An acronym is a word whose letters are the first letters of other words. People often create a short acronym that means the same thing as a much longer phrase (set of words). This is faster and shorter to say than the long phrase.

Examples of acronyms are:

• COBOL - COmmon Business Oriented Language
• LASER - Light Amplification through Stimulated Emmission of Radiation
• QUANGO - Quasi-autonomous non-governmental organisation
• RADAR - RAdio Detecting And Ranging
• SARS - Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome
• SCUBA - Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus
• SNAFU - Situation Normal: All Fouled Up