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Discussion Groups / English Usage / November 2006acronym to capability - singular, plural
Hello, in my article, I like to introduce the term "capability" with the acronym C. That is, I would like to write something like: "..., called Capability (C) of a team." How should I use the plural of this acronym? Initially I thought this would be ok: "... the Cs of a team are denoted by..." However, this is not correct as it would be equivalent to: "... the capabilitys of a team are denoted by..." How else could I write the plural of the acronym "capability"? Suggestions are welcome! cheers, Chris > Hello, > > in my article, I like to introduce the term "capability" with the > acronym C. That is, I would like to write something like: > > "..., called Capability (C) of a team." Why? > How should I use the plural of this acronym? Initially I thought this > would be ok: > > "... the Cs of a team are denoted by..." Why? > However, this is not correct as it would be equivalent to: > > "... the capabilitys of a team are denoted by..." 'Capabilities' > How else could I write the plural of the acronym "capability"? You shouldn't. > Suggestions are welcome! > > cheers, Chris > Hello, > > in my article, I like to introduce the term "capability" with the > acronym C. That is, I would like to write something like: > > "..., called Capability (C) of a team." I have a hard time envisioning any situation in which this anti-reader approach is justified. > How should I use the plural of this acronym? Initially I thought this > would be ok: > > "... the Cs of a team are denoted by..." Of course not. You meant "The capabilities of a team ...", so say so. > However, this is not correct as it would be equivalent to: > > "... the capabilitys of a team are denoted by..." Did you introduce this silly abbreviation because you can't spell "capabilities"> > How else could I write the plural of the acronym "capability"? "capabilities" >> Hello, >> in my article, I like to introduce the term "capability" with the [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > I have a hard time envisioning any situation in which this anti-reader > approach is justified. The only thing that springs to mind is that "capability" is either a numeric value or a set and the OP is planning on using it in equations. In that case, "capabilities" might be whatever the reader associates with the word, but "C's" are precisely this formal concept. If that's not it, I agree that he should just write out "capability" and "capabilities". Even if it is is, he should probably spell it out in the text unless he intends to emphasize the distinction. >> However, this is not correct as it would be equivalent to: >> "... the capabilitys of a team are denoted by..." > > Did you introduce this silly abbreviation because you can't spell > "capabilities"> I think his point is that he thinks that an abbreviation is a replacement for a sequence of characters rather than for a word and that therefore derived forms of the abbreviation won't be interpreted as derived forms of the abbreviated word.  SignatureEvan Kirshenbaum +------------------------------------ HP Laboratories |This gubblick contains many 1501 Page Mill Road, 1U, MS 1141 |nonsklarkish English flutzpahs, but Palo Alto, CA 94304 |the overall pluggandisp can be |glorked from context. kirshenbaum@hpl.hp.com | (650)857-7572 | David Moser http://www.kirshenbaum.net/ > Hello, > > in my article, I like to introduce the term "capability" with the > acronym C. That is, I would like to write something like: > > "..., called Capability (C) of a team." Are you addressing a football or basketball team? You wll be lucky if they understand "called". Context is important. Always! GFH > Hello, > [quoted text clipped - 14 lines] > How else could I write the plural of the acronym "capability"? > Suggestions are welcome! I can't make any more sense out of this than have my colleagues, but I suspect you don't really mean "acronym." "Abbreviation," perhaps -- the word "capability" could be abbreviated as "C". If you are asking how to make the plural of C, the traditional way is C's, although on the Internet that is often scorned as some sort of error. SignatureBest -- Donna Richoux > Hello, > [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > > However, this is not correct It is. As is " C's ". > as it would be equivalent to: > > "... the capabilitys of a team are denoted by..." No, it wouldn't. Adrian Hello, ok. Jump to the last point, if you want skip my responses to my previous email. First, I write a technical paper, so please assume that it is customary to introduce acronyms for words that are used repetitively or in formulas. In my article, I use the acronym M for Models that estimate the actual performance of teams. So, I also like to introduce the acronym C for Capabilities that represent the actual performance of teams. Second, you can distinguish between: 1. Acronym (eg, NATO which can be pronounced as a word) 2. Abbreviation (eg, info from information) 3. Initialism (eg, SUV without reference of pronunciation) (For more explanation check http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Initialism and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abbreviation) Third, adding "'s" always indicates possession, and that is why I don't think it is correct to indicate the plural of an acronym with apostrophe s. For example, Joint Common Data Base (JCDB): you can write "The JCDB's integrity problems..." to indicate that the integrity problems belong to the JCDB, and plural would be "JCDBs are generally prune to fail..." to refer to several JCDBs. So, as opposed to Adrian's view, I do not think that "'s" is the correct plural extension of an acronym. Now to my problem. I want to abbreviate capability with C, and capabilities with Cs respectively. However, abbreviating it with Capability (C) and later refer to the plural of the acronym C with Cs is technically not correct as this would be equivalent to Cs=Capabilitys, and not Capabilities. What do you think about the following suggestion? I could introduce both acronyms separately. - A Capability (C) of a teams. And then... - The Capabilities (Cs) of a team. If anyone has a better suggestion, I would appreciate it. If you can, please back it up with a reference. Thank you. cheers, Chris >> Hello, >> [quoted text clipped - 19 lines] > > Adrian >Third, adding "'s" always indicates possession, and that is why I don't >think it is correct to indicate the plural of an acronym with apostrophe [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] >So, as opposed to Adrian's view, I do not think that "'s" is the correct >plural extension of an acronym. In principle, you're right -- using "apostrophe s" to form a plural is what is popularly known as the "greengrocer's apostrophe". In practice, though, Adrian's right. When what's being made plural is a single letter, an apostrophe is usually used as the lesser of two evils, since confusing the reader is always a far worse sin than breaking a style rule. For example, how would you suggest writing "dot your i's and cross your t's" or "bottom A's and E's go out of tune easily" without using silly fonts (never, ever a good idea for single words, much less single letters) or an apostrophe? "Dot your is" and "As and Es" are too misleading to be an option. All this -- including the difference between acronyms, initialisms and abbreviations -- is in the AUE FAQ, by the way. -- THE "If you or I use a word inappropriately, that's an error. If a newspaper uses a word inappropriately, that's a citation source for the dictionaries." -- Peter Moylan > In principle, you're right -- using "apostrophe s" to form a plural is > what is popularly known as the "greengrocer's apostrophe". In [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > words, much less single letters) or an apostrophe? "Dot your is" and > "As and Es" are too misleading to be an option. Who decides what is easier to read? I mean, I find it easier to read something that follows principles. Others may not like principles, but instead prefer sentences that flow if they were pronounced. In fact, I would claim that non-native English speakers would prefer to write and read a text that follows certain principles (because that is how I learnt it in school, and how I write a text consciously), while native speakers actually read sentences in their mind and if they don't flow, they find it difficult to understand the text. What do you think? > All this -- including the difference between acronyms, initialisms and > abbreviations -- is in the AUE FAQ, by the way. I have read the section about acronyms, but I couldnt find this info there. Chris >> All this -- including the difference between acronyms, initialisms and >> abbreviations -- is in the AUE FAQ, by the way. > >I have read the section about acronyms, but I couldnt find this info there. Did you check the sections on the formation of plurals and use of apostrophes? SignatureRoss Howard > in my article, I like to introduce the term "capability" with the > acronym C. That is, I would like to write something like: > "..., called Capability (C) of a team." > How should I use the plural of this acronym? Initially I thought this > would be ok: > "... the Cs of a team are denoted by..." > However, this is not correct as it would be equivalent to: > "... the capabilitys of a team are denoted by..." If "C" stands for "capability", then the plural of "C" stands for the plural of "capability". I don't see why you think there's a problem in that regard. > How else could I write the plural of the acronym "capability"? "Capability" is not credibly an acronym, but I will take your question to mean either "How else could I write an acronym for 'capability' and what would that acronym's plural be?", or "Given that I've decided to use 'C' as an acronym for 'capability', how would I write its plural?". (Note that acronyms are normally formed from the initial letters or portions of more than one word, but I suppose the first letter of only one word could arguably be called an acronym or possibly a degenerate form of an acronym. I suppose it could be interesting to debate that point.) > Suggestions are welcome! Once you've decided to represent "capability" by "C", then it's not a question of how you "write the plural of the acronym of 'capability'". Your question comes down to how you are to write the plural of "C". The answer to that depends upon whether you're referring to "C" as the letter itself or as the entity it represents. If you're referring to the letter itself, in print the "C" would normally be in italics. In Usenet we normally don't have italics available, so we should use bracketing underscores or quotation marks. In that case, the "s" is appended with no apostrophe: _C_s or "C"s. If you're referring to the entity represented by "C", very old style guides would tell you unequivocally to write the plural of "C" as "C's". Modern guides will tell you in general to write "Cs" without the apostrophe, but they may also tell you to use common sense in deciding whether there's a risk of ambiguity or false scent and to add the apostrophe if necessary to avoid that risk. By the way, note that the plural of "capability" is "capabilities", not "capability" as you wrote it. But you probably know that very well, and your spelling was probably a thinko or a fingo. Hello Bob! Thank you for your reply. I have responded to the other emails before I read yours. Your response makes a lot of sense. So, let me summarise. You suggest that the word and the acronym of the word should be treated as separate entities. That is, once a word is abbreviated, you would use its acronym as you would use any other acronym. And you suggest that, according to modern guides, plurals of acronyms are always indicated with the letter "s", not "'s". Finally, yes, any spelling/grammar mistakes (thinkos) in my posts are a sign of exhaustion. :) cheers, Chris >> in my article, I like to introduce the term "capability" with the >> acronym C. That is, I would like to write something like: [quoted text clipped - 57 lines] > probably know that very well, and your spelling was probably > a thinko or a fingo. > How should I use the plural of this acronym? Initially I thought this > would be ok: [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > > "... the capabilitys of a team are denoted by..." You are wrong. If C means "capability", Cs would mean "capabilities". But don't use this abbreviaton in the first place. |
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