#41 “Short for…”

Published on May 11, 2003

Contents
=> “Short for….” - a vocabulary activity about clipped words
=> “The Most Common Word in English”
=> In the Next Issue?

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“Short for…”
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English words often get shortened. “Phone” is short for “telephone.” In linguistics the process is called clipping. Usually the clipped forms begin as slang but later can become accepted.

Some clipped forms become more common then the original form. Take “bus,” which is short for the archaic “omnibus.”

Below is a list of 15 clipped words. Test yourself. Can you guess what they are short for?

For an easy classroom activity, write the clipped words on the board and ask students to guess what they are short for.

Example: “Doc” is short for “doctor.” They get harder as you go.

1. fridge
2. burger
3. prof
4. sec (as in, “Wait just a sec.”)
5. ad
6. bro, also bra
7. lab
8. limo
9. sci-fi [pronounced to rhyme with “eye-eye”]
10. uni (British clipping, not American) [pronounced YOU-nee]
11. telly (British clipping, not American) [prounced TEL-ee]
12. gym
13. deli
14. Psycho
15. Dorm

<>Answers after “The Most Common Word in English”

TEACHERS: Next you might ask students to write a single sentence using as many of the clipped words as possible, or a story using them all.

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“ The Most Common Word in English”
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Can you guess what the most common word in the English language is? The word appears 22 times in this issue of “ETs in Russia.” Answer farther down.

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Answers to “Short for…”
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1. refrigerator (note: no “d” in this longer version)
2. hamburger
3. professor
4. second
5. advertisement
6. brother (bro/bra can be used for friends)
7. labratory
8. limosine
9. science fiction
10. university
11. television
12. gymnasium = a place equipped for sports or training
13. delicatessan = a shop that sells prepared foods (meats, cheeses, salads) ready to serve
14. psychopath = a dangerous mentally ill person
15. dormitory = a building where a number of people live, like at a university

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Answer to “Most Common Word in English”
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The most common word is “the.” A word that doesn’t even exist in many langauges. Cool.

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In the next issue (@ May 22nd)
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Easy Camp and Classroom Games.

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© Copyright 2003 Kevin McCaughey & I.M. Poosheesty
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