SS
Abbreviation with 14 meanings
| Stands for | Shortstop |
|---|---|
| Meanings | 14 |
| Categories | Sports, Science & Engineering, Transportation & Travel, Medical, Geography & Places, Units & Measurements, Business & Finance, Law & Legal |
| Also written | ss, ss. |
SS has 14 meanings. The most common are Shortstop (baseball) and Stainless steel (engineering); it can also stand for Steamship, Sjögren's syndrome, Sliding scale, South Sudan and Sum of squares, plus 7 more listed below.
Meanings of SS at a glance
| # | SS stands for | Context |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shortstop | Sports › Baseball |
| 2 | Stainless steel | Science & Engineering › Engineering |
| 3 | Steamship | Transportation & Travel › Maritime |
| 4 | Sjögren's syndrome | Medical › Musculoskeletal & Rheumatology |
| 5 | Sliding scale | Medical › Prescription |
| 6 | South Sudan | Geography & Places › Country Code |
| 7 | Sum of squares | Units & Measurements › Statistics |
| 8 | Safety stock | Business & Finance › Logistics, Supply Chain & Trade |
| 9 | Scilicet (namely, to wit) | Law & Legal › Latin Legal |
| 10 | Super Sport | Transportation & Travel › Automotive |
| 11 | Strong safety | Sports › American Football |
| 12 | Semis (one half) | Medical › Prescription |
| 13 | Single strength | Medical › Pharmacy |
| 14 | Start-to-start | Business & Finance › Project Management |
1. Shortstop
Sports · Baseball Abbreviations
Infielder positioned between second and third base, position number 6, usually the most skilled and athletic infielder, covering the most ground and making long throws. Shortstops anchor the infield defense.
Example: Lineup: Seager SS, Semien 2B, Garcia RF.
The position originated with Doc Adams in the 1840s-1850s, who played between second and third to relay throws from the outfield. Cal Ripken Jr., Derek Jeter and Ozzie Smith are famed shortstops. In football SS means strong safety.
2. Stainless steel
Science & Engineering · Engineering Abbreviations
Steel containing at least about 10.5% chromium, which forms a thin, self-repairing oxide layer that resists rust. Grades such as 304 (about 18% chromium and 8% nickel) and 316 (with added molybdenum for saltwater resistance) are used in kitchens, medical tools, chemical plants and architecture.
Example: Specify 316 SS fasteners for the dock because 304 will pit in seawater.
Harry Brearley of Sheffield is credited with discovering a practical stainless steel in 1913 while seeking erosion-resistant gun barrels. Austenitic 300-series grades are generally nonmagnetic, while ferritic and martensitic 400-series grades are magnetic. Stainless can still corrode in chloride environments or where its oxide layer is deprived of oxygen.
3. Steamship
Transportation & Travel · Maritime Abbreviations
Prefix for a ship propelled by steam engines or steam turbines, used by ocean liners and cargo ships from the 19th century through the mid-20th century. Famous examples include SS United States and SS Great Britain.
Example: SS United States still holds the eastbound transatlantic speed record set on its maiden voyage in 1952.
Also written S/S or S.S. Brunel's SS Great Britain of 1843 was the first iron-hulled, screw-propelled ship to cross the Atlantic, and it is preserved in Bristol. SS United States was towed from Philadelphia in 2025 to be prepared as an artificial reef off Florida. Steam turbines remain in use on some nuclear warships and LNG carriers.
4. Sjögren's syndrome
Medical · Musculoskeletal & Rheumatology Abbreviations
Autoimmune disease in which immune cells attack the tear and salivary glands, causing dry eyes and dry mouth, often with fatigue, joint pain and sometimes lung, kidney or nerve involvement. It may occur alone or with RA or lupus and carries an increased risk of lymphoma.
Example: Dry eyes and mouth, Schirmer 3 mm, anti-Ro positive: primary SS, start pilocarpine and artificial tears.
Named after Swedish ophthalmologist Henrik Sjögren, who described it in 1933. Many experts now prefer "Sjögren's disease", reflecting its systemic nature. The anti-Ro and anti-La antibodies are also called SSA and SSB, letters derived from the syndrome's name. Babies of mothers with anti-Ro antibodies can develop congenital heart block.
5. Sliding scale
Medical · Prescription Abbreviations
Shorthand for a dose that varies according to a measured value, most often insulin given according to a blood glucose reading. Earlier editions of the ISMP error-prone list included it because "SS" has been read as "55" or confused with the apothecary symbol for one-half.
Example: Regular insulin SS per protocol with glucose checks ACHS.
ISMP recommends spelling out "sliding scale" or naming the protocol. Traditional sliding-scale-only insulin is discouraged by the American Diabetes Association and the American Geriatrics Society Beers Criteria for hospitalized or older patients, who generally should receive basal insulin with a correction scale instead.
6. South Sudan
Geography & Places · Country Code Abbreviations
South Sudan, capital Juba, alpha-3 SSD, became independent from Sudan on July 9, 2011, making it the newest widely recognized country. Oil supplies most of its government revenue.
Example: Food aid deliveries to SS depend on river barges in the rainy season.
Civil war broke out in 2013, two years after independence. SS also abbreviates Social Security and stainless steel.
7. Sum of squares
Units & Measurements · Statistics Abbreviations
The sum of squared deviations from a mean or from model predictions, the building block of variance, ANOVA and regression. ANOVA tables split the total SS into between-group and within-group parts.
Example: The ANOVA table shows SS between = 84.2 and SS within = 312.6.
Dividing a sum of squares by its degrees of freedom gives a mean square (MS), and the ratio of two mean squares is the F statistic. Type I, II and III sums of squares differ when group sizes are unequal, a frequent source of confusion when results from different software packages disagree.
8. Safety stock
Business & Finance · Logistics, Supply Chain & Trade Abbreviations
Extra inventory held above expected demand to protect against unexpected spikes in sales or delays in supply, sized according to demand variability, lead time variability and the target service level.
Example: We doubled SS on imported parts after the port delays.
Higher service levels require disproportionately more safety stock, so companies set different targets for critical and noncritical items. It is a key input to the reorder point.
9. Scilicet (namely, to wit) (ss.)
Law & Legal · Latin Legal Abbreviations
Notation printed in the venue block at the top of affidavits, acknowledgments and jurats, between the state and county names, as in "State of New York, County of Kings, ss.:". It identifies the place where the oath was sworn or the signature acknowledged.
Example: The notary's form began with STATE OF NEW YORK, COUNTY OF KINGS, ss.: above the affiant's statement.
Usually explained as an abbreviation of Latin "scilicet", "that is to say", though its exact origin is debated. It has no independent legal effect, and many modern forms omit it. It should not be confused with the section symbol or with "Ss." in other contexts, such as "Saints".
10. Super Sport
Transportation & Travel · Automotive Abbreviations
Chevrolet performance trim designation, introduced on the 1961 Impala and later used on the Chevelle, Camaro, Nova and other models. SS models typically combine larger engines with upgraded suspension and styling.
Example: My dad's 1970 Chevelle SS with the 454 is worth more than his house.
SS packages became icons of the muscle-car era of the 1960s and early 1970s. Chevrolet also sold a sedan simply called the SS from 2014 to 2017, built in Australia. Other brands have used SS as well. In maritime use, SS means steamship, an unrelated meaning.
11. Strong safety
Sports · American Football Abbreviations
Safety who lines up on the strong side of the formation, where the tight end is, and plays closer to the line to support run defense and cover tight ends. Strong safeties tend to be bigger and more physical than free safeties.
Example: The SS dropped into the box and made the tackle on fourth and one.
Troy Polamalu and Brian Dawkins played the role memorably. Modern defenses use more interchangeable safeties, so the distinction matters less than it once did. In baseball box scores SS is the shortstop, by far the more common meaning.
12. Semis (one half) (ss)
Medical · Prescription Abbreviations
Apothecary notation for one-half, traditionally written with a line over the letters after a Roman numeral, as in "gr iss" (one and a half grains). Earlier editions of the ISMP error-prone list included it because "ss" has been read as the number 55.
Example: Old pharmacy ledger: aspirin gr v and codeine gr ss.
Latin "semis", "half". The symbol survives mainly in historical texts and rare compounding formulas. ISMP and modern pharmacy practice recommend writing "one-half" or "0.5" (always with a leading zero) and using metric units rather than the apothecary system.
13. Single strength
Medical · Pharmacy Abbreviations
Label suffix for the standard-strength version of a product that also comes in a double-strength form, notably trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole SS (400 mg/80 mg), used for prophylaxis and in children able to swallow tablets.
Example: TMP-SMX SS 1 tab PO daily for PJP prophylaxis.
Pneumocystis prophylaxis may use either one SS tablet daily or one DS tablet daily or three times weekly. Because "SS" also means sliding scale and the apothecary symbol for one-half, it is best spelled out in orders rather than handwritten.
14. Start-to-start
Business & Finance · Project Management Abbreviations
Dependency in which the successor activity cannot start until the predecessor has started, allowing the two to run in parallel, often with a lag.
Example: Trenching and pipe laying have an SS link with a two-day lag.
Overlapping activities with SS links is a common way to "fast-track" a schedule.
Related abbreviations
More baseball abbreviations
- SF – Sacrifice fly
- SHO – Shutout
- SLG – Slugging percentage
- SP – Starting pitcher
- SV – Save
- TB – Total bases
- W – Win
- WAR – Wins above replacement
See all 83 baseball abbreviations →
More engineering abbreviations
- SEER – Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio
- SIL – Safety integrity level
- SMAW – Shielded metal arc welding
- SPC – Statistical process control
- TIG – Tungsten inert gas (welding)
- TRL – Technology readiness level
- ULS – Ultimate limit state
- UNC – Unified National Coarse (thread)
See all 79 engineering abbreviations →
This entry is for general education and is not medical or legal advice. Abbreviation use varies between institutions; always confirm in context.