# Is there a word for "An acronym that becomes a word in it's own right"?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-an-acronym-that-becomes-a-word-in-its-own-right/203274
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [September 23, 2003, 7:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-an-acronym-that-becomes-a-word-in-its-own-right/203274 "2003-09-23T07:44:15Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)
#### Post date: [September 23, 2003, 7:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-an-acronym-that-becomes-a-word-in-its-own-right/203274/1 "2003-09-23T07:44:15Z")
…y’know, like “Scuba,” or “Radar”?
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### Author:  [@Redboss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Redboss)
#### Post date: [September 23, 2003, 7:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-an-acronym-that-becomes-a-word-in-its-own-right/203274/2 "2003-09-23T07:59:04Z")
Or jeep?
Good question.
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### Author:  [@Reepicheep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reepicheep)
#### Post date: [September 23, 2003, 8:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-an-acronym-that-becomes-a-word-in-its-own-right/203274/3 "2003-09-23T08:15:13Z")
How about snafu?
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### Author:  [@sailor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sailor)
#### Post date: [September 23, 2003, 9:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-an-acronym-that-becomes-a-word-in-its-own-right/203274/4 "2003-09-23T09:37:44Z")
It’s called an “aatbawiior” but “aatbawiior” is not yet an aatbawiior in its own right. 😉
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### Author:  [@curly\_chick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/curly_chick)
#### Post date: [September 23, 2003, 9:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-an-acronym-that-becomes-a-word-in-its-own-right/203274/5 "2003-09-23T09:48:06Z")
An acronym _is_ an abbreviation which is pronounced as a word, such as scuba and radar and laser.
If you cannot say it as a word, but have to pronounce the individual letters, eg CNN, BBC, then it is not an acronym, it is an abbreviation.
So acronym is the word you are looking for.
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### Author:  [@mecaenas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mecaenas)
#### Post date: [September 23, 2003, 11:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-an-acronym-that-becomes-a-word-in-its-own-right/203274/6 "2003-09-23T11:58:03Z")
An **acronym** is an abbreviation that is pronounced as a word (e.g. SCUBA).
An **initialism** is an abbreviation that is pronounced letter-by-letter (e.g. CIA).
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### Author:  [@shijinn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shijinn)
#### Post date: [September 23, 2003, 12:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-an-acronym-that-becomes-a-word-in-its-own-right/203274/7 "2003-09-23T12:18:08Z")
**acronym** is a word formed from the initial letters.
**initialism** is an **acronym** formed from initial letters that is not a word.
**abbreviation** is the short form of a word. e.g. example/e.g.
😃
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### Author:  [@Popup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Popup)
#### Post date: [September 23, 2003, 12:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-an-acronym-that-becomes-a-word-in-its-own-right/203274/8 "2003-09-23T12:31:50Z")
> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by shijinn \*
> \*\ ***abbreviation** is the short form of a word. e.g. example/e.g. \*\*
Poor example.
e.g. is an abbreviation of _exempli gratia_. Frequently used as a replacement for ‘for example’
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### Author:  [@biqu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/biqu)
#### Post date: [September 23, 2003, 12:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-an-acronym-that-becomes-a-word-in-its-own-right/203274/9 "2003-09-23T12:33:12Z")
> [@](#):
>
> _Originally posted by shijinn_
> **acronym** is a word formed from the initial letters.
>
> **initialism** is an **acronym** formed from initial letters that is not a word.
If an acronym is a word, how can an initialism be an acronym and yet not a word? Both are abbreviations (of phrases), but neither set is completely contained in the other.
[Wikipedia article on initialisms](http://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Initialism)
[Wikipedia article on acronyms](http://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acronym)
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### Author:  [@trabi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/trabi)
#### Post date: [September 23, 2003, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-an-acronym-that-becomes-a-word-in-its-own-right/203274/10 "2003-09-23T12:36:48Z")
[SUP]Is there a word for “An acronym that becomes a word in it’s own right”? [/SUP]
I suppose an acronym could be considered to have become a word in its own right when it is no longer capitalised.
Don’t know if there’s any special term for this though.
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### Author:  [@shijinn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shijinn)
#### Post date: [September 23, 2003, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-an-acronym-that-becomes-a-word-in-its-own-right/203274/11 "2003-09-23T13:37:34Z")
shot down in ten mins for spouting nonsense of the top of my head. 😃
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### Author:  [@shijinn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shijinn)
#### Post date: [September 23, 2003, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-an-acronym-that-becomes-a-word-in-its-own-right/203274/12 "2003-09-23T13:39:32Z")
off :smack:
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### Author:  [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)
#### Post date: [September 23, 2003, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-an-acronym-that-becomes-a-word-in-its-own-right/203274/13 "2003-09-23T15:29:14Z")
> [@](#):
>
> I suppose an acronym could be considered to have become a word in its own right when it is no longer capitalised.
>
> Don’t know if there’s any special term for this though.
As has been said already, there is a special term for this – **acronym**. An abbreviation that has become a word (and is pronounceable as a word) is an acronym. That’s the definition.
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### Author:  [@curly\_chick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/curly_chick)
#### Post date: [September 23, 2003, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-an-acronym-that-becomes-a-word-in-its-own-right/203274/14 "2003-09-23T15:45:36Z")
Thanks, **acsenray** , I was beginning to feel that I must be invisible!
Either that or that I was, acronomymically speaking, just a tit
(Totally Ignored Twit)
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### Author:  [@curly\_chick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/curly_chick)
#### Post date: [September 23, 2003, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-an-acronym-that-becomes-a-word-in-its-own-right/203274/15 "2003-09-23T15:48:19Z")
> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by curly chick \*
> \*\*acronomymically
> \*\*
:smack:
SKBTTTIW
(Should Know Better Than Try To Invent Words)
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### Author:  [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)
#### Post date: [September 23, 2003, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-an-acronym-that-becomes-a-word-in-its-own-right/203274/16 "2003-09-23T16:20:49Z")
When I’m copyediting, I’ll allow an acronym that’s pronounceable and is five letters or more; fewer than five I cap as an initialism.
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### Author:  [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)
#### Post date: [September 23, 2003, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-an-acronym-that-becomes-a-word-in-its-own-right/203274/17 "2003-09-23T16:29:11Z")
And I leave an acronym in all caps if it’s only pronounced by saying some of the letters, rather than pronouncing them: ANWR (_an-war_), RISD(_riz-dee_), CQAP(_see-quap_), etc. (Not the best examples, because they’re all under 5 letters, but you get the picture.)
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### Author:  [@toscar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/toscar)
#### Post date: [September 23, 2003, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-an-acronym-that-becomes-a-word-in-its-own-right/203274/18 "2003-09-23T16:33:25Z")
> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by Redboss \*
> \*\*Or jeep?
>
> Good question. \*\*
Jeep, Redboss? If you’re referring to the vehicle may this more accurately be rendered as GEEP since I understand that the original derivation was from GP\> (General Purpose.)
But it still doesn’t make it an acronym - if we’re talking about vehicles.
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### Author:  [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)
#### Post date: [September 24, 2003, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-an-acronym-that-becomes-a-word-in-its-own-right/203274/19 "2003-09-24T05:11:50Z")
> [@](#):
>
> Jeep, Redboss? If you’re referring to the vehicle may this more accurately be rendered as GEEP since I understand that the original derivation was from GP\> (General Purpose.)
Almost certainly not true. No evidence for that assumption, which IS commonly held.
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### Author:  [@toscar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/toscar)
#### Post date: [September 24, 2003, 10:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-an-acronym-that-becomes-a-word-in-its-own-right/203274/20 "2003-09-24T10:21:34Z")
> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by samclem \*
> \*\*Almost certainly not true. No evidence for that assumption, which IS commonly held. \*\*
I’ve just looked up JEEP in Webster’s and Encarta.
[Mid-20th century. From GP , from general purpose , probably influenced by “Eugene the Jeep,” character in the cartoon strip “Popeye.”]
Microsoft® Encarta® Reference Library 2003. © 1993-2002 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.
Webster’s will not allow me to copy and paste but the entry confirms Encarta.
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