How Acronyms Can Have an Amazing Effect on Your Memory

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Need to remember a list?  Or a process that happens in a specific order?  I’ve got a study tip for that!  Something that can freeze the information exactly as you want to remember it and save it in your cerebrum for later use.

You have used it before but likely don’t actually consider it a viable study option.  Instead, you probably thought it was a shortcut in some have your favourite subjects.  I’m here to tell you that it can be used just about anywhere to remember just about anything.

So, what is this magical fix-all?  If you read the title, you already know it’s acronyms, but let me throw in a little foreshadowing; a fix-all, it’s not!

So why dangle this in front of you just to crush your hopes?  Because it is pretty darn useful with the right application.  Acronyms will help you to memorize a particular set of information in a specific arrangement.  Let’s look deeper at exactly what they are, how they work, and how they can be applied to an effective study strategy.

What are Acronyms?

Acronyms use the first letter of words, or phrases, in a list, or sequence of events, to build a new word that can help you to remember better.   This means that instead of memorizing the entire list or process in order, you just have to remember one word.  The word can then be used as a prompt to help you to recall the entire sequence.

That comes out a little chaotic, so let’s explain with an example.  Say we are studying geography, and our topic is the Great Lakes.  You can run around for days repeating: “Superior!  Michigan!  Huron!  Erie!  Ontario!  Superior!  Michigan!…  Or we can memorize just the first letters: M, H, E, O, S.

As long as you know what the letters stand for, the first letters can be used to jog your memory.  Now, M, H, E, O, S; “MHEOS” will still be hard to remember, so let’s rearrange the letter since the order, in this case, is not critical.  What can we spell?  How about “HOMES.”  

We are much more likely to remember “HOMES,” and we will never forget how to spell it.  Now, whenever we are asked the names of the Great Lakes, all we have to remember is the word “HOMES.”  Working backwards, you know the first letter of each of the Great Lakes; from there, you can work out which lakes are the greatest.

Are Acronyms Words?

Acronyms are always pronounced as words.   They don’t necessarily have to be actual words, but they do have to be presented as one.  If the sequence does not have to be remembered in order, you can scramble the letters to create an easier word.  Or you can make up a word that is easy to sound out if you can’t make a real one.

If you are scrambling up the letters and can’t come up with a pronounceable word, give up and just memorize the letters; that is a different study strategy entirely.  Initialisms like “FBI” can be helpful IF you can remember them.  Some techniques we will use to reinforce acronyms won’t be transferable to initialisms.  

Initialisms can be used in a jam, but the study tips used to support and reinforce them are pretty different.  They are also hard to remember since you have to use brute force.  Can you recall each letter in order?  It is obviously easier to overlook one letter in a memorized list than to forget how to spell a word.

How Acronyms Can Have an Amazing Effect on Your Memory

Creating a study strategy around acronyms is as easy as layering memory cues one on top of the other.  The more activities you use to study a piece of information, the more mental associations are created with that concept helping you retrieve it easier.

Incorporate different senses when you are studying acronyms.

The more senses or techniques used to reinforce information, the better anchored it is in our memory.   This study strategy is versatile and can be used in various situations.  With acronyms, it fits even more organically since we can incorporate our word into anything.

So, let’s close our eyes and picture our respective homes on a lake.  Now we have a visual level.  What if we now say out loud, “There is no place like homes!”  I realize it’s not grammatically correct, but that’s what makes this work!  Moving your lips gives you production.  You heard yourself say it, adding auditory.  And the awkwardness of the sentence just may make it stick out for a little something extra.  That’s 4 additional memory cues that we have used, and it was so simple.

That whole situation just wrapped itself up quite nicely, didn’t it?

How to use acronyms to memorize a specific sequence in order

So, what if we were looking at a process that needs to be recalled in the exact order?  Luckily the word does not have to be real, just as long as it is easy to pronounce.  

Let’s look at another example; this time, we are in math class.  We are learning algebra… Yup, you’ve got it, good ole PEDMAS or BEDMAS!  We are familiar with this non-word and what it stands for: parentheses or brackets, exponents, division, multiplication, addition and subtraction.  I told you that you have done this before!  

PEDMAS Is definitely not a word.  You can’t use it in any other situation except to describe this algebraic process.  Still, you have managed to remember this procedure, even though middle school was years ago.  That’s because of the simplicity of spelling the word and the layering of mental associations.  Let’s try it out.

Try imagining Santa in a bed for BEDMAS, or could PEDMAS be a Christmas foot?  Not really sure where to go with that one…  Anyway, this particular sequence of steps will never get jumbled or confused.  

The image you conjured will be evoked every time you work on an algebraic problem.  That’s the power of layering memory cues.

This process has been immortalized in our brains and in our textbooks.  You have been using this study strategy for years but often do not consider introducing it into the arsenal of study tips unless directed to do so.  Usually, it just sits there on the shelf, growing dust when you could be exploiting it for gains.

Make your acronyms stand out by using silly words.

The purpose of creating an acronym in education is to help you remember a specific list of words or phrases.  This is one of the reasons why I’ve had you visualizing outlandish scenery.  At least these things will stand out in your memory and might even make you giggle.

The point is they’re memorable.  When using acronyms to memorize a concept, it’s okay for the word to be out there.  The sillier the word, the better!  This will help to make sure that you remember it in the future.

Acronyms vs. Abbreviations

Acronyms use the first letter in a list or sequence of events to create a new word, while abbreviations shorten a word or phrase.  Though there may be times when these two concepts seem similar, they are pretty distinct.

Abbreviations are essentially shorthand.  This is when you shorten a longer word or phrase to make it easier to say or spell.  In education, abbreviations are very helpful with note-taking because it helps you to record more information faster, especially if you are writing by hand.

Example: etc. = etcetera

In an educational setting, acronyms are better for memorization.  They helped to trigger recall by memorizing a word where each letter in that word stands for part of the list or sequence of events.  When studying, it can be helpful to remember one word and use that as a memory cue to trigger recall of the entire list.

Acronyms vs. Mnemonics

A mnemonic uses the first letter of each word in a list or sequence of events to create a sentence that helps you remember.  An acronym uses that same letter set to make a new word.  The difference is memorizing a word versus an entire sentence.

Both of these study strategies are immensely useful, and which you choose is entirely situational.

The process of creating a mnemonic is very similar to that of acronyms.  First, you isolate the first letter of each word on your list.  In the second step, however, you choose a new word to replace the old one.  Ultimately, we will create a new, hopefully silly, sentence that is easy to remember.

Let’s use the Great Lakes as our example once again:

• H = Humorous

• O = orange

• M = mimes

• E = excitedly

• S = squeal

Our new sentence is now: Humorous orange mimes excitedly squeal!

Now the choice is yours.  Is it easier to remember a funny sentence or the word “HOMES”?  Neither method is wrong.  It’s up to the study strategy or memorization technique that works best for you.

You can then use the same layering of memory cues to help you remember the sentence.

So, now that we understand what acronyms are and how to use them let’s rewind to that ominous warning.  I am not in the business of selling snake oil here.  I admit to a downside when there is one, and the downside to this study strategy is significant.  

Acronyms do nothing to help with comprehension.  There, I said it.  This tool can only be used to help remember details about the information you already have an understanding of, not to aid in incorporating or processing new knowledge.  This is why the application of this technique is so selective.

Mnemonics also come with the same drawbacks.  For this memory cue to work, you must remember the underlying concept.  You need to know the lakes in the region to extrapolate which lakes you’re looking for.

HOMES can help you remember which lakes are great, only if you have already learned the information.  But if you never did your homework, you could get confused at test time between lake Manitoba, lake Michigan but hopefully never the Mediterranean Sea!

This study technique is a memory cue.  That means it helps you 2 prompt recall when you get stuck.  This can help distinguish between a right and wrong answer to a tricky question.  Sometimes you know that you know the answer.  It’s right there at the tip of your pen.  All you need is a little nudge to retrieve it.

Never feel shy or ashamed of the effort you put in to get the grades you want.  Studying can feel like a maze.  Sometimes you don’t know if you’re making progress.  If you need help creating a study strategy that works for you, pick up my free study guide template.  It has guides and worksheets with everything you need to create a plan to get you the desired grade.  Download it here.

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