backronym

American  

[bak-ruh-nim] / ˈbæk rə nɪm /

Or bacronym

noun

1. an existing word turned into an acronym by creating an apt phrase whose initial letters match the word, as to help remember it or offer a theory of its origin. For example, rap has been said to be a backronym of “rhythm and poetry.”

2. the phrase itself. For example, “port out, starboard home” is a misleading backronym for posh .

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Usage

What does backronym mean? A backronym is an existing word that has been artificially made into an acronym, typically by matching each letter in it to a word to make a phrase that’s somehow related.An acronym is a word formed by abbreviating a phrase by combining certain letters of words in the phrase (often the first initial of each) into a single term. NASA is an acronym for National Aeronautics and Space Administration.To be clear, in backronyms, the letters don’t actually stand for the words they’re claimed or said to. Forming backronyms can be done for several reasons, such as to help remember how to spell the word, or, more frequently, to suggest a humorous or intentionally misleading explanation of its origin.A classic example of a misleading backronym involves the word posh, meaning “luxurious,” which is sometimes claimed to have come from an abbreviation of the phrase port out, starboard home. The story goes that the wealthiest passengers of ships would get to stay in cabins that faced this direction, and their tickets would be stamped with the letters POSH to indicate this—the supposed origin of the term posh. It’s possible that those letters have been stamped on a ticket, but there’s simply no evidence that this is where the word posh comes from.Less commonly, backronym is spelled bacronym.Example: I just saw a post claiming that the word car was originally an acronym for “catch a ride,” and I had to explain that it was a totally bogus backronym.

Etymology

Origin of backronym

First recorded in 1980–85; back ¹ ( def. ) + (ac)ronym ( def. )

Example Sentences

And from that data, other scientists might find their own “most dramatic” days, much as Donovan did with STEVE, uncovering phenomena for which they, too, can make backronyms.

From Scientific American

Proposing what has been called the Earn It Act, a backronym for “Eliminating Abusive and Rampant Neglect of Interactive Technologies”, the new bill was introduced by a bipartisan collection of senators on Thursday.

From The Guardian

Still running — deadline Monday night, April 11: our acrostic/backronym contest for movies, books, etc.

From Washington Post

A couple of restless, artsy youths growing up in Harlem, Yams and Rocky met as teenagers and together energized a rap collective, A$AP, with a lofty backronym: Always Strive and Prosper.

From New York Times

His lab is currently developing the Human-Assisted Needle Delivery System, HANDS, a somewhat ironic backronym for a process that inserts surgical catheters robotically.

From Newsweek