Note Taking
Symbols
The table below contains some of the symbols most often used in note taking.
SOME SYMBOLS USED IN NOTE TAKING
Practice
Less than, smaller than or before, prior to
<
Less than or equal to, on or before
≤
Greater than, bigger than OR after, following
>
Greater than or equal to, on or after that date
≥
Woman or women
♀
Man or men
♂
Infinity, never ending
∞
At, (eg at a cost of, at a rate of, each one)
@
Approximately
≈
Therefore
∴
Not equal to, not the same as
≠
A number of, the number of particular items
#
Because
∵
With
ċ
Up, increasing, bigger

Down, decreasing, smaller

Ditto, the same as before or above
″
More to follow, or information has been omitted
….
SMS messaging
People using SMS (short messaging service) may already be familiar with some good
notetaking techniques. For example, they might send a message to a friend that read, TYVM
4 set meet went well B4N (Thank you very much for setting up the meeting. It went well.
Bye for now). This technique can be applied to taking notes in a business environment.
Table 8: SMS Messaging Abbreviations
Practice
SMS Text
Are you okay
ruok
Be mine
bmine
Birthday
bday
Bye for now
b4n
Free to talk
f2t
Laugh out loud
lol
Oh I see
oic
Talk to you later
t2ul8r
Thank you very much
tyvm
Too much information
tmi
Omitting vowels
Another useful note taking strategy is to omit vowels except for essential, initial and final
vowel sounds.
Write out the full form of the sayings in the spaces provided below.
1. ppl who liv in gls hss shdnt thrw stns.
_______________________________________________________________________
2. dnt jdg a bk by its cvr.
_______________________________________________________________________
3. mny hnds mk lt wrk.
_______________________________________________________________________
4. u cn alwys trn ovr a nw lf.
_______________________________________________________________________
To transcribe the sentences with missing vowels back to the full form, we try out the
sound of the consonants and then try out different vowel sounds until the words make
sense. Even with some of the vowels left out, the meaning of the sentences is quite clear.
The context helps you work out the meaning of the shortened words.
To help you decide which vowels to omit, the notes below explain why vowels were
included or omitted in the first saying:
People
“eo” omitted. “e” also omitted at end of word people. This
vowel is not sounded when we pronounce people. Although it is
written at the end of the word, it is not a final vowel sound and so
can be omitted. The word who following people may have also
provided a context hint.
who
who is written in full as “o” is the final vowel sound and must be
included.
live
lv could have been live or love – either makes sense, so the “i” is
essential to make it clear. The final “e” is not sounded and so can
be omitted.
in
“i” is included as it is the initial vowel. Initial vowels are
included to avoid any confusion.
glass
“a” is omitted as it is not an essential, initial or final vowel
sound.
houses
“ou” and “e” are omitted as they are not essential, initial or
final vowel sounds.
Shouldn’t
“ou” and “o” are omitted as they are not essential, initial or
final vowel sounds.
throw
“o” is omitted as it is not an essential, initial or final vowel
sound.
stones
“o” and “e” are omitted as they are not initial or final vowel
sounds.
Using symbols for prefixes and suffixes
A prefix is a meaningful group of letters added to the beginning of a word (eg
understand), and a suffix is a meaningful group of letters added to the end of a word (eg
education).
A good notetaking technique is to represent prefixes and suffixes by using a single letter
written smaller than usual and above the usual line of writing, eg education (educan).
Some words have both a prefix and a suffix, eg understandable, which can be written as
u
st&b.
Some common prefixes and suffixes are listed below. Remember, context helps to work
out the meaning when one superscript can stand for more than one prefix or suffix. Try
to drop vowels, except essential, initial or final vowels.
Prefixes/Suffixes
Example
Practice
after
afternoon
ann
ance
allowance
allwa
ant
confidant
confida
able
fixable
fxb
com
comfortable
c
4tb
con
conflict
c
flct
dis
disclaim
d
dis
dispose
d
des
despise
d
ever
everglade
e
gld
every
everybody
e
bdy
ence
confidence
cfde
ent
discontent
dc e
ever
however
hwe
ever
endeavour
ende
ful
helpful
hlpf
graph
autograph
autog
gram
program
prog
hope
hopeful
hf
inter
interrupt
i
inter
interpret
i
intro
introduce
i
ing
waiting
w8i
ing
bringing
brii
clm
pos
pis
t
rpt
prt
dc
Using capital letters to represent words
Capital letters can be used to represent the days of the week and the months of the year.
Capital letters can also be used to represent whole words or word sounds. Remember, the
context will be the key as to which abbreviation is correct.
Table 1: Capital Letters for Days of the Week and Months of Year
Symbol
Days of the week
Symbol
January
J
Sunday
S
February
F
Monday
M
March
M
Tuesday
T
April
A
Wednesday
W
May
Ma
Thursday
Th
June
Jn
Friday
F
July
Jl
Saturday
Sa
August
Au
September
S
October
O
November
N
December
D
Short forms for frequently used word groups
All letters have a salutation (greeting), an introduction, and a complimentary close. Some
of these can be abbreviated to very short forms. They will be recognised because they are
in frequent use.
Short form (Salutation)
Phrase
Ds
Dear Sir
Dm
Dear Madam
Dm
Dear Miss
Dmr
Dear Mr
Short form (Introductions)
Phrase
Ihul
I have your letter
Irul
I received your letter
Ir2ul
I refer to your letter
Tu4ul
Thank you for your letter
Short form (Complimentary closes)
Phrase
Uf
Yours faithfully
Us
Yours sincerely
Kr
Kind regards
Ufr
Your friend
Plain English
Be Precise



Avoid vague terms such as “as soon as possible”. Give a specific date or time
instead.
Do not use general words such as “several”, “many” or “a few” as they mean
different things to different people. Instead use specific numbers or quantities.
If you are referring to documents or papers, always give a full title and, if necessary,
the date, so that the meaning is clear even after some time.
Use short words, sentences and paragraphs
Do not use a long word where a short word will do. Similarly, do not use an unusual or
obscure word where there is a common one available:
A response is required
Ameliorate
Comprehend
An answer is needed
Improve
understand
Don’t pad out sentences with extra words
There are many phrases that are simply unnecessary or could be replaced by a simple word:
The council would like to take this
opportunity to thank the team
Come to a decision
In the event that
The department is large in size
In addition
The Council thanks the team
Decide
If
The department is large
There is also
Use the active voice
The active voice is shorter, more direct and more easily understood than the passive voice.
It simply means identifying the taker of action before the action:
It was decided by the committee
It will be settled by the manager
The committee decided
The manager will settle
Avoid jargon
Jargon is any term or acronym that is understood by a particular group of people (and by
definition not by those outside the group). Examples might be:
 Slang or current buzzwords
 Use of initials or acronyms
 Highly technical terms – if you have to use technical terms make sure they are
explained in brackets.
Write in the positive
Write about what has been done, will be done, etc. rather than what has not, will not be
done
Visitors will not be allowed unless
accompanied
The scheme is not suitable for staff aged
under 45
Visitors will be allowed if accompanied
The scheme is suitable for staff aged 45
and over
Source: Gutmann, J, (2001), Taking Minutes of Meetings, Kogan Page, London
Listed below are some useful websites to assist with Note Taking.
http://michaelhyatt.com/recovering-the-lost-art-of-note-taking.html
http://www.english-zone.com/study/symbols.html
http://www.ilile.org/events/past/Seminar_08_03/lesson_plans/Wheelersburg/NoteTakingSymb
olsandAbreviations.htm