Wiktionary:Abbreviations in Webster

The 1913 Webster Unabridged Dictionary is often used as a source for definitions, as its copyright has expired so it is in the public domain. Numerous abbreviations, sometimes not intuitive, appear in the source; this page catalogs them for reference. For abbreviations of literary works and authors, see Wiktionary:Abbreviated Authorities in Webster.


Contents: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
  • a., adj. = adjective
  • abbrev. = abbreviated
  • abl. = ablative
  • Abp. = Archbishop
  • acc. = accusative
  • Acous. = Acoustics
  • act. = active
  • adv. = adverb
  • Agric. = Agriculture
  • Alban. = Albanian
  • Alg. = Algebra
  • Am., Amer. = America, American
  • Am. = Amos
  • Am. Cyc. = Appleton's American Cyclopedia
  • Anal. Geom. = Analytical Geometry
  • Anat. = Anatomy
  • Anc. = Ancient, anciently
  • Angl. Ch. = Anglican Church
  • Antiq. = Antiquities
  • aor. = aorist
  • Ar. = Arabic
  • Arch. = Architecture
  • Arch. Pub. Soc. = Architectural Pub. Society
  • Arith. = Arithmetic
  • Arm., Armor. = Armorican
  • AS. = Anglo-Saxon. We classify this as "Old English", so use {{etyl|ang}}.
  • Astrol. = Astrology
  • Astron. = Astronomy
  • aug. = augmentative
  • Bank. = Banking
  • Beau. & Fl. = Beaumont & Fletcher
  • B. & Fl. = Beaumont & Fletcher
  • Bib. = Biblical
  • Bib. Sacra = Bibliotheca Sacra
  • Bibliog. = Bibliography
  • Biol. = Biology
  • Bisc. = Biscayan
  • B. Jon. = Ben Jonson
  • Bk. of Com. Prayer = Book of Common Prayer
  • Blackw. Mag. = Blackwood's Magazine
  • Bohem. = Bohemian
  • Bot. = Botany, botanical
  • Bp. = Bishop
  • Brande & C. = Brande & Cox
  • Braz. = Brazilian
  • Brit. Critic = British Critic
  • Brit. Quar. Rev. = British Quarterly Review
  • Burl. = Burlesque
  • C. = Centigrade
  • Cant. = Canticles (Song of Solomon)
  • Carp. = Carpentry
  • Catal. = Catalan
  • Cath. Dict. = Catholic Dictionary
  • Celt. = Celtic
  • cf. = confer
  • Ch. = Church
  • Chald. = Chaldee
  • Chem. = Chemistry
  • Ch. Hist. = Church History
  • Chin. = Chinese
  • Chron. = Chronology, Chronicles
  • Civ. = Civil
  • Class. = Classical
  • Class. Myth. = Classical Mythology
  • Col. = Colossians
  • colloq., coll. = colloquial, colloquially
  • Com. = Commerce, Common
  • comp. = compound, compounded, composition
  • compar. = comparative
  • conj. = conjunction
  • Con. Sect. = Conic Sections
  • contr. = contracted, contraction
  • Copt. = Coptic
  • Corn. = Cornish
  • corrupt. = corrupted, corruption
  • Cotgr. = Cotgrave
  • Cyc. Med. = Cyclopedia of Practical Medicine
  • Crim. Law = Criminal Law
  • Crystallog. = Crystallography
  • Cyc. = Cyclopedia
  • D. = Dutch (sometimes Daniel)
  • Dan. = Danish
  • dat. = dative
  • def. = definitions
  • Deut. = Deuteronomy
  • Dial. = Dialectic
  • dim. = diminutive
  • Diosc. = dioscorides
  • Disp. = Dispensatory
  • Disus. = Disused
  • Dom. Econ. = Domestic Economy
  • Dublin Univ. Mag. = Dublin University Magazine
  • Dyn. = Dynamics
  • E. = English
  • Eccl. = Ecclesiastical, Ecclesiastes
  • Eccl. Hist. = Ecclesiastical History
  • Ecclus. = Ecclesiasticus
  • Eclec. Rev. = Eclectic Review
  • Ed. Rev. = Edinburgh Review
  • e. g. = exempli gratia (for example)
  • Egypt. = Egyptian
  • Elect. = Electricity, Electrical
  • emph. = emphatic
  • Encyc. = Encyclopedia
  • Encyc. Amer. = Encyclopedia Americana
  • Encyc. Crit. = Encyclopedia Britannica
  • Encyc. Dict. = Hunter's Encyclopedic Dictionary
  • Eng. = England, English
  • Eng. = Engraving
  • Eng. Cyc. = English Cyclopedia
  • Engin. = Engineering
  • Eol. = Eolic
  • Eph., Ephes. = Ephesians
  • equiv. = equivalent
  • Esd. = Esdras
  • esp. = especially
  • Etch. & Eng. = Etching & Engraving
  • Ethnol. = Ethnology
  • etym., etymol. = etymology
  • Ex., Exod. = Exodus
  • Ezek. = Ezekiel
  • F. = French
  • f., fem. = feminine
  • Fahr. = Fahrenheit
  • Far. = Farriery
  • Feud. = Feudal
  • Fig. = Figurative, figuratively
  • Fin. = Finnish
  • For. Quart. Rev. = Foreign Quarterly Review
  • Fort. = Fortification
  • Fr. = French
  • fr. = from
  • freq. = frequentative
  • Fries. = Friesic
  • fut. = future
  • G. = German - use {{etyl|de}}
  • Gael. = Gaelic
  • Gal. = Galen
  • Gal. = Galatians
  • Galv. = Galvanism
  • gen. = generally, genitive
  • Geneal. = Genealogy
  • Gent. Mag. = Gentleman's Magazine
  • Geog. = Geography
  • Geol. = Geology
  • Geom. = Geometry
  • Ger. = Germanic or German
  • Gk. = Greek
  • Goth. = Gothic
  • Gov. of Tongue = Government of the Tongue
  • Gr. = Greek
  • Gram. = Grammar
  • Gris. = Grisons
  • Gun. = Gunnery
  • H. = High
  • Hab. = Habakkuk
  • Hag. = Haggai
  • Ham. Nav. Encyc. = Hamersly's Naval Encyclopedia
  • Heb. = Hebrew
  • Her. = Heraldry
  • Hind. = Hindostanee
  • Hipp. = Hippocrates
  • Hist. = History
  • Horol. = Horology
  • Hort. = Horticulture
  • Hung. = Hungarian
  • Hydraul. = Hydraulics
  • Hydros. = Hydrostatics
  • hypoth. = hypothetical
  • Icel. = Icelandic
  • i. e. = id est (that is)
  • Illust. = Illustration, Illustrated
  • imp. = imperfect
  • Imp. Dict. = Imperial Dictionary
  • incho. = inchoative
  • ind. = indicative
  • indef. = indefinite
  • inf. = infinitive
  • intens. = intensive
  • interj. = interjection
  • Internat. Cyc. = International Cyclopeia
  • Ion. = Ionic
  • i. q. = idem quod(the same as)
  • Ir. = Irish
  • Is., Isa. = Isaiah
  • It. = Italian
  • Jap. = Japanese
  • Jas. = James
  • Jav. = Javanese
  • Jer. = Jeremiah
  • Join. = Joinery
  • Josh. = Joshua
  • Judg. = Judges
  • K. = Kings
  • L. = Latin
  • L. = Low
  • Lam. = Lamentations
  • Lapp. = Lappish
  • Lat. = Latin
  • LD. = Low Dutch
  • Lett. = Lettish
  • Lev. = Leviticus
  • LG. = Low German
  • LGr. = Low Greek
  • Linn. = Linnæus
  • Lit., lit. = Literally, literally
  • Lit. = Literature
  • Lith. = Lithuanian
  • LL. = Late Latin - {{LL.}}
  • M. = Middle
  • m., masc. = masculine
  • Maced. = Macedonian
  • Mach. = Machinery
  • Mad. = Madam
  • Mag. = Magazine
  • Mal. = Malachi
  • Malay. = Malayan
  • Man. = Manège
  • Manuf. = Manufacturing
  • Mar. = Maritime
  • Math. = Mathematics, Mathematical
  • Matt. = Matthew
  • ME. = Middle English - {{etyl|enm}}
  • Mech. = Mechanic
  • Med. = Medicine
  • Metal. = Metallurgy
  • Metaph. = Metaphysics
  • Meteor. = Meteorology
  • mgr. = milligrams
  • MHG. = Middle High German - {{etyl|gmh}}
  • Micros. = Microscopy
  • Mil. = Military
  • Min. = Mineralogy
  • Mir. for Mag. = Mirror for Magistrates
  • MLG. = Middle Low German
  • Moham. = Mohammedan
  • Mozley & W. = Mozley & Whiteley
  • Mus. = Music
  • Myst. = Mysteries
  • Myth. = Mythology
  • N. = New
  • n. = noun
  • Nat. Hist. = Natural History
  • Nat. ord. = Natural order
  • Naut. = Nautical
  • Nav. = Navy
  • Navig. = Navigation
  • N. Brit. Rev. = North British Review
  • Neh. = Nehemiah
  • neut. = neuter
  • New Am. Cyc. = New American Cyclopedia
  • New Month. Mag. = New Monthly Magazine
  • NF. = New French
  • NGr. = New Greek
  • NHeb. = New Hebrew
  • NL. = New Latin - {{NL.}}
  • nom. = nominative
  • Norm. F. = Norman French
  • North Am. Rev. = North American Review
  • Norw. = Norwegian
  • Num. = Numbers
  • Numis. = Numismatics
  • O. = Old
  • Ob. = Obadiah
  • obs. = obsolete
  • Obsoles. = Obsolescent
  • OCelt. = Old Celtic
  • OD. = Old Dutch - {{etyl|odt}}
  • ODan. = Old Danish
  • OE. = Old English. We classify this as the early part of "Middle English", so use template {{etyl|enm}}. See the Webster 1913 entry on "English"
  • OF. = Old French - {{etyl|fro}}
  • OFelm. = Old Flemish
  • OFris., OFries. = Old Frisian (Old Friesic)- {{etyl|ofs}}
  • OGael. = Old Gaelic
  • OGr. = Old Greek
  • OHG. = Old High German - {{etyl|goh}}
  • OIcel. = Old Icelandic
  • OIt. = Old Italian
  • OL. = Old Latin
  • Olr. (typo) or OIr = Old Irish - {{etyl|sga}}
  • ON. = Old Norse - {{etyl|non}}
  • OLG. = Old Low German
  • OPer. = Old Persian - {{etyl|peo}}
  • OPg. = Old Portuguese
  • OPol. = Old Polish
  • Opt. = Optics
  • orig. = original, originally
  • Ornith. = Ornithology
  • OS. = Old Saxon - {{etyl|osx}}
  • OSlav. = Old Slavic
  • OSp. = Old Spanish - {{etyl|osp}}
  • Oxf. Gloss. = Oxford Glossary of Architecture
  • p. = participle, page
  • p. a. = participial adjective
  • Paint. = Painting
  • Paleon. = Paleontology
  • pass. = passive
  • Pathol. = Pathology
  • P. Cyc. = Penny Cyclopedia
  • Per. = Persian
  • perh. = perhaps
  • pers. = person
  • Persp. = Perspective
  • Pert. = Pertaining
  • Peruv. = Peruvian
  • Pet. = Peter
  • Pg. = Portuguese
  • Pharm. = Pharmacy, Pharmacopœia
  • Phil. = Philippians
  • Philem. = Philemon
  • Philol. = Philology
  • Philos. = Philosophy
  • Phon. = Phonetics
  • Photog. = Photography
  • Photom. = Photometry
  • Phren. = Phrenology
  • Phys. = Physics
  • Phys. Sci. = Physical Science
  • Physiol. = Physiology
  • pl. = plural
  • Poet. = Poetry, Poetical
  • Pol. = Polish
  • Pol. Econ. = Political Economy
  • Polit. Econ. = Political Economy
  • Pop. Sci. Monthly = Popular Science Monthly
  • pp. = pages
  • P. Plowman = Piers Plowman
  • p.p. = past participle
  • p.pr., p.ple. = present participle
  • Pr. = Provençal
  • Pref. = Preface
  • pref. = prefix
  • prep. = preposition
  • pres. = present
  • pret. = preterit
  • prin. = principally
  • Print. = Printing
  • priv. = privative
  • prob. = probably
  • pron. = Pronunciation, pronounced, pronoun
  • prop. = properly
  • Pros. = Prosody
  • prov. = provincial
  • Prov. = Provincial
  • Prov. = Proverbs
  • Ps., Psa. = Psalms
  • Pyro.-elect. = Pyro-electricity
  • Quart. Rev. = Quarterly Review
  • q. v. = quod vide (which see)
  • R. = Rare
  • R. C. = Roman Catholic
  • R. C. Ch. = Roman Catholic Church
  • Rep. Sec. of War = Report of Secretary of War
  • Rev. = Revelation
  • Rev. = Review
  • Rev. Ver. = Revised Version (of the Bible)
  • Rhet. = Rhetoric
  • R. of Brunne = Robert of Brunne
  • R. of Gl. = Robert of Gloucester
  • Rom. = Roman, Romans
  • Rom. Cath. = Roman Catholic
  • Rom. of R. = Romaunt of the Rose
  • Rpts. = reports
  • Russ. = Russian
  • Sam. = Samaritan
  • Sam. = Samuel
  • Sat. Rev. = Saturday Review
  • Sax. = Saxon
  • sc. = scilicet (being understood)
  • Scand. = Scandinavian
  • Sci. = Science
  • Sci. Am. = Scientific American
  • Scot. = Scotland, Scottish
  • Script. = Scripture, Scriptural
  • Sculp. = Sculpture
  • Serb = Serbian
  • Serv. = Servian
  • Shak. = Shakespeare
  • sing. = singular
  • Skr. = Sanskrit
  • Slav. = Slavonic
  • Sp. = Spanish
  • Specif. = Specifically
  • Stat. = Statuary
  • subj. = subjunctive
  • superl. = superlative
  • Surg. = Surgery
  • Surv. = Surveying
  • Sw. = Swedish
  • Syd. Soc. Lex. = Sydenham Society Lexicon
  • Syn. = Synonyms
  • Synop. = Synopsis
  • Syr. = Syriac
  • Tart. = Tartaric
  • Teleg. = Telegraphy
  • term. = termination
  • Test. = Testament
  • Theol. = Theology
  • Thes. = Thessalonians
  • Tim. = Timothy
  • Todd & B. = Todd & Bowman
  • Trans. = Translation
  • Treas. = Treasury
  • Trig. = Trigonometry
  • Turk. = Turkish
  • Typog. = Typography
  • Univ. = University
  • Up. = Upper
  • U. S. = United States
  • U. S. Disp. = United States Dispensatory
  • U. S. Pharm. = United States Pharmacopœia
  • U. S. Int. Rev. Statutes = United States Internal Revenue Statutes
  • usu. = usually
  • v. = verb
  • v.i. = intransitive verb
  • v.t. = transitive verb
  • var. = variety
  • vb.n. = verbal noun
  • Veter. = Veterinary
  • Vitr. = Vitruvius
  • W. = Welsh
  • Wall. = Wallachian
  • Westm. Cat. = Westminster Catechism
  • Westm. Rev. = Westminster Review
  • Zech. = Zechariah
  • Zeph. = Zephaniah
  • Zoöl. = Zoölogy