SCOTUS

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Grammarist

SCOTUS is an acronym that stands for Supreme Court of The United States. An acronym is an abbreviation of a phrase formed from the first letters of each word. SCOTUS is now an entry in the Oxford English Dictionary, it is pronounced with a long o.

SCOTUS seems to have originated in 1879 as telegraph code when Walter Phillips used POT to designate the President of the United States and Scotus to refer to the Supreme Court of The United States. In 1895 an Alabama newspaper referenced the telegraph code.

The term SCOTUS came into common usage with the Secret Service and other governmental agencies. Television shows such as West Wing probably familiarized such acronyms to the general public, SCOTUS is now used freely in print and online.

Examples

The SCOTUS ruling also allowed gay spouses to be listed as “surviving partner” on death certificates — the very reason Obergefell sued in the first place.  (Houston Press)

DOJ Takes Newman Decision To SCOTUS: What’s In Request And What’s Not (Forbes)

SCOTUS Wraps Up: 5 Takeaways From the Supreme Court’s Current Term (Huffington Post)

Florida politicians react to SCOTUS legalizing same-sex marriage (Miami Herald)

Thursday could be one of those days, so the friendly folks at Bloomberg Politics helpfully compiled a guide to what’s still in the SCOTUS pipeline, and whether Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor will be celebrating a birthday with a clean desk and vacation plans. (U.S. News & World Report)

Yesterday, the SCOTUS voted 5-4 to allow the clinics to stay open while the justices decide whether to hear an appeal on the case. (New York Magazine)

States Lose $721B If SCOTUS Rules Against Obamacare (The Fiscal Times)

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