HTML Acronym Tag

The HTML <acronym> was used to define acronyms. It helped browsers in understanding the actual meaning or full form for a short word used. But today, the <acronym> is no longer used in new HTML documents.

However, you might still notice the use of the <acronym> tag in old HTML documents, but the new replacement for the acronym tag in HTML5 is the <abbr> tag.

What Is The HTML acronym Tag?

The HTML <acronym> tag was earlier used to define acronyms. Acronym is a combination of letters that is used as a short form for longer terms or phrases. Let’s understand it better with an example.

NASA: National Aeronautics and Space Administration
HTML: HyperText Markup Language

In older versions of HTML, developers used to wrap acronyms in the <acronym> tag, which helped browsers display a tooltip with a full form of that acronym when users hovered over it.

Basically, the <acronym> tag is like a label that tells the browser that this word is a short form of something longer. But HTML5 has declared the <acronym> tag outdated, and thus it is no longer used in new HTML documents.

HTML acronym Tag Syntax

Check out how the original syntax of the HTML acronym tag looks. Though it is not in use anymore, you can still find it in old HTML documents. Therefore, it is essential to learn how the syntax looks.

HTML abbr target

The HTML acronym tag marks the acronym or abbreviation with the <abbr> tag. It is not a self closing element, hence it does have an opening tag <acronym” and a closing tag </acronym>

<acronym title=“Full Form”>ACRONYM</acronym>

If your browser supports the <acronym> tag, then hovering over ACRONYM will show the full form. Let’s understand it in detail.

- <acronym>: It defines the acronym tag element
- title: It includes the full form or the expanded long form of the acronym.
- ACRONYM: It is the short form of a long term or phrase.

HTML acronym Tag Example

Check out some of the examples of the HTML acronym tag to understand how to use it.

1. PW: Physics Wallah

2. HTML: HyperText Markup Language

3. AI: Artificial Intelligence

Why Is The acronym Tag Used?

The HTML <acronym> tag is mainly used to help browsers understand the real meaning of a short form used. It also helps in improving Search Engine Optimization and user experience. Let’s have a look at some of the main purposes why the acronym tag is used.

Purpose	Why is it used?
Clarity	It helps in explaining short forms with clarity.
Accessibility	It improves accessibility as it helps readers read full forms.
SEO	It also helps in improving SEO practices.
UX	It shows the full form on hovering.

How does it work?

Before HTML5 acronym tag was used to define the longer terms in a short form. Have a look at how the browsers treat the <acronym> tag.

The short form appears in the text (example: PW)
When the user hovers over it, the expanded form appears (example: Physics Wallah)

Attributes of HTML acronym Tag

The acronym tag mainly uses the title attribute to display the full form of the acronym that you are using.

title– It shows the full form of the acronym that is being used.

Some Other Attributes of acronym Tag

Other than the title attribute, there are some more attributes that can also be used in the <acronym> tag. Check them below.

Attribute	Uses
id	It assigns a unique identifier.
class	It is used to apply a CSS class for styling.
style	This is used for inline styling.
lang	The lang attribute is used to specify language.
dir	dir is for text direction.

Why Was The acronym Tag Removed?

The <acronym> tag is no longer used in HTML documents as it is not supported by HTML5. However, you will still be able to find it in the previously coded HTML documents.

HTML abbr target

The HTML experts decided that there was no need for the <acronym> tag because the <abbr> tag could handle both abbreviations and acronyms. So, having a separate<acronym> seemed unnecessary and irrelevant. Therefore, it was removed.

acronym tag vs abbr tag

The <acronym> was used only to define the acronyms, but the <abbr> tag can handle both acronyms and abbreviations.

Acronyms: PW, HTML, etc.
Abbreviations: Dr., Mr., etc.

Tip For Beginners

Check out the following tips if you are just starting with HTML

Whenever you see <acronym> used in old code, you can replace it with <abbr>.
You must keep the title attribute the same as it is.

Have a look at the example below.

OLD

NEW

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HTML acronym Tag FAQs

Q1. What is the HTML acronym tag?

Ans: The HTML tag was used to define the acronyms or the short forms and show their full forms when users hover on it. However, it is no longer in use as it is not supported by HTML5.

Q2. Is the acronym tag supported in HTML5?

Ans: No. The tag is not supported in HTML5. It is outdated now.

Q3. What can I use instead of tag?

Ans: You must use the tag with a title attribute. It handles both acronyms and abbreviations.

Q4. Does the tag improve SEO or accessibility?

Ans: Yes. Earlier tag helped in improving SEO and accessibility, but since it is obsolete now, the tag performs that role.