2026-01-11

An acronym is a specific type of abbreviation where you pronounce the shortened form as a word:

• NASA (say "NAH-sah")
• SCUBA (say "SKOO-bah")
• RAM (say "ram")

An abbreviation is the broader term for any shortened form of a word or phrase:

• Dr. (Doctor)
• etc. (et cetera)
• FBI (say each letter: "eff-bee-eye")
• approx. (approximately)

So all acronyms are abbreviations, but not all abbreviations are acronyms. The key difference is whether you pronounce it as a word (acronym) or spell it out letter by letter (initialism, which is another type of abbreviation).

There's also initialism - abbreviations where you say each letter separately, like FBI, DVD, or ATM. These are often confused with acronyms but they're technically different.

i may be autistic too 7/7 rehearse conversations first, exhausted after social events, hard to understand my own emotions, i need alone time, sensitive to sound, upset when plans or routines change, miss social cues,