Web/HTML/Element/acronym

ObsoleteThis feature is obsolete. Although it may still work in some browsers, its use is discouraged since it could be removed at any time. Try to avoid using it.

Summary

The HTML Acronym Element (<acronym>) allows authors to clearly indicate a sequence of characters that compose an acronym or abbreviation for a word.

Usage note: This element has been removed in HTML5 and shouldn't be used anymore. Instead web developers should use the <abbr> element.

Attributes

This element only has global attributes, which are common to all elements.

DOM Interface

This element implements the HTMLElement interface.

Implementation note: Up to Gecko 1.9.2 inclusive, Firefox implements the HTMLSpanElement interface for this element.

Example

<p>The <acronym title="World Wide Web">WWW</acronym> is only a component of the Internet.</p>

Default styling

Though the purpose of this tag is purely for the convenience of the author, its default styling varies from one browser to another:

Some browsers, like Internet Explorer, do not style it differently than a <span> element.
Opera, Firefox, Chrome, and some others add a dotted underline to the content of the element.
A few browsers not only add a dotted underline, but also put it in small caps; to avoid this styling, adding something like font-variant: none in the CSS takes care of this case.

It is therefore recommended that web authors either explicitly style this element, or accept some cross-browser variation.

Specifications

Specification	Status	Comment
HTML 4.01 SpecificationThe definition of '<acronym>' in that specification.	Recommendation

Browser compatibility

Update compatibility data on GitHub

	Desktop						Mobile
	Chrome	Edge	Firefox	Internet Explorer	Opera	Safari	Android webview	Chrome for Android	Firefox for Android	Opera for Android	Safari on iOS	Samsung Internet
`acronym` Deprecated'Non-standard'	Chrome Full support Yes	Edge Full support 12	Firefox Full support Yes	IE Full support Yes	Opera Full support Yes	Safari Full support Yes	WebView Android Full support Yes	Chrome Android Full support Yes	Firefox Android Full support Yes	Opera Android Full support Yes	Safari iOS Full support Yes	Samsung Internet Android Full support Yes

Legend

Full support: Full support
Non-standard. Expect poor cross-browser support.': Non-standard. Expect poor cross-browser support.
Deprecated. Not for use in new websites.': Deprecated. Not for use in new websites.