2phb - Two side phosphor bands

A
AAT - Australian Antarctic Territory.
Addr - Addressed.
Adm - Administration|
AFDCS - American First Day Cover Society
AFL - American Football League or Australian Football League or American Federation of Labor.
Anniv - Anniversary
Ant - Antilles.
ANZAC - Australia & New Zealand Army Corps.
Aph - All over phosphor or phosphorized paper
APS - American Philatelic Society
APU - Arab Postal Union
ASDA - American Stamp Dealer's Association
ASEAN - Association of South East Asian Nations
ASPCA - American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
Assoc - Association.
ATA - American Topical Association.
Avg - Average

B
b - Born
BAT - British Antarctic Territory.
BEP - Bureau of Engraving and Printing
Bg - Browned Gum.
Bicent - Bicentennial
BIOT - British Indian Ocean Territory.
Bklt - Booklet
Blk - Block of stamps
BMA - British Military Authority.
BNA - British North America.
BOB - Back-of-the-book e.g. Officials, Postage Dues, Revenues etc.
BP - Complete booklet pane
Br or Brit - British
btwn - Between
Bur - Bureau.
BVI - British Virgin Islands.
BWI - British West Indies

C
¢.- Cent
c.or ca - Circa
CAR - Central African Republic
Cat - Catalogue
Cds - Circular date stamp
Cent - Centennial; centenary; century.
CEPT - Conference Européan des Administrations des Postes et des Telécommunications.
CGB - Cross Gutter Block.
CIO - Congress of Industrial Organizations.
CIS - Commonwealth of Independent States (formerly part of USSR)
Cis - Crease in selvage (usually refers to s/s)
Cm - Corner margin
Cnr - Corner
Conf - Conference
Cong - Congress
CP - Unsevered coil pair
Cphb - One center phosphor band
Cpl - Complete or Corporal
Cplt - Complete
CTO - Cancelled to order
CTS - Cut-to-shape.
CV - Catalog value.
Cvr - Cover.

D
d - Died
Dbl - Double
DDR - Deutsche Democratische Republik (East Germany).
Delcon - Delivery Confirmation.
Dg - Disturbed gum.
DOB - Date of birth.
DPRK - Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea).

E
E - Euro (European currency).
EC - European Community
ECU - European currency unit
ECV - Estimated catalog value.
EEC - European Economic Community
EKU - Earliest known use
Engr - Engraved
Est - Estimate(d) or Established.
Exhib - Exhibition
Expo - Exposition

F
F- Fine condition of a stamp.
FAM - First Air Mail (flight).
F-VF - Fine to very fine condition of a stamp.
FAO - Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations
FD - First Day
FDC - First Day Cover
FDOI - First Day of Issue
FDX - First day cancel
Fed - Federation or Federal
FFC - First Flight Cover
FFH - Freedom From Hunger
FID - Falkland Island Dependencies.
FIP - Federation International de Philatelie.
FOG - Fingerprint on gum.
FR - Ffestiniog Railway, Wales U.K. Railway stamps - some just say FR.
FSAT - French Southern & Antarctic Territories.
FSM - Federated States of Micronesia.

G
GB - Great Britain
GEA - German East Africa.
Gen - General
GG - Glazed gum
GP - General purpose or Gutter pair.
GPO - General Post Office

H
HC - Hand cancel
H/C - Hand colored
H/D - Hand drawn
H/M - Handmade
Hor or Horiz - Horizontal
H/P - Hand painted
HPO - Highway Post Office

I
IA - Ink addressed
ICAO - International Civil Aviation Organization
ICY - International Cooperation Year.
IGPC - Inter-Governmental Philatelic Corporation.
ILO - International Labor Organization
Imperf - Imperforated
Impt - Imprint
Intl - International
Invtd - Inverted
IQSY - International Quiet Sun Year
ITU - International Telecommunications Union
ITY - International Tourism Year
IWY - International Women's Year
IYC - International Year of the Child
IYD - International Year of the Disabled
IYSH - International Year of Shelter for the Homeless
IYY - International Youth Year

J

K
KEVIII or KE8 - King Edward VIII of England
KGV or KG5 - King George V of England.
KGVI or KG6 - King George VI of England.
KSA - Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
KUT - Kenya, Uganda & Tanganyika (later Tanzania).

L
£ - British pound sterling
L - Left
LA - Label addressed
LH - Lightly hinged
Lieut - Lieutenant
Litho - Lithographed
LL - Lower left
LP - Line pair
LR - Lower right
LSASE - Large stamped, self-addressed envelope.

M
Maxi - Maximum Card.
MC - Machine cancel
Mgn - Margin.
Mil - Military.
mm - Millimeter
MNG - Mint, no gum
MNH - Mint never hinged.
MO - Money Order.
Ms - Manuscript or Miniature sheet.
MVLH - Mint, very lightly hinged

N
NASA - National Aeronautic and Space Administration
NASDA - North American Stamps Dealers Association.
Natl - National
NATO - North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
NG - No gum
NH - Never hinged.
No. or Nr - Number
NS - No selvage (usually refers to a stamp from a S/S).
NSTA - National Science Teachers Association.
NX - Neat cds cancel.
NZ - New Zealand.

O
OAU - Organization of Africa Union.
O/C - Off center.
OE - Cover has been opened on the end
OG - Original gum
OHMS - On His (Her) Majesty's Service.
OHS - Owner's tiny handstamp on the back of a stamp.
OPEC - Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries
OS - Official Service.
OT - Cover has been opened at the top
Ovpt - Overprint
Ovptd - Overprinted

P
Pa - Pencil addressed or (album) paper adherence on the gum side of a stamp.
Paq - Paquebot mail.
PB - Plate block.
PC - Postcard.
PDG - Philatelic Dealer's Group
PDR - People's Democratic Republic
Perf - Perforated
PG - Part original gum
Ph - Phosphor
Phil - Philatelic
Photo - Photogravure
Pkg - Package.
Pl# - Plate number
PMC - Postage and Mailing Center stamp.
PNC - Plate numbered coil
PNG - Papua New Guinea.
PO - Post Office.
Pr - Pair of stamps
PR - Puerto Rico
PRC - People's Republic of China (Communist China)
Prec - Precancel; precancelled
Pres - President.
PTS - Philatelic Traders Society.
PX - Pen cancel

Q
QEII or QE2 - Queen Elizabeth II of England.
QM - Queen Mother.
QV - Queen Victoria of England

R
R - Right
RAF - (British) Royal Air Force.
Reg - Registered.
Rev - Revenue.
RG - Regummed
Rio - Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
ROC - Republic of China (Taiwan).
ROK - Republic of Korea.
Roul - Rouletted.
RPO - Railroad Post Office
RSA - Republic of. South Africa.
RSC - Rubberstamp cachet.
RSW - Royal Silver Wedding.
RTS - Return to sender.
RX - Revenue cancel.

S
$ - Dollar
SAE - Self-addressed envelope.
SAR - Syrian Arab Republic.
SASE - Self-addressed stamped envelope.
SCV - Scott catalog value.
SE - One straight edge on a stamp.
SEATO - South East Asia Treaty Organization.
SG - Stanley Gibbons catalog.
Sgl - Single stamp
Sgt - Sergeant
Sht - Sheet
SMOM - Sovereign Military Order of the Knights of Malta.
Soc - Society
SON - Socked-on-the-nose cancel
Souv - Souvenir
Spec - Specimen overprint
Sphb - Single, one side phosphor band
SPI - Small natural inclusion in the paper
S/S - Souvenir sheet
SSR - Soviet Socialist Republic
St - Saint or Street.
Surch - Surcharge.
Sync perfs - Syncopated perforations.

T
TAAF - Territoires Australe et Antarctique Francais (French Southern & Antarctic Territories).
Tb or Tlb - Traffic light block
Typo - Typographed

U
UA - Unaddressed
UAE - United Arab Emirates.
UAMPT - Union of African and Malagasy Posts and Telecommunications
UAR - United Arab Republic (formerly of Egypt & Syria).
UB - Undivided back of a postcard.
UK - United Kingdom
UL - Upper left
UN - United Nations.
Unaddr - Unaddressed.
UNESCO - United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
UNICEF - United Nations Children's Education Fund
Univ - University.
UNPA - United Nations Postal Authority.
Unwmkd - Unwatermarked.
UO - Unofficial First Day Cover
UPU - Universal Postal Union.
UR - Upper right
US or USA - United States or United States of America or United States Army.
USAF - United States Air Force.
USCG - United States Coast Guard.
USMC - United States Marine Corps.
USN - United States Navy.
USPO - United States Post Office
USPS - United States Postal Service
USSR - Union of Soviet Socialist Republics
USVI - U.S. Virgin Islands
UV - Ultra-violet

V
Var - Variation or Variety
Vert - Vertical
VF - Very fine condition of a stamp.
VLH - Very lightly hinged
VP - Vice president

W
WCY - World Communications Year
WFUNA - World Federation of United Nations Associations
WHO - World Health Organization
Wi - Watermark inverted
Wmk - Watermark
Wmkd - Watermarked
WMO - World Meteorological Organization
Wr - Watermark reversed
WRY - World Refugee Year
Ws - Watermark sideways
Wsi - Watermark sideways inverted
WWF - World Wildlife Fund
WWI - World War I
WWII - World War II

X
XF - Extra fine condition of a stamp.
Xmas - Christmas.

Y
¥ - Yen (Japanese currency)
YAR - Yemen Arab Republic

Z