ac·ro·nymˈakrəˌnim/noun
an abbreviation formed from the initial letters of other words and pronounced as a word (e.g., ASCII, NASA ).
Acronyms are inevitable; they are the perfect collision of our laziness and verbosity. We love to use long words and important-sounding titles for our job titles, organizations, and inventions, yet we can't stand to use those titles in every-day speech. Hence, acronyms!
Since acronyms are a part of our everyday existence, you should make sure you are familiar with the most common ones. For starters, see if you can correctly identify the meaning of the following acronyms:
-NFL
-OSU
-PSU
-NCU
-CEO
-CFO
-UFO
-ROM
-ROI
-RAM
-NRA
-NATO
-NORAD
-NBA
-OBEC
-ODOT
-CPP
-CPA
-ADA
-NASA
-MBA
-CNN -ABC
-MBI
-ISIS
-LIGO
-NHL
-NCAA
-PAC12
-FBI
-IRS
-ASAP
-RSVP
-IT
-ICE
-ACT
-SAT
-TOEFL
-IELTs
-REI
-FEMA
-FERPA
-SSA
-NSF
-VIN
-PIN
-VIP
-BART
-TSA
-LTD
-ADHD -AAA
-GEICO
-AFOL
-ROV
-WYSIWYG
-WWJD
-BOGO
-BOHGOHHO
-MSN
-ZIP
-SHADE
-SCUBA
-IRA
-LOL
-TEPCO
-NRA
-NRA
Now that you've given your brain a good workout, here are the meaning of the acronyms that others will expect you to know (and some I don't expect you should know, but I'm throwing in anyway):
-NFL (National Football League)
-OSU (Oregon State University)
-PSU (Portland State University)
-NCU (Northwest Christian University)
-CEO (Chief Executive Officer)
-CFO (Chief Financial Officer)
-UFO (Unidentified Flying Object)
-ROM (Return on Marketing) -ROI (Return on Investment)
-RAM (Random Access Memory)
-NRA (National Rifle Association)
-NATO (North American Trade Organization)
-NORAD (North American Aerospace Defence Command)
-NBA (National Basketball Association) -OBEC (Oregon Bridge Engineering Company)
-ODOT (Oregon Department of Transportation)
-CPP (Cost Per Click)
-CPA (Certified Public Accountant)
-ADA (American With Disabilities Act)
-NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration)
-MBA (Master’s of Business Administration)
-CNN (Cable News Network) -ABC (American Broadcasting Corporation)
-MBI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging)
-ISIS (Islamic State of Iraq and Syria)
-LIGO (Laser Interferometer Gravitational Wave Observatory)
-NHL (National Hockey League)
-NCAA (National College Athletics Association)
-PAC12 (Pacific Athletic Conference - 12 Teams)
-FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation)
-IRS (Internal Revenue Service)
-ASAP (As Soon As Possible)
-RSVP (Respondez, s’il vous plat: Please Respond)
-IT (Information Technology)
-ICE (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement)
-ACT (American College Testing)
-SAT (Scholastic Aptitude Test)
-TOEFL (Test of English Language Proficiency)
-IELTs (International English Language Test)
-GED (Test of General Educational Development)
-REI (Recreational Equipment, Inc.)
-FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency)
-FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act)
-SSA (Social Security Administration)
-NSF (Not Sufficient Funds Overdraft Charge)
-VIN (Vehicle Identification Number)
-PIN (Personal Identification Number)
-VIP (Very Important Person)
-BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit)
-TSA (Transportation Security Administration)
-LTD (Lane Transit District)
-ADHD (Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder) -AAA (American Automobile Association)
-GEICO (Government Employees’ Insurance Company)
-AFOL (Adult Fans of LEGO)
-ROV (Remotely Operated Vehicle)
-WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get)
-WWJD (What Would Jesus Do?)
-BOGO (Buy One, Get One)
-BOHGOHHO (Buy One Half, Get One Half Half Off)
-MSN (Microsoft Service Network)
-ZIP (Zone Improvement Plan)
-SHADE (Sheltered Housing And Development Environment)
-SCUBA (Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus)
-IRA (Individual Retirement Plan)
-LOL (Laughing Out Loud)
-TEPCO (Tokyo Electric Power Company)
-NRA (National Rifle Association)
-NRA (National Restaurant Association)
Do you have some acronyms you think I should know about? Let me know in the comments below!