1. Alcoholics Affiliated
   Alcoholics Anonymous
2. Animators Affiliated
   Americans Abroad

AA was founded by "Bill W." and is one of the best-known treatment programs for alcoholism in the world. However, exact numbers of those treated are hard to come by, since, as the name indicates, privacy is key.

1. Federal Bureau of Investigation
   Federal Bureau of Intelligence
2. Federal Benefits Industry
   Full-Blooded Italian

This one was probably fairly easy. The FBI is one of the best-known government agencies, partly because it is a favorite subject of TV and movies -- including "The X-files," the subject matter of which is pretty far afield from what the FBI actually does!

1. Unearthly Flying Object
   Unidentified Flying Object
2. Unusual Flight Formation
   Unusual Found Object

The term "UFO" arose in the 1950s, replacing terms like "flying disc." That term was too specific about the shape of the object, which wasn't always disc-like, and it implied the UFO was some kind of alien craft, when in fact most are explainable terrestrial phenomena.

1. Living on Lifesavers
   Living Out Loud
2. Laughing Out Loud
   Lots of Love

"LOL" has been mistaken for "Lots of Love," with unfortunate consequences. One widely-circulated anecdote tells the story of a woman who responded to a death in a friend's family by typing, "So sorry to hear. LOL."

1. British Broadcasting Corporation
   British Baking Company
2. British Broadcasting Company
   British Broadcasters' Cohort

We all love British baking shows, it's true! But the BBC is the British Broadcasting Corporation.

1. Also Tell Me
   Automatic Teller Machine
2. Automated Teller Machine
   Automatic Transmission Mode

Many people might say "automatic," but it isn't really -- you still have to use the keypad. Or you could avoid the whole issue by saying "cash machine" instead.

1. Managers & Marketers Association
   Management & Merger Analysis
2. Mixed-Media Arts
   Mixed Martial Arts

MMA came about when fighters in different styles wanted a way to compare their skills via a head-to-head fight. Senator John McCain has called MMA "human cock fighting," though he's since softened his stance.

1. North American Baseball Association
   North American Basketball Association
2. National Basketball Association
   National Baseball Association

OK, you probably found this one easy. "NBA" is a straightforward acronym -- and it helps that basketball is one of the most popular sports in America.

1. National Air and Space Association
   National Aeronautics and Space Administration
2. National Astronauts and Spacefarers Association
   National Aeronautics and Space Association

The "Administration" part is what tricks people. But this isn't just an "association" of like-minded people. It's a government-affiliated agency.

1. Young Men's Christian Association
   Young Men's Christian Athletics
2. Young Men's Christian Affiliation
   Young Male Christians of America

Nowadays, you don't have to be young, male OR Christian to use these facilities, which are now largely inexpensive gyms for the public. But the name has stuck, since "the A" sounds unimpressive.

1. Scholastic Aptitude Test
   Scholastic Assessment Test
2. Scholarly Ability Test
   Both #1 and #2

Did you know that "the SAT" no longer stands for anything, according to the College Board that manages it? The "A" used to stand for "Aptitude," then for "Assessment." Finally, the College Board decided the name "SAT" was so famous it could stand alone.

1. North American Trade Organization
   North American Trade Omnibus
2. North American Treaty Organization
   North Atlantic Treaty Organization

NATO is one of those acronyms so common that many people don't remember the full name. But it's "Atlantic," and comprises 29 nations, mostly in the Northern Hemisphere.

1. Dog Enthusiasts' Association
   Dog Enthusiasts Affiliated
2. Drug Enforcement Agency
   Drug Enablers Anonymous

The DEA is the branch of U.S. federal law enforcement that deals with drug crimes. It is substantially aided, though, by the FBI and U.S. Customs.

1. Critical Information Association
   Criminal Information Association
2. Central Intelligence Agency
   Columbia Intelligence Agency

The CIA is informally known to its agents as "the Company." Its role is intelligence-gathering, often overseas. Don't confuse it with the FBI.

1. Health (in) Moderation Organization
   Health Maintenance Organization
2. Health Management Organization
   Health Management & Oversight

The HMO was a response to rising health care costs. It offers lower costs for consumers and their employers (if a workplace-based plan), but also fewer choices in providers.

1. American Association for Role Play
   American Association of Retired Persons
2. American Association of Railroad Personnel
   Anglican Affiliation of Religious People

The AARP is a well-known name in America. It's active in lobbying Congress on issues affecting retired people, and also runs a magazine providing health and lifestyle advice for seniors.

1. Snakes & Serpents Association
   Social Security Administration
2. Serbian Students Affiliated
   Silence & Secrecy Agency

Social Security is a kind of national pension program in which employees and employers both pay into during their working lives, then get a monthly check after retirement. It was founded in the early 20th century to prevent poverty among the elderly.

1. Internally Managed Health Organization
   Internal Medicine Health Organization
2. In My Humble Opinion
   In My House Only

This is a term that arose on Internet message boards. Is the speaker always being genuinely humble? Not really!

1. Grain Producers Association
   Grade-Point Average
2. Grapplers & Pummelers Association
   Good People of America

Where do we sign up to be part of Good People of America? Is there an entrance exam?

1. World Health Organization
   Working Healthcare Offices
2. Worldwide Healthcare Organizers
   Women's Health Organization

This acronym is sometimes pronounced as the word "WHO." It is run by the United Nations and headquartered in Geneva.

1. North Atlantic Financial Trade Association
   North Atlantic Free Trade Act
2. North American Free Trade Agreement
   North American Free Trade Act

NAFTA is a pact signed by Mexico, the US, and Canada. It was signed during the Clinton administration, but had been in the works for some time before that.

1. United Furniture Company
   Ultimate Figure-Skating Championship
2. Ultimate Fighting Championship
   United Foods Corporation

The UFC is America's reigning MMA-fight-promotion company. Walk past any sports bar in the US, and you'll see posters advertising their next pay-per-view.

1. Be Right Back
   Be Real, Baby
2. Be Relatively Brief
   Bring Rum, Baby!

This gets used during a real-time Internet chat -- for example, if you want to get up and fix yourself some hot chocolate. It's less necessary in the age of video chat.

1. National Baking Company
   National Broadcasting Company
2. Northern Broadcasters of America
   Northern Broadcasting Corporation

Fun fact: NBC used to be the acronym for the "National Biscuit Company." Nowadays, you know them as "Nabisco."

1. Movement in Fine Arts
   Majoring in Film Arts
2. Master of Fine Arts
   Mighty Fine Asparagus

MFA programs are advanced programs in writing, painting, and so forth.

1. Universal Serial Bus
   Unlikely Side Benefit
2. Unusual Sight (to) Behold
   United States (of) Benetton

If you use a computer (and current evidence suggests you do), you know what a USB is, if not how to define it. It's a name for any kind of connector that uses a universal (hence the name) connector at the end, the one with the familiar narrow-trapezoid shape.

1. American Telephone & Telegraph
   Atlantic Telephone & Telegraph
2. American Telephone & Television
   Abrams, Tilson & Thierry

Surprised? Many people think the "A" is for "American." And they might not remember that the second "T" is for "Telegraph." It's all pretty dated for a now-global high-technology company, but changing the name now would probably require millions of dollars of re-branding.

1. Quite Edifying Demonstration
   Quite Early Development
2. Quite Educational Display
   Quod Erat Demonstratum

Quod Erat Demonstratum means "which has been shown." Don't say "Quod Erat Demonstrandum," which would mean "which has been needs to be shown," which doesn't make any sense. (An "andus" or "andum" construction in Latin means "should" or "needs to.")

1. Industry & Business Mechanics
   International Business Machines
2. Internal Business Mechanisms
   Internal Bylaws & Meanings

IBM coined its name long before computers as we know them existed. Now, like AT&T, it's deeply involved in high technology, but has kept its old-fashioned name.

1. Literacy & Scholarship Aptitude Test
   Legal Scholastic Aptitude Test
2. Law School Admission Test
   Law Schools of America Test

Despite its similarity to the name "SAT," for "Scholastic Aptitude/Assessment Test," it's not the "Legal Scholastic Aptitude (or Assessment) Test." The LSAT, as its name implies, is for those college graduates wishing to advance to law school.

1. Over Easy Dish
   Oxford Educational Dictionary
2. Oxford English Dictionary
   Oh, Ed!

The Oxford English Dictionary is generally agreed to be the ultimate authority on what is or isn't part of the English language (British English, at least). If you've ever seen an unabridged edition, it was probably on a stand somewhere in a library, because it's too big and heavy to easily put on and take off a shelf.

1. Commercial Broadcasting Studios
   Columbia Broadcasting System
2. Columbia Broadcasting Studios
   Christian Broadcasting Society

"Columbia" is a kind of poetic name for America, derived from Christopher Columbus. And, though it might seem odd, the "S" stands for "System" -- though in what way a network is a "system," we're not sure.

1. British Columbian Educators
   British Columbian Empire
2. Before the Common Era
   Believers in Christian Empathy

"Before the Common Era" and "Common Era" are replacements for the Christian-centered terms "B.C." and "A.D." Many people still use the latter, informally, but university professors and educators usually apply the more neutral terms.

1. Overall Beneficial Excellence
   Orderly & Beneficial Environment
2. Orderly & Beautiful Environment
   (Most Excellent) Order of the British Empire

This one is for our English friends! The OBE is a medal given to British nationals or others who have made contributions to the English nation in a variety of fields: art, science, public service, and so on.

1. The first is pronounced as a word, the second read as its individual letters
   The first is for multi-word phrases and the second for shortening of single words
2. The first is a modern term; the second is out-of-date
   These are interchangeable terms

The Chicago Manual of Style explains that "AIDS" is an acronym, and "BBC" an initialism. It further goes on to introduce the term "contraction," which is when the first and last letter of the word is used, e.g. "Mr."