Topic: Acronym accidents (Read 25364 times)

Is it cold in here? · « **on:** 29 Oct 2015, 11:50 »

All of these actually exist or were seriously proposed.

Saint Luke United Methodist church.

The Star Center Antique Mall.

The South Carolina Unorganized Militia.

94ssd · « **Reply #1 on:** 29 Oct 2015, 20:36 »

Quote from: Is it cold in here? on 29 Oct 2015, 11:50

All of these actually exist or were seriously proposed.

Saint Luke United Methodist church.

I don't get this one, SLUMC? Is it because of the word slum? There are probably literally a hundred St. Luke's UMCs out there.

~~mustang6172~~ · « **Reply #2 on:** 29 Oct 2015, 20:50 »

Operation Iraqi Freedom was originally to be called Operation Iraqi Liberation.

SubaruStephen · « **Reply #3 on:** 29 Oct 2015, 21:05 »

Detachable Felix · « **Reply #4 on:** 30 Oct 2015, 04:19 »

Quote from: 94ssd on 29 Oct 2015, 20:36

Quote from: Is it cold in here? on 29 Oct 2015, 11:50
All of these actually exist or were seriously proposed.

Saint Luke United Methodist church.

I don't get this one, SLUMC? Is it because of the word slum? There are probably literally a hundred St. Luke's UMCs out there.

The SLUM Church, I think, is the intent there.

Is it cold in here? · « **Reply #5 on:** 30 Oct 2015, 09:02 »

In my dialect, people would talk about it without the word "church" involved.

Kugai · « **Reply #6 on:** 30 Oct 2015, 12:28 »

Fatal Accident Reconstruction Team

Method of Madness · « **Reply #7 on:** 30 Oct 2015, 16:23 »

Quote from: mustang6172 on 29 Oct 2015, 20:50

Operation Iraqi Freedom was originally to be called Operation Iraqi Liberation.

A little on the nose.

Is it cold in here? · « **Reply #8 on:** 30 Oct 2015, 19:30 »

South Lake Union Transit.

Masterpiece · « **Reply #9 on:** 02 Nov 2015, 00:42 »

Digital Ecologies Research Partnership

Is it cold in here? · « **Reply #10 on:** 06 Jan 2016, 14:00 »

The map of fire exits at the hotel was labeled "Emergency Evacuation Plan".

Kugai · « **Reply #11 on:** 07 Jan 2016, 13:40 »

Remember once when I wore glasses and was leaving the office of the Optometrist when I needed to replace them after accidentally breaking one of the lenses. Was five stories up and I decided to walk down. Went into the Stairwell that had a glass outside wall and a big sign in large letters on the window said 'Emergency Exit'.

Wasn't till I got a little closer that I saw what was written under the large words 'Use Stairwell to ground floor'

Yeah, my eyesight for reading back then was a tad rotten.

Is it cold in here? · « **Reply #12 on:** 10 Jan 2016, 13:48 »

Maybe this doesn't count because officialdom narrowly avoided it, but it went viral among the riders and stayed that way.

Seattle's transit authority runs a trolley in the South Lake Union area. Officially it is the South Lake Union Streetcar. According to Wikipedia there is a local rumor that the name had to be changed from South Lake Union Trolley.

Kugai · « **Reply #13 on:** 10 Jan 2016, 14:00 »

Then there's the classic pre WWII clanger from the U.S. Navy

At the time, the office and Officer Commanding at Pearl was known as Commander In Chief, United States.

One can easily see why that got changed after December 7

jwhouk · « **Reply #14 on:** 10 Jan 2016, 15:43 »

...CINC by itself has continued to be used, but it's usually spelled out.

Method of Madness · « **Reply #15 on:** 10 Jan 2016, 19:18 »

"CINC" as in...Commander in Chief? Do the people who made that not know how acronyms work?

Akima · « **Reply #16 on:** 11 Jan 2016, 16:29 »

Most people don't know what acronyms are. An acronym is a spoken word made up of initials, like laser, radar, Unesco, Qantas, eftpos and so on. Strings of initials that you pronounce as individual letters, like GPS, ATM, ILO, BBC, IRC, DRM etc. are initialisms. Most TLAs are not acronyms at all.

~~mustang6172~~ · « **Reply #17 on:** 11 Jan 2016, 18:32 »

Speaking of initialisms, how is Subaru Tecnica International still a thing?

Method of Madness · « **Reply #18 on:** 11 Jan 2016, 18:34 »

Quote from: Akima on 11 Jan 2016, 16:29

Most people don't know what acronyms are. An acronym is a spoken word made up of initials, like laser, radar, Unesco, Qantas, eftpos and so on. Strings of initials that you pronounce as individual letters, like GPS, ATM, ILO, BBC, IRC, DRM etc. are initialisms. Most TLAs are not acronyms at all.

Language changes with usage, I'm pretty sure so many people have used acronym to mean initialism that it's not really even wrong anymore.

Kugai · « **Reply #19 on:** 12 Jan 2016, 13:39 »

Quote from: jwhouk on 10 Jan 2016, 15:43

...CINC by itself has continued to be used, but it's usually spelled out.

True, but there are some who still use them as words, which is what made CINCUS such a clanger after Pearl.

And for those of you who don't get it, it's pronounced 'Sinkus'. A 'request' to which the Japanese happily obliged on December 7th.

Pilchard123 · « **Reply #20 on:** 12 Jan 2016, 14:41 »

Quote from: Method of Madness on 11 Jan 2016, 18:34

Quote from: Akima on 11 Jan 2016, 16:29
Most people don't know what acronyms are. An acronym is a spoken word made up of initials, like laser, radar, Unesco, Qantas, eftpos and so on. Strings of initials that you pronounce as individual letters, like GPS, ATM, ILO, BBC, IRC, DRM etc. are initialisms. Most TLAs are not acronyms at all.
Language changes with usage, I'm pretty sure so many people have used acronym to mean initialism that it's not really even wrong anymore.

I don't know, 'not even wrong' is pretty bad, too. :V

Method of Madness · « **Reply #21 on:** 12 Jan 2016, 22:58 »

It used to be!

Is it cold in here? · « **Reply #22 on:** 05 Apr 2016, 20:56 »

Antonin Scalia School Of Law.

Method of Madness · « **Reply #23 on:** 05 Apr 2016, 20:57 »

The ASS of Law.

Is it cold in here? · « **Reply #24 on:** 05 Apr 2016, 21:00 »

Well done!

Method of Madness · « **Reply #25 on:** 05 Apr 2016, 21:02 »

Thanks, but I already saw the article about George Mason

cesium133 · « **Reply #26 on:** 06 Apr 2016, 04:40 »

One of the courses offered when I was in grad school was Advanced Solid State Physics. It was later renamed to Advanced Condensed Matter Physics, to my disappointment.

edit -- and another physics one:

Metope · « **Reply #27 on:** 10 Apr 2016, 01:10 »

When I was in art school I was in the Fine Art Painting department. We were a bunch of wankers.

Masterpiece · « **Reply #28 on:** 21 Apr 2016, 13:05 »

Ass Physics is wonderful.

Tova · « **Reply #29 on:** 27 Apr 2016, 23:31 »

Quote from: Akima on 11 Jan 2016, 16:29

Most people don't know what acronyms are. An acronym is a spoken word made up of initials, like laser, radar, Unesco, Qantas, eftpos and so on. Strings of initials that you pronounce as individual letters, like GPS, ATM, ILO, BBC, IRC, DRM etc. are initialisms. Most TLAs are not acronyms at all.

I'm late to this party, but I felt bored enough to look this up in my dictionary (Chambers, for those who care).

initialism (noun)
1. An abbreviation in which each latter is pronounced separately
2. An acronym (N American)

From the nation that brought you "I could care less."

Cheap shot, I know, sorry. Confession: I didn't actually know this either. TIL (hey, another one).

Method of Madness · « **Reply #30 on:** 28 Apr 2016, 04:17 »

Quote from: Akima on 11 Jan 2016, 16:29

Most people don't know what acronyms are. An acronym is a spoken word made up of initials, like laser, radar, Unesco, Qantas, eftpos and so on. Strings of initials that you pronounce as individual letters, like GPS, ATM, ILO, BBC, IRC, DRM etc. are initialisms. Most TLAs are not acronyms at all.

One could argue that common usage has expanded the definition of acronym to include initialisms.

Quote from: Tova on 27 Apr 2016, 23:31

"I could care less."

I still don't get how that's a thing.

Quote from: Tova on 27 Apr 2016, 23:31

TIL what TIL meant

pwhodges · « **Reply #31 on:** 28 Apr 2016, 04:37 »

Quote from: Method of Madness on 28 Apr 2016, 04:17

Quote from: Tova on 27 Apr 2016, 23:31
"I could care less."
I still don't get how that's a thing.

It seems to be ubiquitous in some areas, in spite of saying the exact opposite of what it's intended to mean. How this came about I can hardly think - I can only suppose as the result of what I would think of as slovenly speaking.

ZJGent · « **Reply #32 on:** 29 Apr 2016, 11:20 »

I always thought of it as having an implied "... but the amount I do care isn't enough to actually do anything." attached to the end.

But then, I'm a dirty apologist when it comes to quirks of grammar.

cesium133 · « **Reply #33 on:** 28 May 2016, 08:41 »

Seen at the Madison airport: Wisconsin Air National Guard.

jwhouk · « **Reply #34 on:** 28 May 2016, 10:42 »

That explains Madison, right there.

Is it cold in here? · « **Reply #35 on:** 10 Jan 2017, 19:23 »

Illinois Department of Law Enforcement

Stryc9Fuego · « **Reply #36 on:** 02 Feb 2017, 08:10 »

Sarasota County Area Transit. They even enblazon that acronym on the side of their buses!

pwhodges · « **Reply #37 on:** 02 Feb 2017, 09:23 »

To me the first association is with jazz singing - which is fine.

Is it cold in here? · « **Reply #38 on:** 25 Dec 2019, 15:18 »

Today I learned that there is a United Methodist church in Santa Claus, Indiana.

http://santaclausumc.org/

Santa Claus United Methodist.

THESE FORUMS NOW CLOSED (read only)

Author Topic: Acronym accidents (Read 25364 times)