V - vv - vs

The best plural form of the abbreviation v, or v., for 'verse, whether in literature, particularly poetry, or in the Bible, is to double it, vv (or vv.).

It is sometimes seen written as vs; but there is a more common meaning of that form: vs or vs. is a fuller form of v used to link opponents in sporting contests, e.g. "Arsenal v Manchester United". It means 'against', and represents the Latin word for that, versus, as in "Arsenal vs Manchester United". So the fuller abbreviation is vs (best written in italic, as being a foreign word, and without a full stop, as '-s' is the final letter in the original word.)

Other occurrences of V as an abbreviation which may be useful to users of AWE include the following.

• The V & A (or V&A, V and A) is the Victoria and Albert Museum of decorative arts and design in London.
• V.C. in military circles in Britain means [holder of] the 'Victoria Cross', the highest British medal for bravery.
  • In recent American military history, VC meant the Viet Cong, the army (and political arm) which fought the Americans and their allies in Vietnam 1954-1976, and won.
  • In academic circles, the V.C. of a University is the Vice-Chancellor, the chief professional of the institution - equivalent to the C.E.O. (Chief Executive Officer) or Managing Director of a business, or headteacher of a school.
• V.D. (or v.d.) stands for venereal disease, any of the infections transmitted by sexual contact, now more commonly S.T.D. 'sexually transmitted disease[s]' or S.T.I. 'sexually transmitted infection[s]'.
• VE Day, for 'Victory in Europe Day', is the day, or anniversary of the day, when Germany surrendered, ending the Second World War in Europe, (8 May 1945)
• VJ Day, for 'Victory in Japan Day', is more ambiguous, in that VJ Day refers to "either the day upon which Japan ceased fighting (14 August 1945) or the day of Japan's formal surrender (2 September 1945)" (OED).
• V-1 and V-2 (or V1 and V2) were automated long-range weapons developed by Germany during the Second world War. The V1, or Vergeltungswaffe ('retaliation weapon') 1, was the 'flying bomb' (sometimes referred to, more informally, as the 'doodlebug'); the V2 was a rocket, a ballistic missile.
• In chemistry, V. is the symbol for the element vanadium.
• In the physical sciences, v is the abbreviation for the electrical unit volt.
• In British schools, the abbreviation v.g. (or vg) is used in written feedback to mean 'very good'.