The two to three letters following the APIs make up an internal component identifier. The last part of the API name identifies the action or function of the API. The information after the component ID is an abbreviation of the verb that describes the function of the API.
Except for APIs that are defined by formal standards organizations (for example, UNIX® type or Systems Application Architecture® (SAA®)), APIs start with the letter Q and are followed by two to three letters that make up an internal component identifier. The following table contains all of the verbs that are either part of an API name or are implied verbs associated with an API name.
| Verb | Abbreviation |
|---|---|
| access | access |
| Add | ADD, Add |
| Change | C, CHG, Chg, ch |
| Check | C, CHK, CHECK |
| Clear | CLR, Clr |
| Close | CLO, close |
| Complete | Cmp |
| Control | CTL |
| Convert | CVT, CVRT, Convert |
| Copy | CPY, Cpy |
| Create | CRT, Crt, create |
| Customize | CST |
| Delete | DLT, Dlt |
| Deregister | DRG, Deregister |
| Disable | D |
| Display | DSP, Dsp |
| Dump | DMP, Dump |
| duplicate | dup |
| Edit | EDT |
| Enable | E |
| End | END, End |
| Execute (run) | EXC, EXEC |
| Filter | FTR |
| Force | FRC |
| Generate | GEN |
| Get (fetch) | G, GET, Get, get |
| Initialize | Inz |
| Insert | Ins |
| link | link |
| List | L, LST, List |
| Lock/unlock | LUL |
| make | mk |
| Map | Map |
| Maximize | Mxz |
| Move | MOV, Mov |
| Open | OPN, open |
| Pad | Pad |
| PRT, Prt | |
| Put | PUT, Put |
| PutGet | PutGet |
| Query | Q, QRY, Qry |
| Read | RD, Read, read |
| Receive | R, RCV, RECV |
| Register | RG, REG, R, Register |
| Release | RLS |
| Remove | RMV, Rmv, Remove, rm |
| Rename | RNM, rename |
| Report | Report |
| Resend | RSN |
| Reserve | Reserve |
| Restore | RST, Rst, Restore |
| reset | rewind |
| Resize | Rsz |
| Retrieve | R, RTV, Rtv, Retrieve |
| Roll | Roll |
| Save | SAV, Sav, Save |
| Scan for | SCAN |
| Send | S, SND, SEND, Send |
| Set | SET, Set |
| Shift | Shf |
| Start | Start, STR, Str |
| Submit | Submit |
| Switch | Set |
| Test | T |
| Toggle | Tgl |
| Transform | T |
| Translate | TR, TRN, XLATE |
| truncate | truncate |
| Unregister | U |
| Update | UPD |
| Validate | V |
| Work with | WK, WRK, Wrk |
| Write | WRT, Wrt, write, W |