Abbreviations in Spanish

Quick Answer

Whether you need to write someone an email ASAP or send a quick message on FB, you can use abreviaturas(abbreviations) to shorten your sentences. Abbreviations help us avoid repetition, take notes quickly, and make an informal text easier to read. Above all, they are convenient!

Common General Abbreviations

Abbreviation	Meaning	Translation
aprox.	aproximadamente	approximately (approx.)
cap.	capítulo	chapter (ch.)
pág.	página	page (p.)
p. ej.	por ejemplo	for example (e.g.)
q.e.p.d.	que en paz descanse	Rest in Peace (RIP)
Ud.	usted	you (formal, singular)
Uds.	ustedes	you (formal, plural)
v.	véase	see

examples
Necesito hablar con Ud. I need to talk to you.
Para más ejemplos, consulte la pág. 86. For more examples, turn to p. 86.

Courtesy Titles and Professions

Abbreviation	Meaning	Translation
D.	don	Mr.
Dña.	doña	Mrs. (known marital status), Ms. (unknown marital status)
Dr.	doctor	Dr. (male)
Dra.	doctora	Dr. (female)
Pdte.	presidente	president (male)
Pdta.	presidenta	president (female)
Prof.	profesor	professor (male)
Prof.ª	profesora	professor (female)
Sr.	señor	Mr.
Sra.	señora	Mrs. (known marital status), Ms. (unknown marital status)
Srta.	señorita	Ms., Miss

examples
Su cita con el dentista es a las 9 am, Sra. Mendoza. Your dentist appointment is at 9 am, Mrs. Mendoza.
El Prof. Ramsay ya no trabaja aquí; se jubiló hace tres años. Prof. Ramsay doesn't work here anymore; he retired three years ago.

Measurements

Abbreviation	Meaning	Translation
cm	centímetro	centimeter (cm)
g	gramo	gram (g)
h	hora	hour (hr)
kg	kilogramo	kilogram (kg)
km	kilómetro	kilometer (km)
l	litro	liter (l)
m	metro	meter (m)
mg	miligramo	milligram (mg)
min	minuto	minute (min.)
mm	milímetro	millimeter (mm)
oz	onza	ounce (oz)
s	segundo	second (sec)

examples
Compró 400 g de jamón. She bought 400 g of ham.
Añada 2 oz de crema dulce a la mezcla. Add 2 oz of sweet cream to the mix.

These abbreviations may also be written with a period if they are formed by more than two letters.

Months

Abbreviation	Meaning	Translation
en.	enero	January (Jan.)
feb.	febrero	February (Feb.)
mzo.	marzo	March (Mar.)
abr.	abril	April (Apr.)
my.	mayo	May
jun.	junio	June (Jun.)
jul.	julio	July (Jul.)
ag.	agosto	August (Aug.)
set.	septiembre	September (Sep.)
oct.	octubre	October (Oct.)
nov.	noviembre	November (Nov.)
dic.	diciembre	December (Dec.)

examples
Fecha de nacimiento: 13 dic. 2001. Date of birth: Dec. 13th, 2001.
Fecha de consumo preferente: 9 feb. Best-by date: Feb. 9.

Click here to learn more about months in Spanish!

Days of the Week

Abbreviation	Meaning	Translation
lu.	lunes	Monday (Mon.)
ma.	martes	Tuesday (Tues.)
mi.	miércoles	Wednesday (Wed.)
ju.	jueves	Thursday (Thurs.)
vi.	viernes	Friday (Fri.)
sá.	sábado	Saturday (Sat.)
do.	domingo	Sunday (Sun.)

examples
Reserva la fecha: vi. 21 de enero de 2022. Save the date: Fri., January 21, 2022.
La reunión tendrá lugar el lu. a las 2 pm. The meeting will take place Mon. at 2 pm.

You may see several different abbreviations used to refer to the days of the week! Here's another way to refer to them:

Abbreviation	Meaning	Translation
L	lunes	Monday (Mon.)
M	martes	Tuesday (Tues.)
X	miércoles	Wednesday (Wed.)
J	jueves	Thursday (Thurs.)
V	viernes	Friday (Fri.)
S	sábado	Saturday (Sat.)
D	domingo	Sunday (Sun.)

Click here to learn more about the days of the week in Spanish!

Geography and Directions

Abbreviation	Meaning	Translation
apdo.	apartado postal	PO Box
avda.	avenida	avenue (Ave.)
Bs. As.	Buenos Aires	Buenos Aires
E	este	east (E)
EE. UU.	Estados Unidos	United States (U.S.)
ESP	España	Spain
N	norte	north (N)
O	oeste	west (W)
S	sur	south (S)

examples
Austin es mi ciudad favorita de los EE. UU. Austin is my favorite city in the U.S.
La Avda. Michigan es la calle más conocida de Chicago. Michigan Ave. Is Chicago's best-known street.

Texting

Spanish speakers often use abbreviations when they text, just as English speakers do. Listed below are many of the most common Spanish texting abbreviations:

Abbreviation	Meaning	Translation
bn	bien	good (gd)
grax	gracias	thank you (ty)
msj	mensaje	message (msg)
mdi	me da igual	I don’t care (IDC)
npn	no pasa nada	don’t worry about it (DWBI)
ntp	no te preocupes	don’t worry (D/W)
tb	también	also, too
tqi	tengo que irme	I have to go (HTG)
tqm	te quiero mucho	I love you very much (ILYVM)
x fa	por favor	please (pls)
xq	porque, por qué	because ('cause), why