According to an article on about.com, an abbreviation is a shortened form of a word or phrase, such as Jan for January; Dr for Doctor; Mrs for Missus etc. The abbreviated form of the word abbreviation is abbr. or, less commonly, abbrv. or abbrev.
In British English, which we favour, the usage of abbreviations generally favours omitting the period (or full stop) in abbreviations that include the first and last letters of a single word (Dr, Ms). When an abbreviation appears at the end of a sentence, a single period serves both to mark the abbreviation and to close the sentence.
So, Should You Use Abbreviations?
According to A. Siegal of The New York Times Manual of Style and Usage (1999):
In general, spell out the names of government bureaus and agencies, well-known organisations, companies, etc., on first reference. In later references, use short forms like the agency or the company when possible because handfuls of initials will make your writing look crowdy.
While, Rudolf Flesch in “The ABC of Style”; Harper (1964) says:
It is a superstition that abbreviations shouldn’t be used in serious writing and that it’s good style to spell everything out. Nonsense! Use abbreviations whenever they are customary and won’t attract the attention of the reader.
If this is the case…
How Then May You Use Abbreviations Correctly?
- Use Indefinite Articles Before Abbreviations, Acronyms, and Initialisms
The choice between a and an is determined by the sound of the first letter in the abbreviation: a before a consonant sound (a CNN documentary; a US official) and an before a vowel sound (an STV documentary; an MRI machine). - Abbreviating the Titles of Doctors
For medical doctors, write either Dr Bala Chukwu or Bala Chukwu, M.D. (Don’t write Dr Bala Chukwu, M.D.) For non-medical doctors, write Dr Etim Bassey or Etim Bassey, Ph.D. (Don’t write Dr Etim Bassey, Ph.D.) - Abbreviating Months and Days
If the month is preceded or followed by a numeral (14 Aug. or Aug. 14), abbreviate Jan., Feb., Mar., Apr., Aug., Sep. (or Sept.), Oct., Nov., Dec. Don’t abbreviate May, June, and July. As a general rule, don’t abbreviate the month if it appears alone or with just the year. And don’t abbreviate the days of the week unless they appear in charts, tables, or slides. - Using Common Abbreviations
Certain abbreviations are never spelled out: a.m., p.m., B.C. (or B.C.E.), A.D. (or C.E.). Unless your style guide says otherwise, use lowercase for a.m. and p.m. Use capital letters for B.C. and A.D. (the periods are optional). Traditionally, B.C. comes after the year and A.D. comes before it, but nowadays the abbreviation commonly follows the year in both instances. - Using the Abbreviation Etc.
The Latin abbreviation etc. (short for et cetera) means “and others”. Never write and etc. And don’t use etc. at the end of a list introduced by such as or including. - Punctuating an Abbreviation at the End of a Sentence
Use just one period when an abbreviation appears at the end of a sentence. The single period does double duty – marking the abbreviation and closing the sentence. For example: The Julian calendar came into effect in 45 B.C. - Avoiding RAS Syndrome
RAS syndrome is a humorous initialism for Redundant Acronym [fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”][or Abbreviation] Syndrome syndrome. Avoid redundant expressions like ATM machine, PIN number.
As a final note of caution, if you are not sure whether the meaning of an abbreviation is familiar to your readers, then don’t use it, write out the word instead.
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