Obsolete A primer for teaching the Latin alphabet and first elements of reading.
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The fundamentals of any subject.
the ABC of finance
This was the Alma Mater of the Brigade, where it learned its A B C of military tactics.1866, D. P. Conyngham, The Irish Brigade and Its Campaigns: With Some Account of the Corcoran Legion, and Sketches of the Principal Officers, Glasgow: Cameron & Ferguson, page 28:
2 more examples
At the same time I was endeavoring to learn the a-b-c of farming. It is not the kind of thing that is easily learned from books.1951, John Wyndham, The Day of the Triffids, Harmondsworth: Penguin Books, published 1954:
With her expert guidance, even a novice like me can have a taste of the focused, structured world of a Cunningham dance. The solo is possibly his plainest, almost an ABC of his meticulous approach to subdividing the body in motion — twist, bend, reach, step.2020 April 21, Marina Harss, “Twist, Bend, Reach, Step: A Merce Cunningham Solo Anyone Can Try”, in The New York Times:
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Card games, Poker A straightforward, uniform playing style, often focusing on betting for value, folding weak hands, and avoiding bluffing.
"That will do. How are the trains for Netherhempsfield?" Greatorex put down the notebook and took up an "ABC."1923, Ernest Bramah [pseudonym; Ernest Brammah Smith], “(please specify the page)”, in The Eyes of Max Carrados, London: Grant Richards, →OCLC:
For this reason his heart sank when, emerging from his study into the great hall at quarter to eleven, he met Beaver already dressed and prepared to be entertained; it was only a momentary vexation, however, for while he wished him good morning he noticed that his guest had an A.B.C. in his hands and was clearly looking out a train.1934, Evelyn Waugh, A Handful of Dust, Chapman & Hall:
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US, Abbreviation, Ellipsis, Regional Ellipsis of ABC store.