Abbreviations in English 1

Is there an actual system behind English abbreviations, or is it just memorization? Mostly a system, though not one single rule. Most abbreviations fall into a few recognizable patterns: clipping a word down to its first part (Doctor → Dr., December → Dec.), using a standard unit symbol (inches → in., teaspoons → tsp.), or combining the first letters of each word in a phrase (United States → US). A handful of abbreviations are genuine historical exceptions, though: lb for pound comes from the Latin word libra, which is why it doesn't start with an L the way you'd expect. Those ones just have to be memorized individually.

READY TO PRACTICE? LET’S GO!

Write the correct abbreviation for each of the following. Do not include the period.

1. Doctor Roberts → . ✓

2. Orange Street → . ✓

3. 200 milliliters → . ✓

4. 30 inches → . ✓

5. 190 pounds → . ✓

6. December → . ✓

7. 2 teaspoons → . ✓

8. 10 square feet → . ✓

9. 6 feet → . ✓

10. Sammy Davis Junior → . ✓

11. The Reverend → . ✓

12. ounces → . ✓

13. Mister → . ✓

14. October → . ✓

15. milligrams → . ✓

—

Did you know? Abbreviations trip up even fluent writers, and examiners notice.

In IELTS and TOEFL academic writing, abbreviations must be introduced correctly: write the full term first, then place the abbreviation in parentheses, for example, World Health Organization (WHO). After that, you may use the abbreviation alone. Using an abbreviation without introducing it first is penalised under Coherence & Cohesion.

Cambridge C1/C2 Use of English also tests whether you know when abbreviations are appropriate. Formal academic writing generally avoids casual shortenings like info or approx in favour of their full forms. Knowing the rules is half the battle; this exercise trains the other half.

More advanced English exercises
Apostrophe usage 1
Capitalization 1
Capitalization 2
Frequently misspelled words 1
English prefixes and suffixes 1
Contractions 1
Abbreviations 1