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I just wanted to know what is the English full form of "RSVP", a word which we usually use on invitation cards? I read somewhere it's a French word.

So I wanted to confirm if it has any English full form and if it does, what it is?

I googled the same but didn't get the correct thing, so thought of asking here.

Cascabel
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RSVP is indeed French and it stands for répondez s'il vous plaît. It literally means "please respond".

RSVP is now a fixed idiom, even in French. If you spell it out in English, very few people will understand what you mean. You are better off keeping it as an acronym or coming up with something that is purely English if you don't want an acronym.

Kareen
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    And given that people often say "please RSVP" in English, it's pretty clear that it really is no longer an abbreviation. – Cascabel Jan 08 '14 at 20:50
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    @WS2 Is there a convention on EL&U for skipping past the entire "words mean what people commonly use them as" discussion? People have been saying "please RSVP" for decades; I think it's a long-lost battle. No one hears "please respond" when they hear it, they hear "let us know if you're coming". – Cascabel Jan 08 '14 at 20:58
  • @Jefromi I strive in a formal register to speak the Queen's English. I also speak various dialects which I am able to use in appropriate circumstances. But if the Queen wouldn't say it, then it is not Queen's English. And there is no way on earth that you would get an invitation to the Buckingham Palace Garden Party with 'please RSVP' on it. – WS2 Jan 08 '14 at 21:03
  • @WS2 Fair enough, I was talking about more common usage - typical dinner parties, not royal functions. – Cascabel Jan 08 '14 at 21:09
  • Strictly speaking RSVP is not an acronym. It is an 'initialism' or 'alphebetism'. To be an acronym it has to spell a pronounceable word, which word is used to refer to the thing in question. Examples are NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organisation), SCUBA (Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus). There are other types of acronyms which employ both initial and non-initial letters, such as RADAR (Radio Detection and Ranging) and GESTAPO (Geheime Staatspolizei). – WS2 Jan 08 '14 at 21:14
  • @Jefromi But if you are going to go to the trouble of sending out formal invitations (rather than picking up the phone and saying 'hello Jo, do you and your missus fancy coming round for pie and chips on Saturday?) then why not do it so that it makes sense. 'Please RSVP' is like a grocer's apostrophe on a gravestone (of which I have seen just one). – WS2 Jan 08 '14 at 21:18
  • @WS2 I'm not saying I'd do it, but I think in terms of parents inviting people to their kids' birthday parties, the ship has sailed. – Cascabel Jan 08 '14 at 21:20
  • @Jefromi I don't actually mind if other people do it. I'm just saying I wouldn't. – WS2 Jan 08 '14 at 22:25
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It's a French abbreviation for « Répondez, s'il vous plaît », meaning "Please respond." (Literally, « s'il vous plaît » means "if it pleases you". However, no French speaker thinks of it that way — it's just the way to say "please".)

A "pure" English alternative might be, "The favor of your reply is appreciated."

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    +1. Note that while « s'il vous plaît » is an idiom, its literal meaning does affect the choice of pronoun: one says « s'il vous plaît » when using vous (plural or polite), and « s'il te plaît » when using tu (singular and familiar). – ruakh Jan 08 '14 at 22:22