Saving Time With Acronyms

 

You've noticed how people tend to use acronyms to shorten the amount of time it takes to say something or refer to something, right?

For instance, instead of telling someone that you'll be right back, you say BRB.

But wait a minute..."be right back" and "BRB" have the same number of syllables. It doesn't really reduce a person's verbal effort to say one instead of the other.

Oh well, that's just the exception that proves the rule.

There's the ubiquitous "LOL", saving us from the laborious task of actually pronouncing "laugh out loud"...which...has...the same number of syllables.

Let's steer away from these texting-related examples and get into the real world. People in high-stress jobs, like firefighters and librarians, use acronyms as shortcuts all the time.

I mean, when Beloved and I were binge-watching E.R., how many times did we hear a paramedic describe the gunshot wound of the person they were bringing in as a "GSW"?

GSW...five syllables.

Gunshot wound...three syllables.

Oh for cryin' out loud.