Comment by jcarrico
2 years ago
From Merriam Webster:
a word (such as NATO, radar, or laser) formed from the initial letter or letters of each of the successive parts or major parts of a compound term
also : an abbreviation (such as FBI) formed from initial letters : initialism
It appears the meaning of the word has changed over time.
There's literally an acronym for that type of acronym that itself is not an acronym: TLA. Three-letter acronym. I get the GP's frustration. When a word that you know the definition of is lost it feels bad.
The hardest for me to accept is the loss of alternate. It now means the same thing as alternative, but it used to refer to switching between possible states, usually in an oscillating manner. Nowadays I alternate between caring and not caring.
At least alternate and alternate have different pronunciations.
yeah, every time i see somebody call an initialism an acronym i just shrug because you can't argue with words how people use them, irregardless.