Editing Doctor (title) (section)

==Abbreviation==
Doctor is abbreviated "Dr" in [[British English]] and "Dr." in [[North American English]]. The plural abbreviation is "Drs".

===British usage===
In British English it is not necessary to indicate an abbreviation with a full stop after the abbreviation, when the first and last letters of the abbreviation are the same as for the unabbreviated word, i.e. the abbreviation is a contraction, as in the case for "'''D'''octo'''r'''".<ref>[http://www.informatics.sussex.ac.uk/department/docs/punctuation/node28.html Abbreviations]. Informatics.sussex.ac.uk. Retrieved on 17 December 2011. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090221170014/http://www.informatics.sussex.ac.uk/department/docs/punctuation/node28.html |date=21 February 2009 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url = https://www.quickanddirtytips.com/education/grammar/when-you-need-periods-after-abbreviations| title = When You Need Periods After Abbreviations {{!}} Grammar Girl| date = 14 July 2023}}</ref>

In the [[United Kingdom]], it is normal also to omit stops from postnominal letters, thus the usual abbreviation for "Doctor of Philosophy" is "PhD" (or "DPhil", where this is used). The fully punctuated "Ph.D." or "D.Phil." is anachronistic and, where the abbreviated form of the degree is defined by regulation rather than custom (e.g. Oxford), may be technically incorrect.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.admin.ox.ac.uk/statutes/regulations/307-072.shtml|title=Regulations for Degrees, Diplomas, and Certificates|publisher=University of Oxford|access-date=15 November 2016|archive-date=27 July 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160727184601/http://www.admin.ox.ac.uk/statutes/regulations/307-072.shtml|url-status=dead}}</ref>

===American usage===
American English makes no distinction between abbreviations that are contractions and abbreviations that are not. A period is used: the abbreviation of Doctor is usually written as "Dr." in North America.<ref>[http://www.chambersharrap.co.uk/chambers/features/chref/chref.py/main?query=dr&title=21st&sourceid=Mozilla-search Chambers Reference Online]. Chambersharrap.co.uk. Retrieved on 17 December 2011.</ref> However, the [[US Postal Service]] prefers punctuation to be omitted from addresses.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://pe.usps.gov/text/pub28/28c2_007.htm|title=Punctuation|work= Publication 28 – Postal Addressing Standards|publisher=US Postal Service|date=May 2015|access-date=18 December 2016}}</ref>