Comment on Why do people pronounce ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) like it's a word?
Apepollo11@lemmy.world 2 months ago
NASA, NATO, Radar, Sonar, Laser, Scuba, AIDS, PIN, SWAT, YOLO, CAD
The rule genuinely is “if it can be said as a word, it might be said as a word”.
They’re called acronyms.
BBC, TV, USSR etc. can’t easily be said as a word - these are just initialisations.
Okay I get that ! But in the case of the ICE both are actually acceptable.
I.C.E sounds good so those ICE. I guess in this context as some else said, it’s because they are “ice cold” (in this context).
Would it be acceptable in a conversation to talk about the I.C.E ?
I.C.Es are trains in Germany. ICE are assholes in the US. Hope that helps.
bold_omi@lemmy.today 1 week ago
The word you are looking for is not “initialisation,” but “initialism.”
Apepollo11@lemmy.world 1 week ago
Good catch! You are 100% correct.
I’ll update the message, but strikethrough the original so this still makes sense.
bold_omi@lemmy.today 1 week ago
Thanks! I’m glad I could help.