商务英语写作课件杨晓斌编著 ISBN9787811343311Section 9 缩略用语Abbreviations in Business English.pptVIP

Section 9 缩略用语Abbreviations in Business English I. 要点概述Main Points 1. What is an abbreviation? 1. What is an abbreviation? An abbreviation is a shortened form of a word or phrase that is used to save space in written documents. Such abbreviations can often be used in many aspects of business writing. Usually, but not always, it consists of a letter or group of letters taken from the word or phrase. For example, the term bill of lading can be represented by the abbreviation B/L. In business writing it is appropriate to use standard abbreviations. For the first reference to a term in the text, the term should be used in full with the abbreviation included in brackets. For the remainder of the text the abbreviation should be used 2. Why do you use abbreviations? Many people have a need for specialized abbreviation based on their specific field. In business writing, people adopt abbreviations to achieve brevity and efficiency. As a matter of fact, you can use common abbreviations of words whenever you recognize them. You should use the way that best fits the word for which you are writing an abbreviation. The simplest abbreviations are the very obvious substitutions of letters for words that have the same sound as the letter’s name. You can substitute b for the word be, c for see. Another example is “IOU” used for “I owe you.” Using numbers instead of words or letters is also a good method. You can use the number 4 instead of for and the number 2 in place of to or too. 3. How do you use abbreviations? In business writing, people use abbreviations very often. Many people also make use of abbreviations when taking notes, and such abbreviations are also used in the footnotes and endnotes of academic writing. When using abbreviations, you need to abbreviate those words that are important and for which not only you can quickly form an abbreviation but also they have been already widely accepted. Knowing the context in which you wrote the word will help you recognize