List of Singapore abbreviations

This list of Singapore abbreviations sets out abbreviations that are commonly used in Singapore.

Overview

Abbreviations are of three basic kinds:

Initialisms are extremely common in Singapore, and many have become better known and more widely used than the full form of the words they represent. One example is the Kandang Kerbau Women's and Children's Hospital, which is more commonly referred to as KK.

The most important category of Singapore initialisms are those for government departments and public institutions. Among the earliest examples are PUB ("Public Utilities Board") and HDB ("Housing Development Board"). Abbreviations such as these were especially important in the past when most Singaporeans were not educated in English, and their use facilitated communication in the public services where the main administrative language is English. Government departments have therefore promoted the use of these initialisms, so they occur even in non-English publications. Although the younger generation of Singaporeans are now all educated in English, abbreviations remain a major characteristic of Singapore English.

There are efforts to maintain some consistency among the initialisms. Three letters are used for government institutions (PUB, HDB, CPF, MOH, CWO) and for expressways (AYE, PIE, KJE), while two letters are used for polytechnics (SP, RP). To maintain this consistency, some abbreviations are not direct initials; for example CTE is used for "Central Expressway" instead of *CE, and NP is used for "Ngee Ann Polytechnic" instead of *NAP. When the Nanyang Technological University (NTU) was established in 1991, the name was chosen instead of the alternative "Nanyang University of Technology" because the latter would have resulted in the unsuitable NUT. While Anderson Secondary School has shortened its name to ANDSS instead of ASS.

Recently, there have emerged a number of unconventional abbreviations, such as A*Star for Agency for Science, Technology and Research.) When SAFTI (Singapore Armed Forces Training Institute) was reorganised in 1995, it acquired the name SAFTI Military Institute, further abbreviated as SAFTI MI, which when fully expanded would form a rather awkward title Singapore Armed Forces Training Institute Military Institute.

Abbreviations

0–9

A

B

C

D

E

F

G

H

I

J

K

L

M

MDIS - Management Development Institute of Singapore

N

A road sign outside the campus of the Nanyang Technological University (NTU), from Singapore English (2007) by David Deterding.

O

P

Q

R

S

T

U

V

W

X

Y

Abbreviations in the military

This is a list of abbreviations commonly used in the Singapore Armed Forces, including slang terms. They are often used in place of the expanded form of the words. Some abbreviations are similar to those used in other militaries.

People

Ranks

These ranks are arranged in descending order of seniority

Officers
Army and Air Force Navy
  • LG - Lieutenant General
  • MG - Major General
  • BG - Brigadier General
  • VADM - Vice Admiral
  • RADM - Rear Admiral
Warrant officers
Specialists
Enlistees

Appointments and offices

Units and organizations

Places

Weapons, vehicles and equipment

Slang

Others

Abbreviations in transport

As in most other major cities, abbreviations are commonly used in transport-related matters. The most prominent are the three-letter abbreviations of the expressways in Singapore; all, except one, end with the letter "E":

With the introduction of the Electronic Monitoring and Advisory System (EMAS) in 1998, LED signboards were installed along the expressways to display warning and other informational messages to road users. This led to the increased use of abbreviations, some of which are less common and not easily understood. The following are examples of abbreviations used in the EMAS:[8]

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Low, Ee Ling; Adam Brown (2005). English in Singapore: An Introduction. Singapore: McGraw-Hill Education (Asia). p. 69. ISBN 0-07-123975-8.
  2. ↑ Brown, Adam (2000). Singapore English in a Nutshell: An Alphabetical Description of its Features. Singapore: Federal Publications. pp. 57–58. ISBN 981-01-2435-X.
  3. ↑ Brown, Singapore English in a Nutshell, above, p. 187.
  4. ↑ Deterding, David (2007). Singapore English. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. p. 77. ISBN 0-7486-2545-3.
  5. ↑ Brown, Singapore English in a Nutshell, above, p. 112.
  6. ↑ Low & Brown, English in Singapore, above, p. 70.
  7. ↑ Deterding, Singapore English, above, p. 77.
  8. ↑ "EMAS – Your guide to a safer ride". The Highway. Automobile Association of Singapore. February 2001. Archived from the original (– Scholar search) on October 11, 2007. Retrieved 2008-03-11. .

References

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