initialism

/ɪˈnɪʃəˌlɪzəm/
noun
  1. An abbreviation made from the first letters of words, where each letter is pronounced separately (e.g., FBI, CEO).
    • The company's name became an initialism: IBM.
    • Many people confuse initialisms with acronyms, but in an initialism you say each letter.
    • FBI is an initialism for the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Synonyms