language.

List of English abbreviations

b - be - to be

n - and - and, a

r - are (form of the verb to be)

c - see - to see

u - you - you, you, you

IC - I see - I see

CU - see you - I see you

BF - boyfriend - friend

GF - girlfriend - girlfriend

BZ - busy - busy

CYT - see you tomorrow - see you tomorrow

etc - et cetera - and so on

RUOK - are you ok? - are you all right?

HRU - how are you? - How are you?

MU - miss you - I miss you

NP - no problem - no problem

ASAP - as soon as possible - as soon as possible

TNX, THX, TX - thank you - thank you

YW - you are welcome - please contact

PLS, PLZ - please - please

BTW - by the way - by the way

BFF - best friend forever - best friend forever

HAND - have a nice day - have a nice day

IDK - I don't now - I don't know

MSG - message

CLD - could - be able, be able to

GD - good - good

VGD - very good - very good

RLY - really - really

TTYL - talk to you later - let's talk later

LOL - laughing out loud - laughing out loud

IMHO - in my humble opinion - in my humble opinion

ROFL - rolling on the floor laughing - rolling on the floor laughing

BRB - be right back - I'll be back soon

GTG - got to go - I'm leaving (I have to go)

XOXO - hugs and kisses - hugs and kisses

2u - to you - you

2u2 - to you too - you too

2day - today - today

2moro - tomorrow - tomorrow

2night - tonight - in the evening

b4 - before - before

4ever - forever - forever

gr8 - greate - great

f8 - fate - fate

l8 - late - late

l8r - later - later

10q - thank you - thank you

Where are English abbreviations used?

They are mainly used when writing messages in in social networks, on forums, in chats, and special language exchange resources. At first, only programmers communicated in this way, now the whole world. This the whole system letters and signs that need to be learned for simple communication. They are somewhat reminiscent of hieroglyphs, when one sign means a whole sentence. Auxiliary and modal verbs and the negative particle not.

Types of abbreviations

There are 4 types of abbreviations in English:

• graphic (found in written sources - books, letters, dictionaries);
  The oldest group of such abbreviations are words of Latin origin. Such words are written abbreviated, but in oral speech are read in full.
• lexical - abbreviations. In turn, they are divided into the following subgroups:
  a) initials - capital letters of countries, companies;
  b) syllabic - abbreviations based on the initial syllables of complex words;
  c) partially abbreviated - abbreviations that include 2 words: one is abbreviated, the second is used in full.
• mergers;
• digital.

Countersense or abbreviation of words exists in every living language. This often causes a problem for those who have just started learning, for example, English. Often it is in songs that one can trace the counter-sense, when one tries to grasp the meaning, but due to the abbreviation of the words, nothing is clear. Therefore, you need to learn to understand the abbreviations that native speakers of this language know and use in everyday speech.

Abbreviations in English are something without which it is quite difficult to imagine a modern foreign language. Abbreviations are often used on the Internet in order to convey your own thoughts as quickly as possible. And indeed, it is not necessary to write "as soon as possible", if you can write "asap".

Abbreviations in English in correspondence

Abbreviations in English in correspondence are a whole world, having learned which you can express yourself in foreign language it gets easier. Instead of "Thank you" we write often "THX", and in English you can write "thx". If it's very funny - lol (laugh out loud), surprised - OMG (Oh my god), go away - cu (see you). Note that there are abbreviations that are written the same as they sound:

• u-you
• y-why
• ur - your
• k-okey
• r-are
• b-be
• pls-please

There are abbreviations that use letters and numbers. Such "mixture" helps replace some SMS abbreviations in English, for example:

There are 4 types of abbreviations in English: graphic, lexical, merging and digital. Graphic abbreviations are found in letters, books and dictionaries, as well as advertisements. Note that everyone knows A.D/B.C(Anno Domini/Before Christ - AD, BC) have been preserved since Latin times. In writing, truncated versions are often used, for example, sis(sister - sister), doc(doctor - doctor), flu(influenza - flu), comfy(comfortable - convenient).

Words formed from two truncated words are also popular in modern English:

Docudrama(documentary drama) - documentary drama

Workaholic- hard worker

Frenemy(friend + enemy) - a friend who can betray at any moment

Earwitness(ear + witness) - the one who heard

There are also abbreviations that have firmly entered English and taken their positions:

• gf-girlfriend
• bf-boyfriend
• bb - bye bye
• brb - be right back
• tc - take care
• hru - how are you
• btw - by the way
• bbl - be back later
• P.S. -post scriptum
• a.m. - ante meridiem
• p.m. -post meridiem
• e.g. - exempli gratia, for example
• BD - birthday
• IMHO - in my opinion honest
• XOXO - hugs and kisses

Popular English word abbreviations

Mister, Mrs abbreviation in English

These kinds of abbreviations are used when writing official letters, so it is important to know that

Mr(mister) - mister

Mrs(mistress) - Mrs.

Ms(the alternative between Mrs or Miss is placed before the woman’s surname, regardless of her marital status)

Country abbreviations in English

With the development of Internet technologies and the emergence of almost every third inhabitant of the earth having an Instagram account, country abbreviations in English have become especially popular. Would you like to write in your profile that you are studying English, German and Italian? Then GB, DE, IT to help you. But seriously about countries, in accordance with the international names of countries according to the ISO-3166 standard, two-digit abbreviations are used:

Australia - AU

Austria - AT

Azerbaijan - AZ

Albania - AL

Angola - AO

Andorra - AD

Argentina - AR

Belarus - BY

Belgium - BE

Bulgaria - BG

Brazil - BR

Great Britain - GB

Vietnam - VN

Germany - DE

Greece - GR

Egypt - EG

Israel - IL

Italy - IT

Canada - CA

Malta - MT

Mexico - MX

Poland - PL

Russia - RU

Serbia - RS

Slovenia - SI

Thailand - TH

Türkiye - TR

France - FR

Montenegro - ME

Abbreviation of days of the week in English

In English you can find both two-digit and three-digit abbreviations for the days of the week:

More about cuts

Below we give some examples of abbreviations in texts:

A: What does IDK, LY & TTYL mean?
B: I don’t know, love you, talk later.
A: OK, I will ask your sister.

Or try deciphering this dialogue:
A: g2g to the store ttyl
Q: ok cya Bobby
Happened? If not

A: Got to go to the store, talk to you later
B: OK, see you Bobby

By the way, you can also find something like this:

Abbreviations in English, as in Russian, help you spend less time on correspondence, so if you want to express yourself in writing much faster, you need to remember the most common abbreviations. But you can find the most up-to-date information at. There are tests, grammar, current articles on the topic of language learning, and a lot of interesting things for those who want to master English.

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What is an abbreviation? This is a word or a whole sentence in a shortened form. In this post we will look at 10 abbreviations that we come across almost every day - in letters, in texts and even on the street.

10 common abbreviations

1. ASAP– in its full form it looks like this “ as soon as possible", which means " As soon as possible ", but since this phrase is very long, I had to shorten it as much as possible to ASAP. Let's look at examples:

• Give your reply ASAP – answer me as soon as possible
• Advise me of any changes ASAP - notify me of changes as soon as possible.

Google shortcode

2. RSVP– another encrypted message, an abbreviation of the French phrase Repondez s'il vous plaît, which translates as "Answer please". If you receive a message containing an RSVP, please know that you have been invited to participate in the event and are asking you to confirm whether you will attend.

• Please RSVP by next Saturday – please respond by next Saturday

3.RIP – rest in peace – « rest in peace " As you probably guessed, this abbreviation speaks of something sad – it can always be found on tombstones.

4. BYOB– Another riddle that can be deciphered as follows “ Bring your own beer/booze", which means " Bring your own beer and other alcoholic drinks " Suppose there is a party somewhere where there will be no alcohol, and guests can bring it with them if they wish.

• We are making a party tonight. If you want BYOB – we're throwing a party tonight. If you want, you can bring alcohol with you.
• There will be no alcohol at her birthday, so let’s BYOB - she won’t have alcohol at her birthday, so let’s take beer with us.

5. BBQ- it means barbecue – shashlik , therefore, if you are invited to a BBQ, that means you are invited to a barbecue.

• We’re having a BBQ party, you are invited - we will have a BBQ party, you are invited.

6. PIN –Personal Identity Number — personal identification number , a PIN code that is assigned to the owner of a plastic card and is necessary to establish his identity when using an ATM or when using banking services by phone.

• Please tell me your PIN number – tell me your PIN code, please
• Enter your PIN to log in – Enter your PIN to log in.

7.e.g. – exempli gratia— translated from Latin — “ For example " By the way, many people confuse it with the following abbreviation, also of Latin origin.

• Many animals lay eggs, e.g. hens, peacocks, crocodiles, penguins - many animals lay eggs, for example chickens, peacocks, crocodiles, penguins.

8.i.e. – id est– another Latin abbreviation meaning “ that is » ( those. ). When we want to explain something to someone, we add additional explanations, and for this we need some kind of introductory word:

• It happened on Halloween, i.e. October 31 – this happened on Halloween, i.e. October 31.

9. etc. - et cetera is also an abbreviation of Latin origin meaning " and so on » ( etc .), and we use it when we don’t want to go into details and end the sentence with the vague “and so on.”

• I’ve bought many things at the supermarket – eggs, butter, cheese, sausage, etc. – I bought a lot of things in the supermarket – eggs, butter, cheese, sausage, etc.

10. ATM – automatic teller machine- this is a machine from which you can get money and which is located on the streets, in shops, parking lots, etc., that is, an ATM.

• Is there any ATM close by? – Is there an ATM somewhere nearby?

A contraction is two or even three words combined into one shortened word, with some letters being dropped. An apostrophe is placed in place of the dropped letters on the letter. In English, abbreviations are used very often, mainly in colloquial speech. Mostly auxiliary verbs and the negative particle not are subject to contraction, since they are unstressed in the sentence. In addition, there are many contractions with modal verbs.

Let's look at the main abbreviations in English:

Reduction	Pronounced	Full form
		I had, I would, I should
		you had, you would
		he had, he would
		she had; she would
		we had, we should, we would
		they had; they would
	[ðɛəz], [ðəz]	there is, there has
		there had, there would
	AM kæ̱nt]

There are abbreviations verbal(when the verb itself is shortened) and negative(in which the particle not undergoes contraction).

Some negative contractions can take two forms:

he had not = he"d not = he hadn"t
she will not = she’ll not = she won’t
it is not = it’s not = it isn’t

Abbreviations with n"t(hadn"t, won"t) are more typical of the English language. The exception is the verb is, because in British English both are acceptable. In American English they use forms with not: she"s not.

In dividing questions am not has the abbreviation aren"t I:

I am in your team, aren’t I? - I'm on your team, aren't I?

Please note the difference in pronunciation: can"t: British English in American English.

Some abbreviations can imply different verbs, for example the abbreviation ’s can mean both is and has . How to distinguish? We differentiate by context. After is, either a verb ending in ing, an adjective or a noun is used:

He's waiting for you. - He's waiting for you.
She's a student. - She is a student.
It's beautiful. - This is wonderful.

After has there should be a verb in the third form:

He's got a new car. - He has a new car.
She's been to the USA. - She was in the USA.

The abbreviation "d" can "hide" had, would, should. After had we use the third form of the verb:

Sometimes the abbreviation is used for had better:

You'd better go home now. - You better go home now.

Would is often followed by like to :

I'd like to have a cup of tea. - I would like a cup of tea.

C should usually use the verb in the first form without the particle to (expression of advice):

You"d go and apologize. - You should go and apologize.

Do not confuse the abbreviated form it"s and the possessive adjective its.

Ain’t is a slang abbreviation for am not, are not, is not, have not, has not. It can be found in films, songs and in spoken language.

Using abbreviations in writing.

The use of abbreviated forms in writing is determined by the nature of the letter. Abbreviations should be avoided in official documents, formal correspondence, scientific works, however, in informal letters, blogs, and articles, the use of abbreviations is allowed and even encouraged. Contractions give a more informal and light tone, while full forms, in turn, indicate seriousness and formality. Before using contractions in your writing, think about the nature, purpose, and recipient of your letter.

When using abbreviated forms in writing, there are several rules to remember.

The short form ‘s (is, has) can be used in writing with personal pronouns, nouns, question words, there) and (now’s):

He "s my brother. - He is my brother.
Tom's sleeping. - Tom is sleeping.
Where's he? What's he doing? - Where is he? What is he doing?
There's a car in the garage. - There's a car in the garage.
Here's a lot of people. - There are many people here.
Now's the time to go. - Now it's time to go.

The short forms 'll (will), 'd (had, should, would) and 're (are) are used in writing after pronouns and the word there, but in other cases the full forms are written, even if abbreviated ones are pronounced:

They're watching TV. The children are watching TV.
She'd like to go out. Mary would like to go out.
He'd eat healthy food. My father should eat healthy food.

Contractions are an important element of spoken English. Sometimes they make it difficult to understand native speakers when they speak very quickly, so it is important to develop your listening skills, and if you want to improve your spoken English, our teachers will help you with this. Good luck in learning English!

The English language is replete with so many abbreviations that entire dictionaries are compiled to understand what is said and written. Abbreviations can be classified in different ways:

• by area of ​​application
• type
• by visualization method
• by similarity of sound.

Most abbreviations are built like an acronym. An abbreviation can be initialized, that is, the initial letters of the constituent words are used for abbreviation. Another type of abbreviation is called alphabetic. There are also mixed types. They are also found in English.

Abbreviations for SMS

A striking example of such an abbreviation is specific combinations for writing SMS. Invented whole tongue from hundreds of words, understandable, however, to both the sender and the addressee. Let's say you receive a message from an English-speaking subscriber: ADIDAU BILY, this is not a network error, this is a confession: “All Day I Dream About You Because I Love You.”

Several Yet:

Abbreviations are used not only in messages sent through modern gadgets, but also in completely traditional correspondence.

Abbreviations in correspondence

In business correspondence, many abbreviations are used, from job titles: CA - certified accountant, CEO (chief executive officer) - senior officer to specific terms: col. (collection) - collection, collection; b/l (Bill of lading) - bill of lading/waybill

When filling out the address cell on an envelope, people do not write Street in full, replacing it with the abbreviation St - street.

And in the letter itself, the recipient, seeing the combinations of the letters “pls”, “ppl”, “Q.” can easily read: please, people, question.

Dimension abbreviations

As in Russian, English often resorts to abbreviations when writing various measurements. A barrel is designated as bbl, a foot is ft, an ounce is oz, a quart is qt.

In English some time-related abbreviations, are written as an acronym, for example, the names of the months: Apr. , Aug./Ag., Dec. They are pronounced in full form: April, August, December.

Others, say, indicating the time of day: a.m., p.m. - in letters, that is, the way they are written.

Symbolic abbreviations very common. Many of them are international in nature.

The number is indicated by the sign #, “and” - &, the dollar is written as $, the pound sterling and euro correspond to the symbols £ and €. The copyright symbol is ©.

Geographical, phonetic, visual abbreviations

Reduction geographical names , such as states, provinces and even individual cities are far from uncommon in the English language. An example would be the abbreviation for the District of Columbia DC or the city of Washington, WA.

An interesting type of abbreviation - phonetic and visual. The first are based on the consonance of some words and numbers. 10Q is similar to Thank You, 2ez is similar to Too easy. F2F - to Face to Face (face to face) and in written speech replace these expressions.

Conversational abbreviations

Abbreviations of the most frequently used expressions have almost become a literary norm. They can not only be heard in colloquial speech, but also found in the works of writers or in the words of songs. Their unique feature is that an expression consisting of several words is not only pronounced together, but also written in one word. The words that make up the phrase. I am is shortened to I’m, I have is shortened to I’ve, I will is shortened to I’ll.

There are even shorter options: I had or I would are spoken and written as I’d, You had or you would as You’d, and He is or he has as He’s.

You will	You'll
You have	You've
You are	You're
Wouldn't	Wouldn't
Will not	Won't
Were not	Weren't
We will	We'll
We have	We've
We had/we would	We'd
We are	We're
Was not	Wasn't
They will	They'll
They have	They've
They had / they would	They'd
They are	They're
There will	There'll
There is / there has	There's
There had / there would	There'd
Should not	Shouldn't
She will	She'll
She is / she has	She's
She had/she would	She'd
Shall not	Shan't
Ought not	Oughtn't
Need not	Needn't
Must not	Mustn't
Might not	Mightn't
It is / it has	It's
Is not	Isn't
I will	I'll
I have	I've
He won't	He'll
He had/he would	He'd
Have not	Haven't
Has not	Hasn't
Had not	Hadn't
Doesn't	Doesn't
Don't	Don't
Dare not	Daren't
Could not	Couldn't
Are not	Aren't

Some slang expressions have acquired a new sound and are written together:

In communication, individual words are often simply omitted stable expressions: we hear morning instead of good morning or afternoon instead of good afternoon.