Most company abbreviations began as a long legal name that was too much for a sign or a truck door, so IBM stands for International Business Machines and UPS for United Parcel Service. Over time, many of those letters became the official name, and some companies now say the letters do not stand for anything at all.
This section explains the brand name acronyms people ask about most: what each set of letters once meant, where the name came from, and how the company uses it today. The pages stick to the name itself. You will not find reviews, product lists or business news here.
Quick facts
What they are
Company and brand names made from initials or parts of wordsCommon sources
Founders' names, a description of the business, a place, another languageExamples
IBM, UPS, CVS, BMW, HP, ESPNHow to say them
Most letter by letter (I B M); some as a word (GEICO, IHOP)Watch for
Names that now officially stand for nothing, and joke backronyms
Company abbreviations that describe the business
The plainest kind of brand acronym is a shortened job description. The full name told customers what the company did, and the letters stuck once people knew the brand.
| Letters | Full name | What the name says |
|---|---|---|
| IBM | International Business Machines | Office machines sold worldwide |
| UPS | United Parcel Service | A parcel delivery company |
| CVS | Consumer Value Stores | Stores selling everyday goods |
| GEICO | Government Employees Insurance Company | Its first customers were government workers |
| USAA | United Services Automobile Association | Car insurance for military members at the start |
| IHOP | International House of Pancakes | A pancake restaurant |
| KOA | Kampgrounds of America | Campgrounds, with a K on purpose |
| REI | Recreational Equipment, Inc. | Outdoor gear |
| AOL | America Online | An early internet service |
GEICO and IHOP are usually said as words, "GUY-coh" and "EYE-hop." The rest are read letter by letter.
Media and sports networks known by their letters
Broadcasters picked short names that fit a channel logo and were easy to say on air.
- ESPN: Entertainment and Sports Programming Network.
- HBO: Home Box Office.
- BBC: British Broadcasting Corporation.
- BET: Black Entertainment Television.
- TNT: Turner Network Television for the TV channel, and trinitrotoluene for the explosive.
- TMZ: thirty mile zone, an old film industry term for the area around Hollywood studios.
- WWE: World Wrestling Entertainment.
- UFC: Ultimate Fighting Championship.
- DC Comics: DC comes from Detective Comics, an early title, so the full name repeats the word comics.
Brands named after the people who founded them
Plenty of company abbreviations are simply initials or pieces of names. Once you know this, letters that seemed random start to make sense.
| Brand | Comes from |
|---|---|
| HP | Hewlett and Packard, the two founders |
| DHL | Dalsey, Hillblom and Lynn, three founders' last names |
| A&W | Allen and Wright, the two partners behind the root beer |
| M&M | Mars and Murrie, the two men behind the candy |
| H-E-B | Howard Edward Butt, son of the founder |
| JBL | James B. Lansing, the audio engineer who started it |
| YSL | Yves Saint Laurent, the designer |
| AMG | Aufrecht, Melcher and Großaspach: two founders and a town |
| adidas | Adi Dassler, the founder's nickname plus part of his last name |
A common myth says adidas means "All Day I Dream About Sports." That is a backronym made up later. The name comes from the founder.
Letters that came from another language
Some brand acronyms make more sense once you translate them.
- BMW: Bayerische Motoren Werke, German for Bavarian Motor Works.
- LEGO: from the Danish words leg godt, meaning play well.
- FIFA: the initials of a French name, which translates as International Federation of Association Football in English.
Reading a car badge: the blue and white BMW circle on a car hood carries three letters for three German words. Bayerische means Bavarian, Motoren means engines or motors, and Werke means works, as in a factory.
When a company says the letters stand for nothing
As businesses grow, an old full name can stop fitting. A bank that started in one country may now work in fifty, or a firm named for partners may have none of them left. Many companies respond by keeping the letters and retiring the words.
- UBS began as Union Bank of Switzerland. Today the bank uses UBS as its name.
- KPMG comes from the founders Klynveld, Peat, Marwick and Goerdeler, but the firm goes by the letters.
- CBRE grew out of Coldwell Banker Richard Ellis.
- Vrbo started as Vacation Rentals by Owner and now writes the name as one word.
- Airbnb is a squeezed form of AirBed & Breakfast, its first name.
When you write about one of these companies, use the letters the company uses. Spelling out an old full name can look out of date.
Backronyms and brand names that are not acronyms
Some names look like they hide a phrase, and people invent one to fill the gap. These are jokes or guesses, not history.
- Ford is the founder's family name. Phrases built from its four letters are old jokes.
- Jeep is often said to come from GP, for general purpose, but the true origin is not settled.
- Lexus is a made up name chosen to suggest luxury. Popular claims that it spells out a phrase have no official backing.
For the difference between a true acronym and a word that only looks like one, see what is an acronym.
How to read and write brand abbreviations
- Copy the company's own style. It is adidas in lower case, H-E-B with hyphens, A&W with an ampersand and Vrbo with one capital.
- Do not add periods. Write IBM, not I.B.M., unless the company itself uses periods.
- Use a or an by sound. It is an HBO show, because you say "aitch," but a UPS truck, because U sounds like "you."
- Do not spell out a retired name. Writing Union Bank of Switzerland for UBS today can confuse readers.
- Check the field. TNT on a TV listing and TNT on a mining site are different things.
Brand letters are only one kind of short form. Everyday letters like ATM and RSVP live in famous acronyms, and the rules for writing short forms are in acronym vs abbreviation.
Questions people ask
What are company abbreviations?
They are short names a business uses in place of its full name, usually made from initials, such as IBM for International Business Machines. Some are built from founders' names instead of a description.
Do all brand acronyms still stand for something?
No. Companies like UBS and KPMG use the letters as the full name today. The original words are history, so the letters are the correct name to use.
Is adidas an acronym?
No. The name comes from the founder, Adi Dassler. All Day I Dream About Sports is a backronym that fans made up later.
What does the BMW abbreviation mean in English?
In English, Bayerische Motoren Werke means Bavarian Motor Works. The name points to Bavaria, the German state where the company began.
Should company abbreviations have periods?
Usually not. Most companies write their letters with no periods, so follow the way the brand writes its own name.