27:
128:
was coined in the US as a mnemonic learning aid: appearance, pulse, grimace, activity, and respiration. Another example is the
American Contract Bridge League's tools to address cheating in online bridge games. EDGAR was originally named for Edgar Kaplan, whose many contributions to the game
230:
is often believed to be an abbreviation for "save our ship" or "save our souls" but was chosen because it has a simple and unmistakable Morse code representation – three dots, three dashes, and three dots, sent without any pauses between characters.
78:
from "radio detection and ranging". By contrast, a backronym is "an acronym deliberately formed from a phrase whose initial letters spell out a particular word or words, either to create a memorable name or as a fanciful explanation of a word's origin". Many
962:
129:
included groundbreaking efforts to reduce illegal partnership communication. The new EDGAR tools expected to debut in early 2024 have been launched with the backronym "everyone deserves a game above reproach".
954:
183:, an adjective describing stylish items or members of the upper class. A popular story derives the word as an acronym from "port out, starboard home", referring to 19th-century first-class cabins on
260:, sometimes claimed to mean "yet another hierarchical officious oracle", but in fact chosen because Yahoo's founders liked the word's meaning of "rude, unsophisticated, uncouth" (taken from
49:
formed from an already existing word by expanding its letters into the words of a phrase. Backronyms may be invented with either serious or humorous intent, or they may be a type of
223:, which is a derogatory term for a working-class youth. This word is probably of Romani origin but commonly believed to be a backronym of "council-housed and violent".
644:
174:. Acronyms were rare in the English language before the 1930s, and most etymologies of common words or phrases that suggest origin from an acronym are false.
165:
790:
518:
442:
104:, a nine-year-old girl who was abducted and murdered in 1996. Officials later publicized the backronym "America's Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response".
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31:
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148:(Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act) of 2001, and the
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Sometimes a backronym is reputed to have been used in the formation of the original word, and amounts to a false etymology or an
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274:" is commonly stated to mean "possible assistance needed", whereas it is in fact derived from the French word
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191:) and homeward voyages west. The word's actual etymology is unknown, but more likely related to
120:, used to assess the health of newborn babies. The rating system was devised by and named after
133:
72:
A normal acronym is a word derived from the initial letters of the words of a phrase, such as
266:
716:
812:
485:"The Virginia Apgar Papers - Obstetric Anesthesia and a Scorecard for Newborns, 1949-1958"
8:
1005:
350:
318:
995:
87:(special executive for counterintelligence, terrorism, revenge and extortion) from the
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846:
723:
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but falsely believed to be an acronym for "all day I dream about sport"; The word
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192:
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35:
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187:, which were shaded from the sun on outbound voyages east (e.g. from Britain to
931:
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261:
121:
101:
54:
895:
984:
955:"Qantas flight QF144 lands safely at Sydney Airport after midair mayday call"
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188:
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184:
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145:
117:
97:
58:
343:"Backronym – Definition of backronym in English by Oxford Dictionaries"
141:
89:
606:
149:
137:
635:"All the Silly Legislative Acronyms Congress Came Up with This Year"
218:
178:
136:
bills have backronyms as their names; examples include the
American
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298:
293:
248:, said to stand for "what I know is", but in fact derived from the
113:
20:
152:(Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors Act). In the
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List of common false etymologies of
English words § Acronyms
84:
46:
26:
460:"AMBER Alert – America's Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response"
257:
235:
459:
74:
244:
201:
843:
All Day I Dream About Sport: The Story of the Adidas Brand
783:"Everything you ever wanted to know about the word 'chav'"
227:
124:. Ten years after the initial publication, the backronym
337:
335:
787:
Ideas Lab
Predictor Podcast, University of Birmingham
332:
144:
Aid, Relief, and
Economic Security Act) of 2020, the
30:
Humorous example of a backronym used by NASA to name
715:
698:Port Out, Starboard Home: And Other Language Myths
156:(2013) there were over 240 bills with such names.
982:
573:"S.3548 - 116th Congress (2019-2020): CARES Act"
925:"The History of Yahoo! - How It All Started..."
357:
859:
32:a treadmill on the International Space Station
888:
234:More recent examples include the brand name
214:('white robes'), a term for wealthy people.
195:
834:
917:
665:
487:. U.S. National Library of Medicine, NIH.
209:
594:
570:
511:"ACBL Battles Online Cheating with EDGAR"
755:. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 2009.
675:. New York: Oxford University Press US.
626:
508:
436:"AmberAdvocate.org: AMBER Alert history"
25:
16:Acronym invented to fit an existing word
840:
780:
713:
695:
541:"The CARES Act Works for All Americans"
159:
983:
810:
659:
521:from the original on November 15, 2023
100:missing-child program was named after
952:
845:. Great Brand Stories. London: Cyan.
647:from the original on January 24, 2022
614:from the original on January 24, 2022
965:from the original on 18 January 2023
906:from the original on 6 December 2006
689:
632:
375:from the original on 28 October 2006
34:, in reference to American comedian
877:from the original on 7 October 2006
386:
13:
509:Official, ACBL (8 November 2023).
14:
1027:
770:. The Wikimedia Foundation. 2023.
466:from the original on 27 July 2010
81:fictional espionage organizations
448:from the original on 2022-10-09.
392:
946:
823:from the original on 2012-12-02
804:
793:from the original on 2023-09-29
774:
759:
736:
633:Bump, Philip (August 2, 2013).
583:from the original on 2020-10-02
571:McConnell, Mitch (2020-06-03).
553:from the original on 2020-10-01
546:U.S. Department of the Treasury
491:from the original on 2009-01-13
226:Similarly, the distress signal
112:An example of a backronym as a
953:Green, Eli (18 January 2023).
811:Rohrer, Finlo (13 June 2008).
781:Bennett, Joe (30 April 2012).
564:
533:
502:
477:
462:. Amberalert.gov. 2007-11-01.
452:
428:
238:, named after company founder
1:
718:Ballyhoo, Buckaroo, and Spuds
347:Oxford Dictionaries – English
325:
602:"The art of the 'backronym'"
217:Another example is the word
7:
281:
210:
107:
10:
1032:
163:
18:
753:Oxford English Dictionary
714:Quinion, Michael (2006).
712:; published in the US as
696:Quinion, Michael (2005).
841:Brunner, Conrad (2004).
83:are backronyms, such as
19:Not to be confused with
278:, meaning 'breakdown'.
196:
930:. 2001. Archived from
270:). The distress call "
134:United States Congress
38:
200:('half-penny') or to
164:Further information:
29:
867:"The wiki principle"
160:As false etymologies
934:on 29 November 2001
319:Satiric misspelling
256:meaning 'fast'; or
240:Adolf "Adi" Dassler
267:Gulliver's Travels
39:
817:BBC News Magazine
722:. HarperCollins.
682:978-0-19-539311-8
667:Sheidlower, Jesse
610:. July 28, 2020.
353:on March 1, 2019.
309:Recursive acronym
177:Examples include
96:For example, the
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1016:1980s neologisms
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349:. Archived from
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204:(borrowed from
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146:USA PATRIOT Act
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51:false etymology
36:Stephen Colbert
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1011:Types of words
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813:"Save our SOS"
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515:Bridge Winners
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398:"RADAR means:
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369:Dictionary.com
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304:Pseudo-acronym
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262:Jonathan Swift
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154:113th Congress
122:Virginia Apgar
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102:Amber Hagerman
55:folk etymology
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640:The Atlantic
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577:congress.gov
576:
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544:
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525:November 15,
523:. Retrieved
514:
504:
493:. Retrieved
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417:
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377:. Retrieved
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351:the original
346:
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185:ocean liners
179:
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172:urban legend
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131:
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71:
66:
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959:news.com.au
700:. Penguin.
651:January 24,
618:January 24,
142:Coronavirus
118:Apgar score
98:Amber Alert
93:franchise.
59:portmanteau
1006:Neologisms
985:Categories
969:18 January
938:8 November
910:2006-11-15
881:2006-11-15
827:2012-07-10
797:2023-10-13
768:Wiktionary
672:The F-Word
587:2020-10-02
557:2020-10-02
495:2008-11-18
470:2010-07-08
379:2006-11-15
326:References
211:safed-pōśh
90:James Bond
996:Etymology
607:Roll Call
406:etection
365:"Acronym"
254:wiki-wiki
150:DREAM Act
138:CARES Act
43:backronym
1001:Folklore
991:Acronyms
963:Archived
904:Archived
875:Archived
821:Archived
791:Archived
766:"chav".
669:(2009).
645:Archived
612:Archived
581:Archived
551:Archived
519:Archived
489:Archived
464:Archived
443:Archived
373:Archived
314:Retronym
299:Mnemonic
294:Acrostic
282:See also
264:'s book
250:Hawaiian
197:påš xåra
114:mnemonic
108:Examples
21:retronym
743:"posh,
414:anging"
272:pan-pan
252:phrase
206:Persian
116:is the
85:SPECTRE
67:acronym
47:acronym
896:"wiki"
849:
726:
704:
679:
258:Yahoo!
236:Adidas
193:Romani
45:is an
928:Yahoo
446:(PDF)
439:(PDF)
276:panne
189:India
132:Many
126:APGAR
75:radar
971:2023
940:2015
847:ISBN
747:and
745:adj.
724:ISBN
702:ISBN
677:ISBN
653:2022
620:2022
527:2023
402:dio
394:NASA
245:Wiki
220:chav
202:Urdu
180:posh
65:and
63:back
751:".
410:nd
228:SOS
61:of
53:or
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140:(
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