Languages are full of acronyms – words made up of the initials and/or initial components of longer words. They’ve been around at least since Roman times and are found in many languages, including Chinese, Japanese, Hebrew, Russian, and Swahili. (These are the most commonly spoken foreign languages in each state.)
Though they’re hardly exclusive to English, Americans use a lot of them. We punch in our PIN at the ATM; go AWOL from a meeting but get back ASAP; hope our favorite performer gets the EGOT and that NATO stands strong – and by the way, TGIF. And of course texting would be a much more arduous task without LMK, LOL, IMHO, LMFAO, and such. (The difference between acronyms and abbreviations can be debated, but in general, abbreviations are strings of letters separated with real or implied periods.)
Some acronyms have lost their all-cap status and become such common words that we forget their acronymic origins. “Scuba” was originally an acronym for “self-contained underwater breathing apparatus;” “radar” derives from “radio detection and ranging;” “laser” stands for “light amplification by the stimulated emission of radiation.”
Acronyms are shortcuts, though, and shortcuts can sometimes be tricky. It turns out that the same acronyms can apply to vastly different things. The CIA, of course, is the Central Intelligence Agency, but if you’re in the food world, your CIA is the Culinary Institute of America. Doctors may belong to the AMA (the American Medical Association), but singers might want to win an AMA, or American Music Award. (Speaking of the CIA and AMA, here’s a list of the most and least trusted institutions in America.)
Click here to see acronyms that don’t always mean what you think they do
24/7 Tempo has collected 20 common acronyms (and abbreviations, if you insist), then searched them on Google to find secondary meanings beyond the ones that first come to mind. In many cases, in fact, there are a number of secondary meanings – but we’ve just chosen the most interesting or unexpected ones.
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AA
> Stands for: Alcoholics Anonymous
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AA
> Stands for: American Airlines
AAA
> Stands for: American Automobile Association
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AAA
> Stands for: American Accordionists’ Association
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Source: 400tmax / iStock Unreleased via Getty Images
ABC
> Stands for: American Broadcasting Company
Source: Shaun Taylor / iStock / Getty Images Plus
ABC
> Stands for: Appalachian Brewing Company
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Source: wutwhanfoto / iStock via Getty Images
AMA
> Stands for: American Medical Association
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Source: Kevin Winter / Getty Images Entertainment via Getty Images
AMA
> Stands for: American Music Awards
Source: sshepard / iStock Unreleased via Getty Images
CDC
> Stands for: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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Source: pixinoo / iStock via Getty Images
CDC
> Stands for: Canadian Dairy Commission
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CIA
> Stands for: Central Intelligence Agency
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Source: ClarkandCompany / E+ via Getty Images
CIA
> Stands for: Culinary Institute of America
Source: Massimo Giachetti / iStock Editorial via Getty Images
CBS
> Stands for: Columbia Broadcasting System
CBS
> Stands for: Copenhagen Business School
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Source: Prathaan / iStock via Getty Images
CSI
> Stands for: Crime scene investigation
Source: jacoblund / iStock via Getty Images
CSI
> Stands for: Christian Surfers International
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Source: Joe Raedle / Getty Images News via Getty Images
ESL
> Stands for: English as a second language
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ESL
> Stands for: European Super League
Source: tobiasjo / iStock Unreleased via Getty Images
NHL
> Stands for: National Hockey League
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Source: Stephen Barnes / iStock via Getty Images
NHL
> Stands for: National Hurling League
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NASA
> Stands for: National Aeronautics and Space Administration
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NASA
> Stands for: North American Sommelier Association
Source: RomanBabakin / iStock Editorial via Getty Images
NATO
> Stands for: North Atlantic Treaty Organization
Source: Omar Osman / iStock via Getty Images
NATO
> Stands for: National Association of Theatre Owners
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Source: helen89 / iStock Editorial via Getty Images
NBA
> Stands for: National Basketball Association
Source: kzenon / iStock via Getty Images
NBA
> Stands for: Nippon Badminton Association
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Source: nazdravie / iStock Editorial via Getty Images
NBC
> Stands for: National Broadcasting Company
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NBC
> Stands for: National Ballet of Canada
Source: by_nicholas / iStock Unreleased via Getty Images
NFL
> Stands for: National Football League
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Source: South_agency / Getty Images
NFL
> Stands for: National Forensic League
Source: Scott Olson / Getty Images News via Getty Images
NRA
> Stands for: National Rifle Association
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NRA
> Stands for: National Restaurant Association
Source: Brooks Kraft / Getty Images
NSA
> Stands for: National Security Agency
Source: Juanmonino / iStock Unreleased via Getty Images
NSA
> Stands for: National Scrabble Association
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Source: Craig Mitchelldyer / Getty Images News via Getty Images
OTC
> Stands for: Over the counter
Source: panitan punpuang / iStock via Getty Images
OTC
> Stands for: Okefenokee Technical College
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Source: wellesenterprises / iStock Editorial via Getty Images
PGA
> Stands for: Professional Golfers’ Association
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Source: Thos Robinson / Getty Images
PGA
> Stands for: Producers Guild of America
Source: Handout / Getty Images News via Getty Images
RNC
> Stands for: Republican National Committee
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Source: Courtesy of Royal Newfoundland Constabulary
RNC
> Stands for: Royal Newfoundland Constabulary
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