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HTML How to Make a Website HTML First What is HTML?

Matthew Silkwood
Matthew Silkwood
1,396 Points
Posted by Matthew Silkwood
Matthew Silkwood
1,396 Points

Is initialism a word? (the description) I believe the correct word is acronym

This is merely a potential grammatical fix that needs to be applied to this episode

tootiemcflow
tootiemcflow
5,601 Points

I think acronym forms a word you pronounce like SCUBA.

Initialism is pronounced letter by letter like CNN (Cable News Network).

3 Answers

jamescool
jamescool
44,592 Points

It is indeed a word. Check this out: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/19/magazine/19FOB-onlanguage-t.html There is a potential distinction to be made between initialism and acronym, but I'm not sure if I'm convinced of its utility.

Steve Hunter
Steve Hunter
57,712 Points
Steve Hunter
Steve Hunter
57,712 Points

Great question, but a linguistic nightmare. Generally, yes, an acronym is able to be spoken but it doesn't need to be made of initial letters. An initialism is another form of blending or abbreviating - to cover the numerous variances here, take a look at this

Great question - but not a straighforward answer, unfortunately.

Steve.

Nelson Jimenez
Nelson Jimenez
3,475 Points
Nelson Jimenez
Nelson Jimenez
3,475 Points

They should have used the word acronym instead of initialism. It is more generally known.