Initialism and Acronym Quiz | Test Your Knowledge
Initialism & acronym quiz! ๐
Initialisms and acronyms are everywhere. From your morning news updates on the BBC to scrolling through your favourite memes on Reddit, we’re constantly decoding these little letter clusters without even realising it. ๐ค
Some abbreviations are spoken letter by letter, think FBI or CEO. These are known as initialisms. Others, like NASA or SCUBA, roll off the tongue as words, and those are acronyms. Easy distinction, right? But remembering what they actually stand for is where things get trickier. (Quick test: do you know what QANTAS really stands for? ๐ซ)
In this quiz, I’ve gathered 20 well-known examples, a mix of initialisms and acronyms, that pop up in everything from business, technology and pop culture to science and global organisations. Your job? Guess what each one stands for without peeking. ๐
Tap to reveal the answer and see if you got it right!
Q1: GPS Global Positioning System
Q2: QANTAS Queensland and Northern Territory Aerial Services
Q3: CEO Chief Executive Officer
Q4: DNA Deoxyribonucleic Acid
Q5: SONAR Sound Navigation and Ranging
Q6: ESPN Entertainment and Sports Programming Network
Q7: HTML HyperText Markup Language
Q8: SCUBA Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus
Q9: LAN Local Area Network
Q10: R&D Research and Development
Q11: ASOS As Seen on Screen
Q12: Wi-Fi Wireless Fidelity
Q13: IMDB Internet Movie Database
Q14: UNESCO United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
Q15: BPM Beats Per Minute
Q16: OPEC Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries
Q17: VIP Very Important Person
Q18: FIAT Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino (Italian Automobile Factory of Turin)
Q19: UFO Unidentified Flying Object (When you see something in the sky and you’re pretty sure it’s not a weather balloon, but you’re too scared to ask!!!)
Q20: LASER Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation
Check your score
Now that you've uncovered all 20 answers — how did you do?
17–20 correct – Initialism & Acronym Expert ๐ก You’ve cracked the code! Your knowledge of acronyms and initialisms is exceptional. You must be a trivia night legend—well done!
10–16 correct – Acronym Aficionado ๐ง Nice work! You clearly know your abbreviations, but there’s still a little room for improvement. With just a bit more focus, you’ll be an expert in no time.
0–9 correct – Abbreviation Apprentice ๐ค Looks like the abbreviations threw you a curveball! Don’t worry, though—you’ll be decoding those acronyms like a pro soon enough. Keep learning, and you’ll ace it next time!
Comments