abbreviation

== English == === Alternative forms === abbr., abbrv., abbrev. === Etymology === First attested 1400–50. From Middle English abbreviacioun, from Middle French abreviation, from Ecclesiastical Latin abbreviātiō, from Latin ab + breviō (“shorten”), from brevis (“short”). By surface analysis, abbreviate +‎ -ion. === Pronunciation === (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /əˌbɹiː.viˈeɪ.ʃən/ (General American) IPA(key): /əˌbɹi.viˈeɪ.ʃn̩/ Rhymes: -eɪʃən === Noun === abbreviation (countable and uncountable, plural abbreviations) The result of shortening or reducing; abridgment. [First attested around 1350 to 1470.] (linguistics) A shortened or contracted form of a word or phrase used to represent the whole, using omission of letters, and sometimes substitution of letters, or duplication of initial letters to signify plurality, including signs such as +, =, @. [Late 16th century.] (The addition of quotations indicative of this usage is being sought:) The process of abbreviating. [Mid 16th century.] (music) A notation used in music score to denote a direction, as pp or mf. (music) One or more dashes through the stem of a note, dividing it respectively into quavers, semiquavers, demisemiquavers, or hemidemisemiquavers. Any convenient short form used as a substitution for an understood or inferred whole. (biology) Loss during evolution of the final stages of the ancestral ontogenetic pattern. (mathematics) Reduction to lower terms, as a fraction. ==== Usage notes ==== In the linguistic sense, typically used in the phrase "abbreviation of" or "abbreviation for", rather than "abbreviation from". ==== Synonyms ==== abbreviature; abridgement; abstract; compend; compression; condensation; contraction; curtailment; epitome; reduction; shortcut; summary ==== Antonyms ==== amplification; dilation; enlargement; expansion; expatiation; extension; production ==== Hyponyms ==== (linguistics): acronym (employing initial letters or syllables); clipping (omitting several letters); initialism (employing initial letters); symbol, sign (employing marks other than letters) ==== Derived terms ==== ==== Translations ==== === References === === Further reading === Abbreviation in the Encyclopædia Britannica (11th edition, 1911) “abbreviation”, in The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 4th edition, Boston, Mass.: Houghton Mifflin, 2000, →ISBN. “abbreviation”, in Dictionary.com Unabridged, Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present. "abbreviation" in WordNet 2.0, Princeton University, 2003.