NE
Abbreviation with 5 meanings
| Stands for | Nebraska |
|---|---|
| Meanings | 5 |
| Categories | Geography & Places, Science & Engineering, Medical |
| Also written | Ne |
NE has five meanings. The most common are Nebraska (US state) and Northeast (direction); it can also stand for Neon, Norepinephrine and Niger.
Meanings of NE at a glance
| # | NE stands for | Context |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nebraska | Geography & Places › US State |
| 2 | Northeast | Geography & Places › Direction |
| 3 | Neon | Science & Engineering › Chemical Element |
| 4 | Norepinephrine | Medical › Drug |
| 5 | Niger | Geography & Places › Country Code |
1. Nebraska
Geography & Places · US State Abbreviations
The Cornhusker State became the 37th state on March 1, 1867. Lincoln is the capital and Omaha the largest city, and since 1937 Nebraska has been the only state with a unicameral, officially nonpartisan legislature, whose 49 members are called senators.
Example: Volunteers from Omaha, NE helped sandbag levees along the Missouri River.
Nebraska was first assigned NB in 1963 and switched to NE in 1969 to avoid a clash with New Brunswick, Canada. Traditional forms are Neb. (AP style) and Nebr. (Government Publishing Office). NE also means northeast and is the ISO country code for Niger.
2. Northeast
Geography & Places · Direction Abbreviations
Intercardinal direction halfway between north and east, at 45 degrees. In Washington, D.C., NE is one of four quadrant suffixes that complete every address, as in 50 Massachusetts Ave NE, the address of Union Station.
Example: Winds will shift to the NE overnight, bringing cooler air off the ocean.
A nor'easter is a storm whose strongest winds blow from the northeast, common on the US East Coast in winter. Quadrant suffixes such as NE follow the street name, while directional prefixes come before it. NE is also Nebraska's postal code and Niger's ISO code.
3. Neon (Ne)
Science & Engineering · Chemical Element Abbreviations
A noble gas with atomic number 10, neon glows a vivid reddish orange when an electric current passes through it at low pressure, the effect behind classic neon signs. It is extracted by fractional distillation of liquid air, and purified neon is a key ingredient in the excimer lasers used to make computer chips.
Example: The vintage diner sign uses Ne tubing for the red lettering and argon with mercury for the blue.
William Ramsay and Morris Travers discovered neon in 1898 in liquefied air, weeks after finding krypton, and named it from Greek neos (new). Georges Claude displayed the first neon lighting in Paris in 1910. Signs in other colors usually rely on argon, mercury vapor or phosphor coatings, so not every "neon sign" contains neon.
4. Norepinephrine
Medical · Drug Abbreviations
Catecholamine vasopressor given by continuous IV infusion to raise blood pressure in shock. Surviving Sepsis Campaign guidelines recommend it as the first-line vasopressor in septic shock.
Example: NE at 0.15 mcg/kg/min; add vasopressin if MAP stays below 65.
Brand name Levophed, so it is often called "levo" in ICUs. Norepinephrine can damage tissue if it leaks from a vein; the antidote is local phentolamine. It is also the main neurotransmitter of the sympathetic nervous system; British and European texts use the name noradrenaline.
5. Niger
Geography & Places · Country Code Abbreviations
Niger, a landlocked Sahel country with Niamey as its capital and NER as its alpha-3 code, has one of the youngest and fastest-growing populations in the world and is a major uranium producer.
Example: Aid shipments to NE travel overland through Benin's port of Cotonou.
Niger is distinct from Nigeria (NG); people from Niger are Nigerien. In US addresses NE is Nebraska, and NE also means northeast.
Related abbreviations
More US state abbreviations
- MS – Mississippi
- MT – Montana
- NC – North Carolina
- ND – North Dakota
- NH – New Hampshire
- NJ – New Jersey
- NM – New Mexico
- NV – Nevada
See all 51 US state abbreviations →
More direction abbreviations
- GN – Grid north
- MN – Magnetic north
- N – North
- NB – Northbound
- NNE – North-northeast
- NNW – North-northwest
- NW – Northwest
- S – South
See all 23 direction abbreviations →
This entry is for general education and is not medical advice. Abbreviation use varies between institutions; always confirm in context.