Initialism vs. Acronym
Ever wondered about the labels for these shortened terms? The difference comes down to how you say them.
- An abbreviation is any shortened form of a word
- An initialism is when you say the individual letters, like R-U-C
- An acronym us when the letters form a new, pronounceable word, like NAS
A great example of the grey area is WOF. Some people say the letters 'W-O-F' (making it an initialism), while many others pronounce it as a single word, 'woff' (making it an acronym). So, you're not wrong either way.
