2022年11月18日 VOA慢速英語：制作縮寫詞：首字母縮略詞、首字母縮略詞

 

Have you ever seen, heard, or used these words before?
你以前見過、聽過或用過這些詞嗎？
"LOL."
 
"Scuba"
 
"ASAP"
 
If you have, you know they are shortenings of longer expressions called abbreviations.
如果你有，你就會知道它們是較長表達式的縮寫，稱為縮寫。
 
So how can we make abbreviations? In this week's Everyday Grammar, we will look at two ways to make abbreviations. Both by using the initials of the words we want to shorten.
那么我們如何制作縮寫呢？在本周的日常語法中，我們將了解兩種制作縮寫的方法。兩者都使用我們想要縮短的單詞的首字母。
 
By the end of this report you will start to identify abbreviations and maybe even start making some of your own!
到本報告結束時，您將開始識別縮寫，甚至可能開始自己制作一些縮寫！
What are abbreviations?
>什么是縮寫？
 
Abbreviations are shortened forms of words or phrases. They are used instead of the original words that they represent. For example, "appt." is an abbreviation for the word "appointment."
縮寫是單詞或短語的縮寫形式。它們被用來代替它們所代表的原始單詞。例如，“約會”。是“約會”一詞的縮寫。
 
We often use abbreviations in everyday life. Like when we write the time in the United States, we use the abbreviations "a.m." and "p.m." These are short for the Latin expressions "ante meridiem" meaning before noon and "post meridiem" for after noon.
我們在日常生活中經常使用縮寫。就像我們在美國寫時間一樣，我們使用縮寫“a.m.”和“下午”這些是拉丁語表達“ante meridiem”的縮寫，意思是中午之前，“post meridiem”意思是中午之后。
 
We can also use abbreviations for other time periods, also. For example, we might shorten the word for the month of "November" to "Nov." And we use them in other forms of online communication, especially in text messaging and in social media. Like "NVM" for "never mind" or "LOL" for "laugh out loud."
我們也可以使用其他時間段的縮寫。例如，我們可能會將表示月份“November”的單詞縮短為“Nov”。我們將它們用于其他形式的在線交流，尤其是短信和社交媒體。就像“NVM”代表“沒關系”或“LOL”代表“大聲笑”。
 
There are many words in English that we do not realize are actually abbreviations like "scuba" or "laser."
英語中有許多我們沒有意識到的單詞實際上是縮寫，例如“scuba”或“laser”。
 
These are actually acronyms, and they are just one way to make abbreviations of longer phrases.
這些實際上是首字母縮略詞，它們只是對較長短語進行縮寫的一種方式。< br/>
 
Let's look closer at acronyms.
讓我們仔細看看縮寫詞。
What are acronyms?
什么是縮寫詞？
 
Acronyms are a type of abbreviation for a longer phrase or group of words. We use the first letter of each word to create the acronym. Acronyms are said as a whole word.
首字母縮略詞是較長短語或詞組的一種縮寫。我們使用每個單詞的首字母來創(chuàng)建首字母縮略詞。首字母縮略詞作為一個完整的詞來表達。
 
For example, we have the acronym "NASA," which stands for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
例如，我們有首字母縮略詞“NASA”，它代表美國國家航空航天局。
 
NASA astronaut Neil Armstrong was the first person to step on the moon.
NASA 宇航員尼爾·阿姆斯特朗 (Neil Armstrong)第一個踏上月球的人。
 
Since acronyms are said as a whole word, sometimes we do not even know they are acronyms. This has happened with the word "scuba."
由于首字母縮略詞是作為一個完整的詞來表達的，有時我們甚至不知道它們是首字母縮略詞。 “scuba”這個詞就是這樣。
 
Scuba is an acronym for self-contained underwater breathing apparatus.
Scuba 是自給式水下呼吸器的縮寫。
 
S stands for self.
S 代表自我。
 
C stands for contained.
>C代表contained。

U is for underwater.
U代表underwater。
 
B is breathing.
B是呼吸。
 
A is for apparatus.
A是儀器。
 
We do not say each individual letter. We pronounce the acronym as a whole, "scuba."
我們不說每個字母。我們將首字母縮寫詞作為一個整體發(fā)音為“scuba”。
 
Here is an example of how we would use "scuba" in a sentence.
這是我們如何在句子中使用“scuba”的示例。
 
She wants to take scuba diving lessons before her trip to Hawaii.
她想?yún)⒓铀螡撍ハ耐穆眯星暗恼n程。
 
Another example of this is the word "laser." A laser is a narrow beam of intense light. We also call the devices that can create such energy, lasers. But, laser is an acronym of the words light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation.
另一個例子是“激光”這個詞。激光是一束狹窄的強光。我們也將能夠產生這種能量的設備稱為激光。但是，激光是受激輻射光放大的首字母縮寫詞。
 
L is for light.
L代表光。
 
A stands for amplification
A代表放大
 
S is stimulated
S代表受激
 
E is for emission
E代表發(fā)射
 
R stand for radiation.
R代表
 
Notice that the prepositions of "by" and "of" are not included in the acronym. Such smaller words are often removed in abbreviated forms.
請注意，首字母縮略詞中不包含介詞“by”和“of”。此類較小的單詞通常以縮寫形式刪除。
But not always. The international alliance ECOWAS is an example. It stands for the Economic Community of West African States. The letter "O" for "of" remains in the shortened version.
但并非總是如此。國際聯(lián)盟 ECOWAS 就是一個例子。它代表西非國家經濟共同體。 “of”的字母“O”保留在縮寫版本中。
 
The same is true for "DOJ," or the Department of Justice. However, the abbreviation of the Department of Justice to DOJ does not make it an acronym.
“DOJ”或司法部也是如此。然而，Department of Justice 對 DOJ 的縮寫并不能使它成為首字母縮略詞。
 
DOJ is, in fact, an initialism, which brings us to our next subject.
DOJ 實際上是一個首字母縮寫詞，這將我們帶到下一個主題。
 
What are initialisms?
什么是首字母縮寫詞？
 
Initialisms are also abbreviations like acronyms, but instead of being read as a whole word, they are read as the alphabet letter or initial of each word.
首字母縮寫詞也像首字母縮略詞一樣是縮寫，但不是作為一個完整的單詞來讀，而是作為字母或每個單詞的首字母來讀。
 
For example, Voice of America is V.O.A. Each letter is read by itself.
例如，美國之音是 V.O.A.每個字母都是自己讀的。
 
Government agencies often go by initialisms. Another place you can see them is in the world of universities. Degrees, for example are most often represented that way. For example, if you completed a 4-year program of study in astronomy, you would earn a B.S. degree, meaning a Bachelor of Science. Other degrees include A.A. or A.S., meaning Associate of Arts or Associate of Science. Higher level degrees are called Masters.
政府機構通常使用縮寫詞。另一個你可以看到他們的地方是在大學的世界里。例如，學位最常以這種方式表示。例如，如果您完成了天文學的 4 年學習計劃，您將獲得天文學學士學位。學位，意思是理學學士學位。其他學位包括 A.A.或 A.S.，意思是文學副學士或科學副學士。更高級別的學位稱為碩士學位。
 
I have my M.A. in TESOL, or teaching English to speakers of other languages.
我擁有 TESOL 碩士學位，或者教授說其他語言的人英語。
 
And a Ph.D. is actually an initialism for the Latin term "philosophiae doctor" or, in English, Doctor of Philosophy.
還有博士學位。實際上是拉丁術語“philosophiae doctor”或英文哲學博士的縮寫。
 
VOA Learning English's Dr. Jill has a Ph.D. in Applied Linguistics.
美國之音慢速英語的吉爾博士擁有博士學位。應用語言學。

Some abbreviations can be read as either acronyms or initialisms like in this abbreviation, A.S.A.P., or ASAP. They stand for "as soon as possible."
一些縮寫可以讀作首字母縮寫詞或首字母縮略詞，例如 A.S.A.P. 或 ASAP。他們代表“盡快”。

Please send Louise the money ASAP so she can pay the phone bill.
請盡快把錢寄給路易絲，這樣她就可以付電話費了。
 
Closing thoughts
結束語
 
In today's report, we learned how to create two kinds of abbreviations. We can create abbreviations by shortening a word or phrase. If shortening a phrase, we can take the first letter of each word in the phrase and put them together to create either an acronym or an initialism.
在今天的報告中，我們學習了如何創(chuàng)建兩種縮寫。我們可以通過縮短單詞或短語來創(chuàng)建縮寫。如果縮短一個短語，我們可以取短語中每個單詞的第一個字母并將它們放在一起以創(chuàng)建首字母縮寫詞或首字母縮略詞。
 
We also learned the difference between these two. An acronym is pronounced as a whole word like the word "NASA." In an initialism, each letter is said separately like in Voice of America or V.O.A.
我們還了解了這兩者之間的區(qū)別。首字母縮略詞發(fā)音為整個單詞，例如單詞“NASA”。在首字母縮略詞中，每個字母都像美國之音或 V.O.A 中那樣單獨說出來。
 
Now it's your turn. At the end of this lesson is a list of abbreviations.
現(xiàn)在輪到你了。本課末尾是縮寫詞列表。
 
Tell us if you think the abbreviation is an acronym or an initialism or just a regular abbreviation. And then tell us what the abbreviation means.
如果您認為該縮寫詞是首字母縮略詞、首字母縮寫詞或只是常規(guī)縮寫詞，請告訴我們。然后告訴我們縮寫的意思。