AP Style Abbreviations
first lieutenant
1st Lt. ; spell out 1st at the start of a sentence
first sergeant
1st Sgt.
second lieutenant
2nd Lt. ; spell out 2nd at the start of a sentence
admiral
Adm.
airman
Airman
airman first class
Airman 1st Class
Alabama
Ala.
states that are never abbreviated
Alaska, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Ohio, Texas, and Utah
Arizona
Ariz.
Arkansas
Ark.
brigadier general
Brig. Gen.
Central daylight time
CDT
central standard time
CST
California
Calif.
captain
Capt.
chief petty officer
Chief Petty Officer
commander
Cmdr.
colonel
Col.
Colorado
Colo.
commodore
Commodore
Connecticut
Conn.
corporal
Cpl.
Delaware
Del.
eastern daylight time
EDT
eastern standard time
EST
ensign
Ensign
general
Gen.
N., S., E., W., NW, etc
If number is not given spell out, if number is given, abbreviate
Illinois
Ill.
St., Ave., Blvd.
In adresses that include the number, abbreviate. In dresses that don't include the number, spell them out
Indiana
Ind.
Kansas
Kan.
Kentucky
Ky.
lieutenant
Lt.
Lieutenant commander
Lt. Cmdr.
lieutenant colonel
Lt. Col.
lieutenant general
Lt. Gen.
lieutenant junior grade
Lt. j.g.
major general
Maj. Gen.
months that are spelt out
March, April, May, June, July
Massachusetts
Mass.
master sergeant
Master Sgt.
Maryland
Md.
Michigan
Mich.
Minnesota
Minn.
Missouri
Mo.
Montana
Mont.
North Carolina
N.C.
North Dakota
N.D.
New Jersey
N.J.
New Mexico
N.M.
New York
N.Y.
Nebraska
Neb.
Nevada
Nev.
Oregon
Ore.
Pennsylvania
Pa.
private first class
Pfc.
private
Pvt.
Rhode Island
R.I.
rear admiral
Rear Adm.
spell out these in addresses at all times
Road, Drive, Place, Circle, Lane, Terrace
South Carolina
S.C.
South Dakota
S.D.
seaman
Seaman
seaman apprentice
Seaman Apprentice
titles that should be abbreviated when appearing before the name include
Sen., Rep., Gov., Lt. Gov., the Rev., Dr., and police and military titles
sergeant first class
Sgt. 1st Class
sergeant major
Sgt. Maj.
specialist four
Spec. 4
technical sergeant
Tech. Sgt.
Tennessee
Tenn.
Virginia
Va.
vice admiral
Vice Adm.
Vermont
Vt.
West Virginia
W. Va.
Washington
Wash.
Wisconsin
Wis.
Wyoming
Wyo.
datelines
a geographic identifier at the beginning of a news article. The name of a city, town, or military base is followed by an abbreviation of a state name
United States/United Nations
abbreviate in titles and when used as adjectives, spell out when used as a noun
versus
abbreviate to vs.
time zones
abbreviate when used with a specific time; spell out when specific time is not given
Fort
always spell out
Days of the week
do not abbreviate
president, vice president, association, detective, department, deputy, assistant, commandant, manager, general manager, secretary, treasurer, professor, district attorney, attorney general, superintendent, Christmas
do not abbreviate
Mr., Miss, Ms. and Mrs.
do not use except in direct quotations or when people share same last names
state abbreviations
follows the name of a city, town, or military base when used as a dateline or with short-form identification of a political party affiliation
abbreviations that do not involve proper names
lowercase, those that spell words take periods
January, February, August, September, October, November, December
months that are abbreviated
Professional titles
normally used on first mention either before or following the name
days of the week
not abbreviated
Full names are only used
once upon first mention
an abbreviated title should always be
placed before a full name
do not abbreviate
president, vice president, assistant, christmas, manager, general manager, secretary, commandant, deputy, association, detective, department, treasurer, professor, district attorney, attorney general, superintendent
state names in the bodies of stories
spell out
all titles after the name or standing alone should be
spelled out and lowercase
Abbreviate months when
used with a calendar date, a days date