Here are some of our commonly used abbreviations.
| Adf | Average daily flow | Ntch | Notch |
| ALF | Alleviation of Low Flows | NW | North West |
| AOD | Above Ordnanace Datum | OD | Ordnance Datum |
| AMAX | Annual Maximum Flow | O/f | Outfall or Outflow |
| B-C | Broad-crested (weir) | ORS | Old Red Sandstone |
| Bk | Beck | Pk | Park |
| Blk | Black | Pop | Population |
| Br | Bridge | POR | Period of Record |
| Brk or B | Brook | POT | Peaks-over-Threshold |
| Brn | Burn | PS | Pumping station |
| BNFL | British Nuclear Fuels Ltd | Pt | Point |
| BS | British Standards | PT | Permo-Triassic (sandstones) |
| CA | Catchment Area | PWS | Public Water Supply |
| CMR | Catchment Monthly Rainfall | QMED | The mean annual maxima flood |
| CEH | Centre for Ecology & Hydrology | Q95 | The flow exceeded 95% of the time |
| Ch | Channel | Rb | Right bank (looking downstream) |
| Com | Common | R/c | Racecourse |
| Dk | Dike | RCS | Regional Communications System |
| DMFs | Daily Mean Flows | Rd | Road |
| Dr or D | Drain | R&D | Research and Development |
| D/s | Downstream | Res | Reservior |
| E | East | Rh | Right hand |
| EN | Electromagentic gauging station | RPB | River Purification Board |
| F&M | Foot & Mouth Disease | S | South |
| FRM | Farm | S'st | Sandstone |
| G/s | Gauging Station | Sch | School |
| Gw | Groundwater | S-D | Stage-discharge (relationship) |
| GDFs | Gauged Daily Flows | SDD | Scottish Development Department |
| HEP | Hydrol-electric Power | SE | South East |
| HIFs | Highest Instantaneous Flows | SOE | Scottish Office Environment Dept. |
| Ho | House | Sl | Sluice |
| Hosp | Hospital | Sp | Spring |
| IH | Institute of Hydrology | St | Stream |
| IoW | Isle of Wight | STW | Sewage Treatment Works |
| L | Loch or Lake | SW | South West or Surface Water |
| Lb | Left bank (looking downstream) | TS | Transfer Scheme |
| Ln | Lane | US | Ultrasonic gauging station |
| LOCAR | Lowland Catchment Resear Project | U/s | Upstream |
| L'st | Limestone | VA | Velocity area gauging station |
| Ltl | Little | W | West |
| MAF | Mean Annual Flood | W'course | Watercourse |
| Mkt | Market | WBGS | West Berkshire Groundwater Scheme |
| Ml/d | Megalitres per day | Wd | Wood |
| Mnr | Manor | Wr | Weir |
| N | North | WRW | Water Reclamation Work |
| NERPB | North East River Purification Board | Wtr | Water |
| NRFA | National River Archive | WTW | Water Treatment Works |
| NSHEB | North Scotland Hydro-Electric Board |