Aug 13, 2018 · Why does English use "No." as an abbreviation for "Number"? It's a preserved scribal abbreviation like the ampersand & (formed by eliding the letters of et to mean and). The …

X is also used to stand for cross; e.g., LX = lacrosse. There is no special word for abbreviations or initializations ending in X or any other letter AFAIK. It's all part of an inclination to shorten, to …

Jun 23, 2015 · Q&A for linguists, etymologists, and serious English language enthusiasts

May 30, 2013 · English writing often uses slashes to form two-letter abbreviations, plus the one-letter w/ – some examples, roughly in order of frequency: I/O – “input/output” w/ – “with” c/o – …

PS - From a completely technical stand point, the programmer can use an if/else statement to test for whether the user is coming from a device with a mouse or a phone with a touch screen. …

Jun 15, 2020 · For example, in a bibliographic list, rather than repeating the same author over and over again, three consecutive em dashes (also known as a 3-em dash) stand in for the …

If there is an actual line drawn on the floor, I might stand on line. If i'm waiting behind others, I will stand in line. If I wait behind others while using my laptop, I am standing in line on-line!

Can app serve as an accepted abbreviation for application in formal contexts? Is there some context where app is more accepted (for example, when talking about mobile applications)?

May 19, 2013 · "To give someone the 411" is short for information but is this phrase common in the US and/or in Britain and is it still up to date or outdated?

Aug 25, 2015 · (Uncapitalized) re is a word in and of itself, defined by OED as Originally: in the matter of, referring to; Subsequently: about, concerning. It derives from classical Latin rē, …