Acronyms and initialisms are abbreviations, such as NATO, laser, and ABC, written as the initial letter or letters of words, and pronounced on the basis of this abbreviated written form.

Of the two words, acronym is the much more frequently used and known; and some dictionaries, speakers, and writers use it to describe any abbreviation formed from initial letters.Israel, Mark, Alt.English.Usage Fast-Access FAQ, accessed May 2, 2006. "'Dictionaries, however, do not make this distinction acronyms and initialisms because writers in general do not'"The Internet Acronym Server, accessed May 2, 2006. "Contrary to what some sources say, acronyms do not have to be pronounceable words (for example FBI is spelled out when spoken, whereas NASA is not).""acronym." Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, accessed May 2, 2006. "an abbreviation (as FBI) formed from initial letters"Crystal, David (1995). The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language, Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0521559855. p. 120: "However, some linguists do not recognize a sharp distinction between acronyms and initialisms, but use the former term for both.""acronym". The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Current English (1991), Oxford University Press. p. 12: "a word, usupronounced as such, formed from the initial letters of other words (e.g. Ernie, laser, Nato)". This is a contentious point, however, and other sources differentiate between the two terms, restricting acronym to pronounceable words formed from the initial letter or letters of each of the constituent words—such as NATO (IPA pronunciation: or ), from the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation, or radar (pronounced ), from radio detection and ranging—and restricting initialism to abbreviations pronounced as the names of the individual letters—such as FBI (pronounced ) or HTML (pronounced )."acronym" Oxford English Dictionary. Ed. J.A. Simpson and E.S.C. Weiner. 2nd ed. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1989. OED Online Oxford University Press. Accessed May 2, 2006.Crystal, David (1995). The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language, Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0521559855. p. 120: "Initialisms Acronyms ^*" target="_blank" >are pronounced as single words, such as NATO, laser, UNESCO, and SALT (talks). Such items would never have periods separating the letters—a contrast with initialisms, where punctuation is often present (especially in older styles of English).""acronym". Webster’s New Universal Unabridged Dictionary (2003), Barnes & Noble. ISBN 0760749752. "2. a set of initials representing a name, organization, or the like, with each letter pronounced separately, as FBI for Federal Bureau of Investigation.""initialism". The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Current English (1991), Oxford University Press. p. 609: "a group of initial letters used as an abbreviation for a name or expression, each letter being pronounced separately (e.g. BBC)". The word alphabetism is sometimes used to describe these "letter name" abbreviations.Crystal, David (1995). The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language, Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0521559855. p. 120: "Initialisms [... are spoken as individual letters, such as BBC, DJ, MP, EEC, e.g., and USA; also called alphabetisms."

In English-language discussion of languages with syllable-based writing systems, such as Chinese, Japanese, and Korean, acronym describes short forms that take the first character of each (multi-character) element. For example, Beijing University—Beijing Daxue (literally, North-Capital Big-School 北京大学)—is widely known as Beida (literally, North-Big 北大). In describing such languages, the term initialism is inapplicable.

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Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day

fire-sale
Sat, 19 Jul 2008 01:15:01 -0500
Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 19, 2008 is: fire-sale • \FYRE-SAIL\  • adjective : heavily discounted Example sentence: "As holders of mortgage-backed securities and the like revalue their assets at fire-sale prices, they are running short of capital -- which can lead to further sales and more write-downs." (The Economist, March 2008) Did you know? The term "fire sale" flared up in the late-19th century as the name for a sale of items damaged by fire. As you can imagine, much of the merchandise at a fire sale was sold at very low prices, which fanned the flames of the use of "fire sale" for any sale with discounted or low price tags. The extended meaning of the term sparked an adjective use that had burst into a full-blown blaze by the mid-20th century. Since then, people have embraced "fire-sale prices" in the marketplace, well aware that they won't get burned.
bogart
Fri, 18 Jul 2008 01:15:01 -0500
Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 18, 2008 is: bogart • \BOH-gart\  • verb 1 : bully, intimidate *2 : to use or consume without sharing Example sentence: Three of the older girls bogarted the ice cream, ignoring the other campers' pleas for them to share. Did you know? The legendary film actor Humphrey Bogart was known for playing a range of tough characters in a series of films throughout the 1940s and 1950s, including The Maltese Falcon, Casablanca, and The African Queen. The men he portrayed often possessed a cool, hardened exterior that occasionally let forth a suggestion of romantic or idealistic sentimentality. Bogart also had a unique method of smoking cigarettes in these pictures -- letting the butt dangle from his mouth without removing it until it was almost entirely consumed. It is believed that this habit inspired the current meaning of "bogart," which was once limited to the phrase "Don't bogart that joint [marijuana cigarette]," as popularized by a song on the soundtrack to the film Easy Rider, among other things. Today "bogart" can be applied to hogging almost anything. *Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.
superannuated
Thu, 17 Jul 2008 01:15:01 -0500
Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 17, 2008 is: superannuated • \soo-per-AN-yuh-way-tud\  • adjective 1 : outmoded, old-fashioned 2 a : incapacitated or disqualified for active duty by advanced age*b : older than the typical member of a specified group Example sentence: The article focused on senior citizens who retired from the workplace and returned to school to become superannuated graduate students. Did you know? "Superannuated" was first put to use in English in the 1600s, having been borrowed from Medieval Latin "superannuatus," the past participle of "superannuari" ("to be too old") -- from Latin "super-" ("over" or "above") and "annus" ("year"). Shortly thereafter, we made our own verb, "superannuate," from the adjective. "Superannuate" meant "to retire and pension because of age or infirmity" as well as "to declare obsolete," meanings that are still in active service. "Superannuated" can mean "outmoded or old-fashioned," as in "superannuated slang" or "superannuated neckties," or it can simply mean "older than usual," as in our example sentence. *Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.
belvedere
Wed, 16 Jul 2008 01:15:01 -0500
Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 16, 2008 is: belvedere • \BEL-vuh-deer\  • noun : a structure (as a cupola or a summerhouse) designed to command a view Example sentence: On summer evenings, guests at the estate often joined their hosts in the belvedere to watch the sunset. Did you know? It is said that beauty is in the eye of the beholder -- and someone with a belvedere will likely have a great deal of beauty to behold. Given the origins of the word, "belvedere" is the ideal term for a building (or part of a building) with a view; it derives from two Italian words, "bel," which means "beautiful," and "vedere," which means "view." The term has been used in English since at least 1593.
Occam's razor
Tue, 15 Jul 2008 01:15:01 -0500
Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 15, 2008 is: Occam's razor • \AH-kumz-RAY-zer\  • noun : a scientific and philosophic rule that entities should not be multiplied unnecessarily which is interpreted as requiring that the simplest of competing theories be preferred to the more complex or that explanations of unknown phenomena be sought first in terms of known quantities Example sentence: Invoking Occam's razor, Eli concluded that the sill was wet because someone had left the window open during the storm. Did you know? William of Occam (also spelled "Ockham") didn't invent the rule associated with his name. Others had espoused the "keep it simple" concept before that 14th-century philosopher and theologian embraced it, but no one wielded the principle (also known as the "law of parsimony") as relentlessly as he did. He used it to counter what he considered the fuzzy logic of his theological contemporaries, and his applications of it inspired 19th-century Scottish philosopher Sir William Hamilton to link "Occam" with the idea of cutting away extraneous material, giving us the modern name for the principle.
indurate
Mon, 14 Jul 2008 01:15:01 -0500
Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 14, 2008 is: indurate • \IN-duh-rut\  • adjective : physically or morally hardened Example sentence: The sculpture was so realistic that it seemed that at any moment the indurate marble form would shift position to stare back at the viewer. Did you know? "Indurate" is a hard word -- in more than one way. Not only is it fairly uncommon in modern usage, but it also can be traced back to Latin "durare," meaning "to harden." ("Durare" can mean "to endure" as well, and appropriately "indurate" is a word that has lasted many years -- it has been a part of the English language since the 14th century.) "Durare" is also the root of other durable English words, including "during," "endure," "duration," "durance" (an archaic word meaning "endurance"), and even "durable" itself. In addition, "indurate" can be a verb meaning "to make or grow hard," "to make unfeeling, stubborn, or obdurate," and "to establish firmly."

MedTerms Word of the Day

Ileal pouch
Sat, 19 Jul 2008 00:00:00 -0700
Ileal pouch: A surgically created chamber made up of a portion of the lower part of the ileum, the last (lowest) part of the small intestine. The ileal pouch generally connects to the rectum with the muscles of this area left intact to allow continuation of bowel control. The ileal pouch acts as a reservoir with the goal being a return to regular bowel habits despite removal of the large intestine. Surgery to create an ileal pouch is usually done for patients who need a total colectomy (removal of the entire colon or large intestine, that part of the intestinal tract normally positioned between the ileum and the rectum). Patients with ulcerative colitis are the most common candidates for an ileal pouch. MedTerms (TM) is the Medical Dictionary of MedicineNet.com.We Bring Doctors' Knowledge To You

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