A

• AAA - (“Triple-A”) – Anti-Aircraft Artillery 
• AAAV - Advanced Amphibious Assault Vehicle
• AAC - Army Air Corps (British Army)
• AADC - Area Air Defence Commander
• AAM - Air to Air Missile
• AAV - Amphibious Assault Vehicle
• ABM- Anti-Ballistic Missile
• AC – Armour Class
• ACW – Amercan Civil War
• AD&D – Advanced Dungeons and Dragons
• AH -  Attack Helicopter
• APC – Armoured Personnel Carrier – Armour Piercing Capped (ammunition)
• APCNR - Armour-Piercing, Composite Non-Rigid (ammunition)
• APCR - Armour-Piercing, Composite Rigid (ammunition)
• APDS - Armour-Piercing, Discarding-Sabot (ammunition)
• APFSDS -  Armour-Piercing, Fin-Stabilised, Discarding Sabot (ammunition)
• APHE -  Armour-Piercing, High Explosive (ammunition)
• ASM - Air to Surface Missile
• ASRAAM - Advanced Short-Range Air-to-Air Missile
• ASW - AntiSubmarine Warfare 
• AT – Anti-Tank
• ATCCIS - Army Tactical Command and Control Information System
• ATGM -  Anti-Tank Guided Missile
• ATGW - Anti-Tank Guided Weapon
• ATV - All-Terrain Vehicle
• AWC – Aberdeen Wargames Club
• AWI – American War of Independance

 

B

• BAO - Battlefield Air Operations
• BAOR - British Army Of the Rhine
• BAS - Battalion Aid Station
• BCIS -Battlefield Combat Identification System
• BCT - Brigade Combat Team
• BGWG - Battle Group Wargame
• BLT -  Bacon Lettuce Tomato (sandwich)
• BMEWS - Ballistic Missile Early Warning System
• Bn -  Battalion
• BNICE - Biological, Nuclear, Incendiary, Chemical, and Explosive Agents
• BOS - Battlefield Operating System
• BRDM - Russian Combat Reconnaissance Patrol Vehicle
• BTID – Battlefield Target Identification Device
• BTIS – Battlefield Target Identification System

C

• C2 - Command and Control
• CAP - Combat Air Patrol
• CATK - Counterattack
• CAV - Cavalry
• CCH – Computer Controlled Hostile
• Cdr – Commander
• CDS - Chief of the Defence Staff
• CH - Chieftain tank
• Char – Charisma (RPG stat)
• CIWS - Close-In Weapon System
• CO – Commanding Officer
• Con – Constitution (RPG stat)
• CI - Counter Insurgency
• Coy - Company (military unit)
• CZ - Combat Zone 

D

• DAO - Division Ammunition Officer
• DBA – De Bellis Antiquitatis (miniature wargaming rules)
• DBBL - Dismounted Battlespace Battle Laboratory
• DBF – Detection By Fire (weapon launch signature)
• DBM – De Bellis Multitudinis (miniature wargaming rules)
• DBM –  Detection By Movement (military target)
• DBMM – De Bellis Magistrorum Militum (Miniature wargaming rules)
• DBR – De Bellis Renationis (miniature wargaming rules)
• D&D - Dungeons and Dragons 
• DF - Direct Fire – Direction Finding 
• DSAS -Disney Sing Along Songs
• DWG - Divisional Wargame (military simulation)
• DWM - Doctor Who Magazine
• Dex - Dexterity (RPG stat) 

E

• EC  Electronic Combat 
• ECHR - European Convention on Human Rights
• ECM - Electronic Counter-Measures 
• EHC – Extra Heavy Cavalry
• EHI – Extra Heavy Infantry
• EIAH – Encyclopedia of Iranian Architectural History
• EL – Elephant
• EMP - ElectroMagnetic Pulse
• ENY - Enemy
• EOS - Earth Observation Satellite
• EW - Electronic Warfare
• EZ - Extraction Zone

  F

• FLOW Focused Logistics Wargame
• FA - Field Artillery 
• FAA - Fleet Air Arm 
• FAAD – Forward Area Air Defence
• FAADEZ - Forward Area Air Defence Engagement Zone
• FAASV - Field Artillery Ammunition Supply Vehicle
• FAC - Forward Air Controller -
• FARP - Forward Arming and Refuelling Point
• FASCAM - Field Artillery Scatterable Mines
• FAT - Field Artillery Tractor
• FAVS - Future Armoured Vehicle System
• FBI - Federal Bureau of Investigation
• FC - Fire Control
• FCZ - Forward Combat Zone
• FEBA - Forward Edge of the Battle Area
• FEZ - Fighter Engagement Zone
• FFOV - Forward Field Of View
• FIBUA - Fighting In Built-Up Areas
• FIFO - First In, First Out
• FILO - First In, Last Out
• FiST - Fire Support Team
• FLET - Forward Line of Enemy Troops
• FLIR - Forward Looking InfraRed (sensor)
• FLOT - Forward Line of Own Troops
• FLSA - Fair Labor Standards Act
• FMSF - False Memory Syndrome Foundation
• FOG – Field of Glory (wargames rules)
• FS – Fire Support (military)
• F&SF - The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction
• FSO - Fire Support Officer 
• FST - Fire Support Team -
• FTL - Faster Than Light
• FW - Fixed Wing

 G

• GBU - Glide-Bomb Unit 
• GCI - Ground-controlled interception
• GDW - Game Designers Workshop
• GEN - Full General
• GEO - Geostationary Earth Orbit 
• GEV - Ground Effect Vehicle
• GLINT - Gallium-arsenide Laser Illuminator for Night TV 
• GPU -  Russian Police “State Political Administration”
• GW - Games Workshop – Germ Warfare - Guided Weapon 
• GZ - Ground Zero

H

• HALO – High Altitude Low Opening (parachuting) 
• HAM - Amateur radio operator
• HARM - High-speed Anti-Radiation Missile
• HAW - Heavy Antitank Weapon
• HAWK - Homing All the Way Killer (air defence system)
• HC – Heavy Cavalry
• HD - Hull-Down (armoured vehicle target, as opposed to Fully Exposed) 
• HE - High Explosive
• HEAT - High Explosive Anti-Tank (ammunition)
• HEER - High-Explosive Extended Range (ammunition)
• HEIC - Honourable East India Company
• HEMP – (a) High-Altitude Electromagnetic Pulse
• HEO - Highly Elliptical Orbit
• HEOSS - High Earth Orbit Space Surveillance
• HEP - High-Explosive Plastic (ammunition)
• HESH – High Explosive Squash Head (ammunition)
• HI – Heavy Infantry
• HIMEZ - High Altitude Missile Engagement Zone
• HLVW - Heavy Logistics Vehicle, Wheeled
• HMCE - Her Majesty’s Customs and Excise
• HMG – Heavy Machine Gun
• HMO - Health Management Organization
• HMS - Helmet-mounted display – Her Majesty’s Ship (Royal Navy)
• HMV - His Master’s Voice
• HOTT  - Hordes of the Things (fantasy wargaming rules; a play on The Lord of the Rings)
• HP – Hit Points
• HQ - Head Quarters
• HTK – Hits to Kill
• HTR - Heated Towel Rail
• HVAP - High Velocity Armour Piercing (ammunition)
• HVM - High Velocity Missile
• HVP - High-Velocity Projectile 
• HYW – Hundred Years War 

 

I

• IADS - Integrated Air Defence System
• ICBM - Intercontinental Ballistic Missile
• ICV - Infantry Carrier Vehicle
• IED - Improvised Explosive Device
• IEW - Intelligence and Electronic Warfare
• IFAK – Individual First Aid kit
• IFF - Identification Friend or Foe
• IFV - Infantry Fighting Vehicle
• IJN - Imperial Japanese Navy (World War II)
• IMR - Russian  “Engineer Vehicle Obstacle-Clearing”
• IN - Infantry
• Int – Inteligence (RPG stat)
• IRBM - Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile
• IRC - International Red Cross 

J

• JK - Jedi Knight 
• JSP - Joint Services Publication
• JRSAI – Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland
• JW - Jehovah’s Witnesses 

K

•  K9 – Dr Whos’ Robotic assistant
• KFC - Kentucky Fried Chicken 

L

• LARP - Live-Action Role-Playing
• LASER – light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation
• LAV - Light Armoured Vehicle
• LAW - Light Antitank Weapon
• LCol - Lieutenant-Colonel
• LEO - Low Earth orbit
• LHI – Light Heavy Infantry
• LC – Light Cavalry
• LI – Light Infantry
• LLAD - Low Level Air Defence
• LMG – Light Machine Gun
• LMI – Light Medium Infantry
• LNO - Liaison Officer
• LOS - Line Of Sight
• LOTR or LotR - Lord of the Rings
• LR-ATGW - Long-Range Anti-Tank Guided Weapon
• LRGW – Long-Range Guided Weapon
• LRS - Long Range Surveillance 

M

• MBT - Main Battle Tank
• Me - Messerschmitt
• MC – Medium Cavalry
• MG - Machine Gun
• MI – Medium Infantry  
• MILAN - Missile d´infanterie léger antichar (French, “Anti-Tank Light Infantry Missile”)
• MLRS - Multiple-Launch Rocket System
• MOAB – Massive Ordnance Air Blast Bomb
• MP - Magic points
• MRAV - Multi-Role Armoured Vehicle
• MRBM - Medium Range Ballistic Missile
• MRL - Multiple Rocket Launcher 

N

• NAAFI - Navy, Army and Air Force Institute
• NAAK - Nerve Agent Antidote Kit (Mk 1)
• NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration
• NBC – Nuclear, Biological and Chemical
• NCO - Non-Commissioned Officer
• NLW - Non-Lethal Weapon
• NVG - Night Vision Goggles
• NWA - National Wrestling Alliance 

O

• OIC - Officer In Charge
• OMGW –  ”Oh My Gosh it’s Windy”
• ONCE - Spanish, “National Organization for the Spanish Blind”
• OOBE - Out-of-body experience
• ORBAT - Order of Battle 

P

• PAMELA -  Payload for Antimatter Matter Exploration and Light-nuclei Astrophysics
• PCB – Pie, chips and beans  (yes please)
• PDF - Principal Direction of Fire
• PIC - Person In Charge
• Pln - Platoon
• PO - Post Office
• POG - Passionfruit, Orange and Guava
• POTC - Pirates of the Caribbean
• POW - Prisoner of war 

Q

• Quango - QUasi Autonomous Non-Governmental Organisation

 

R

• RADAR - RAdio Detection And Ranging
• RCZ - Rear Combat Zone
• ROV - Remotely Operated Vehicle
• RPG – Role Playing Game
• RPG – Rocket Propelled Grenade
• R&R - Rest & Relaxation
• RV - Reconnaissance Vehicle
• RWS - Remote Weapon Station 

S

• SAHB - Sensational Alex Harvey Band
• SAS - Special Air Service 
• SAW - Squad Automatic Weapon
• SCHIMS - Soldier Combat Helmet Identification Marking System
• SciFi – Science Fiction
• SEAD – Suppression of Enemy Air Defence(s)
• SETI - Search for ExtraTerrestrial Intelligence
• SFSFW – Society of Fantasy and Science Fiction Wargamers
• SHC – Super Heavy Cavalry
• SHI – Super Heavy Infantry
• SNAFU - Situation Normal —All Fouled Up
• SOA - Society of Ancients
• SPI – Simulations Publications, Inc. (wargames designer and publisher)
• SR-ATGW - Short-Range Anti-Tank Guided Weapon
• SRB -  Solid Rocket Booster
• SSM - Surface-to-Surface (Guided) Missile
• SSV -  Soft-Skinned Vehicle (i.e, unarmoured)
• Str – Strenth (RPG stat)
• Stuka - Sturzkampfflugzeug (German WWII dive bomber)
• SYW – Seven Years War 

T

• TMP – The Miniatures page
• TNB – Tea and Biscuits
• TSR – Tactical Studies Rules (wargames rules and games publisher)
• TTW – Tactical Training Wing
• TTW – Tank-To-Wheels
• TTW  – Territorial Waters
• TTW – Transition to War (NATO)
• TTW  – Tropical Tower Wars (gaming, World of Warcraft)
• TTW  – The Tolkien Wiki
• TTW – Time of Tension of War
• TTW – Table-Top Wargaming
• TTW – Tactical Trench Wars (gaming) 

U

• UN - United Nations
• UPS - Uninterruptible Power Supply
• USS – United Star Ship (Star Trek)
• UTB – Under The Bed
• UXB - Unexploded Bomb 

V

• VA - Vatican City-State
• VACIS - Victorian Ambulance Clinical Information System
• VB - Victoria Bitter (beer) 
• VC – Viet Cong  (cong san Viet Nam- Vietnamese communist)
• VE – Victory in Europe
• VLVS - Very Loud, Very Stinky
• VSTOL - Vertical Short Take-Off and Landing
• VTOL - Vertical Take-Off & Landing
• VW - Volkswagen 

W

• WAB – Warhammer Ancient Battles (wargames rules)
• WFD -Weapon(s) of Focused Destruction
• WFZ - Weapons Free Zone
• Wis – Wisdom (RPG stat)
• WL - Wehrmacht Luftwaffe (German World War II air force vehicle licence plate code)
• WM - Wehrmacht Marine (German World War II navy vehicle licence plate code)
• WMD - Weapon[s] of Mass Destruction 
• WNSD - What’s New, Scooby-Doo?
• WO - Warrant Officer
• WOW - World of Warcraft – Wings of War (wargames rules)
• WP - White Phosphorus (ammunition)
• WWF - World Wildlife Fund
• WWI – World War I
• WWII - World War II
• WWIII - World War III
• WWWF - World Wide Wrestling Federation 

X

 

Y

 

Z

• ZOPFAN - Zone Of Peace, Freedom And Neutrality