# If you spell 'scuba' in all caps, why? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 13, 2018, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-spell-scuba-in-all-caps-why/817849 "2018-07-13T17:15:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2018, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-spell-scuba-in-all-caps-why/817849/21 "2018-07-14T02:33:56Z")
> [@Mr.Bill](#): > > I’d be willing to bet that someone, somewhere has gone scuba diving from a flying boat! Well, my dad came close. As noted above, he was an early SCUBA diver, and also a pilot. A friend of his owned a seaplane, an old Republic RC-3 Seabee. They flew that thing around Lake Michigan, spotted wrecks, and dove on them, back in the 1950’s and 1960’s. Of course the RC-3 did have the capacity to land on a runway, so it wasn’t a true flying boat. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2018, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-spell-scuba-in-all-caps-why/817849/22 "2018-07-14T03:33:25Z")
> [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](#): > > I noticed that a number of people (not just on this site) spell ‘scuba’ in all caps. Why? > [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](#): > > Well thanks, well-meaning people for informing me that it was an acronym. I don’t think I would EVER have figured that out on my own. Wow! I noticed that a number of people (not just on this site) will ask a question, and if people tell them the answer and it’s something they already know, they get peeved, as if there has to be some other answer. Why? ---
**Author:** ![OldGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3bc359/32.png) [@OldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OldGuy)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2018, 4:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-spell-scuba-in-all-caps-why/817849/23 "2018-07-14T04:09:18Z")
> [@begbert2](#): > > Googling into the differences between acronyms and initialisms (and, subsequently, when you capitalize one or the other) led me to the following two conclusions: > > 1. By at least two different definitions, all initialisms are also acronyms. It’s not really correct to say there’s a distinction, just like there’s not really a distinction between odd numbers and all numbers. I guess I’d have to agree with that, because it’s equally wrong There certainly is a difference between odd numbers and all numbers – even if you mean all positive integers. One is a subset of the other. But I’d say you have it backwards. By one definition all acronyms are initialism. by another they are distinct, but I’ve never heard it used for initialisms to form the subset. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Bill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Mr.Bill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Bill)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2018, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-spell-scuba-in-all-caps-why/817849/24 "2018-07-14T04:17:36Z")
> [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](#): > > Well, my dad came close. As noted above, he was an early SCUBA diver, and also a pilot. A friend of his owned a seaplane, an old Republic RC-3 Seabee. They flew that thing around Lake Michigan, spotted wrecks, and dove on them, back in the 1950’s and 1960’s. > > Of course the RC-3 did have the capacity to land on a runway, so it wasn’t a true flying boat. As long as it could land on water, I’ll allow it!🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Lamoral](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lamoral/32/16078_2.png) [@Lamoral](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamoral)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2018, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-spell-scuba-in-all-caps-why/817849/25 "2018-07-14T04:29:04Z")
For the same reason that Navy SEALs and SUBMARINES are capitalized…you’re supposed to capitalize things relating to the sea ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2018, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-spell-scuba-in-all-caps-why/817849/26 "2018-07-14T05:11:21Z")
> [@Machine\_Elf](#): > > I tend to write SCUBA, but then I also write laser and radar. It’s one of those inconsistencies I don’t notice until someone says “hey, you’re being inconsistent.” There was never a _Family Ties_ where Mallory [had to remember](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-HKWIorBbw) what “LASER” stood for. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2018, 5:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-spell-scuba-in-all-caps-why/817849/27 "2018-07-14T05:34:26Z")
At both the English-language newspapers I worked at in Thailand, the rule was if you can pronounce it like a word, then no all caps, such as radar, Nato, Aids and of course scuba. If you pronounce each individual letter, then all caps such as WHO. There were exceptions such as SEAL, to distinguish it from the animal, lest there be some confusion. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2018, 5:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-spell-scuba-in-all-caps-why/817849/28 "2018-07-14T05:44:25Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > At both the English-language newspapers I worked at in Thailand, the rule was if you can pronounce it like a word, then no all caps, such as radar, Nato, Aids and of course scuba. If you pronounce each individual letter, then all caps such as WHO. There were exceptions such as SEAL, to distinguish it from the animal, lest there be some confusion. Wow. Is that a British English convention? Aids sounds like a breath mint. Nato sounds like a noxious food eaten in Japan. Anyway, that’s not the convention in the US. It would definitely cause confusion for the reader. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2018, 6:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-spell-scuba-in-all-caps-why/817849/29 "2018-07-14T06:17:26Z")
> [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](#): > > Well thanks, well-meaning people for informing me that it was an acronym. I don’t think I would EVER have figured that out on my own. Wow! Then you already knew the answer. If it’s an acronym, some people will capitalize it. ---
**Author:** ![Meurglys](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/258eb7/32.png) [@Meurglys](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meurglys)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2018, 9:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-spell-scuba-in-all-caps-why/817849/30 "2018-07-14T09:30:53Z")
On a fairly irelevant note, here’s the Revillos singing [Scuba, Scuba](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jSZp5en20fg) with a stupid video! Only the first letters are capitalised (because it’s a song title) and no scuba gear appears in the video but it’s fun anyway! ---
**Author:** ![RadicalPi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/radicalpi/32/9806_2.png) [@RadicalPi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RadicalPi)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2018, 6:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-spell-scuba-in-all-caps-why/817849/31 "2018-07-15T06:16:07Z")
What about the people who write LOGO in all caps? ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2018, 6:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-spell-scuba-in-all-caps-why/817849/32 "2018-07-15T06:21:38Z")
Little known fact: originally the acronym was Self Contained Apparatus for Breathing Underwater, but it never caught on. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2018, 7:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-spell-scuba-in-all-caps-why/817849/33 "2018-07-15T07:00:15Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > Wow. Is that a British English convention? Aids sounds like a breath mint. Nato sounds like a noxious food eaten in Japan. Anyway, that’s not the convention in the US. It would definitely cause confusion for the reader. It caused no confusion whatsoever. I don’t see why it would. ---
**Author:** ![Two\_Many\_Cats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Two\_Many\_Cats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_Many_Cats)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2018, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-spell-scuba-in-all-caps-why/817849/34 "2018-07-15T13:16:48Z")
Remember, in Doctor Who novelizations, it’s always TARDIS. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2018, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-spell-scuba-in-all-caps-why/817849/35 "2018-07-15T15:43:48Z")
> [@Two\_Many\_Cats](#): > > Remember, in Doctor Who novelizations, it’s always TARDIS. “Time And Relative Dimensions In Space? Sounds like someone REALLY wanted the acronym to be TARDIS.” It’s not complete. Should be TARDIS Machine, TARDISM. I like that better. Ism ism ism. ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2018, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-spell-scuba-in-all-caps-why/817849/36 "2018-07-15T15:51:41Z")
Even though I pronounce them as words, I write them as all caps such as NASA. This is especially true with acronyms that are indeed actually words like as HOG (Harley Owners Group); it cuts down on the confusion. Sometimes. ---
**Author:** ![jnglmassiv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f07891/32.png) [@jnglmassiv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jnglmassiv)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2018, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-spell-scuba-in-all-caps-why/817849/37 "2018-07-15T16:41:15Z")
In the amateur radio community, one learns that many people write HAM in all caps. It’s not an acronym and I don’t know why it is so widespread. > [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > There were exceptions such as SEAL, to distinguish it from the animal, lest there be some confusion. I wonder what kind of articles would leave room for mixing up the animals and the elite commando force. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2018, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-spell-scuba-in-all-caps-why/817849/38 "2018-07-15T20:55:27Z")
> [@jnglmassiv](#): > > I wonder what kind of articles would leave room for mixing up the animals and the elite commando force. Either I was misremembering their style – possible since these guys did not appear in too many Business stories, which was the desk I was on – or they changed their style since I left, because [as you can see from this recent story](https://www.bangkokpost.com/news/general/1503886/wife-of-late-seal-cavediver-to-follow-in-his-footsteps), the diver is a “Seal.” ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2018, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-spell-scuba-in-all-caps-why/817849/39 "2018-07-15T23:59:54Z")
I see far too many people, when writing about cars, to capitalize HEMI. It’s not an acronym, it’s just shortened. Hemi. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2018, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-spell-scuba-in-all-caps-why/817849/40 "2018-07-17T00:06:53Z")
> [@muldoonthief](#): > > But aviation and scuba [don’t really mix](https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/corpus-crispy/). Somebody should have told that to JFK Jr. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-spell-scuba-in-all-caps-why/817849.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-you-spell-scuba-in-all-caps-why/817849.md?page=3)