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ship
Question Marcos Andrade Marques, Volta Redonda, RJ
Steamship, steamship in English.The acronym is one of the so-called “naval prefixes”, which serve to indicate the type of propulsion of the vessel or its function. MS, for example, is motorship. RV stands for research vessel. Most acronyms were created by England, when the country was the greatest naval power on the planet. Other nations have adopted them, but not all. So, there is no global standard. Sometimes the prefixes didn’t even make sense. The Titanic, for example, was an RMS, which stands for “royal mail steamer” – it was a pleasure boat, not a mail ship. And many SS today don’t even use steam propulsion.
A SEA OF LETTERS
Some more famous English acronyms
HMS: His/Her Majesty’s ship
RR: Royal research ship (royal research ship)
SV: Sailing vessel (sailing vessel)
FV: Fishing vessel (fishing vessel)
GTS: Gas turbine ship (gas turbine powered ship)
NS: Nuclear ship (nuclear powered ship)
TEV: Turbine electric vessel (vessel powered by an electric turbine)
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SOURCES Book Ships of the World: An Historical Encyclopediaby Lincoln P. Paine
IMAGE reproduction