A numeronym is a number-based word.Most commonly, a numeronym is a word where a number is used to form anabbreviation (albeit not an acronym or an initialism). Pronouncing theletters and numbers may sound similar to the full word: "K9" for "canine"(phonetically: "kay" + "nine"). A similar example in French is "K7" for"cassette" (phonetically: "ka" + "sept").Alternatively, the letters between the first and last are replaced by anumber representing the number of letters omitted, such as "i18n" for"internationalization". Sometimes the last letter will also be countedand omitted.According to Tex Texin, the first numeronym of this kind was "S12n", theelectronic mail account name given to DEC employee Jan Scherpenhuizen bya system administrator because his surname was too long to be an accountname. Colleagues who found Jan's name unpronounceable often referred tohim verbally as "S12n". The use of such numeronyms became part of DECcorporate culture.
