This entry from Dictionary.com would tend to suggest that they are all initialism's:
in·i·tial·ism /ɪˈnɪʃəˌlɪzəm/ Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[i-nish-uh-liz-uhm] Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciation –noun 1. a name or term formed from the initial letters of a group of words and pronounced as a separate word, as NATO for North Atlantic Treaty Organization; an acronym. 2. a set of initials representing a name, organization, or the like, with each letter pronounced separately, as FBI for Federal Bureau of Investigation. 3. the practice of using initials or forming words from initials. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [Origin: 1895–1900; initial + -ism] Jon L. Veilleux [EMAIL PROTECTED] (860) 636-2683 -----Original Message----- From: IBM Mainframe Discussion List [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Howard Brazee Sent: Wednesday, June 06, 2007 2:43 PM To: [email protected] Subject: Re: Annd yet more pedantry( was: USS pedantry (was Friday musings on the future of 3270 applications) On 6 Jun 2007 11:10:52 -0700, in bit.listserv.ibm-main you wrote: >* An initialism is a type of abbreviation pronounced one letter >at a time. For instance, PGA, AARP, IOU, etc. > >* An acronym is a type of abbreviation that is pronounced as a >word. For instance, SCUBA, LASER, PUSH, etc. > > > >Therefore CICS is an acronym since it can be pronounced 'kicks' but USS >is an initialism, not an acronym. :) I *can* pronounce AARP, IOU, & CICS. But I don't. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- For IBM-MAIN subscribe / signoff / archive access instructions, send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the message: GET IBM-MAIN INFO Search the archives at http://bama.ua.edu/archives/ibm-main.html This e-mail may contain confidential or privileged information. If you think you have received this e-mail in error, please advise the sender by reply e-mail and then delete this e-mail immediately. Thank you. Aetna ---------------------------------------------------------------------- For IBM-MAIN subscribe / signoff / archive access instructions, send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the message: GET IBM-MAIN INFO Search the archives at http://bama.ua.edu/archives/ibm-main.html
