LinkedIn Pinpoint #475 Answer — August 18, 2025

🎯 Pinpoint 475 Answer & Full Analysis — August 18, 2025

This Pinpoint puzzle was a calendar check! When I saw May, I thought of the month or the word "may" (permission). Mar could be to damage or mess up. Oct sounded like "oct-" meaning eight. Jan could be a name. Dec made me think of December. Then I realized—May, Mar, Oct, Jan, Dec—these are abbreviations for months!

🧩 Step-by-Step Solving Process

When I saw May, I thought of the month or the modal verb. Since it's capitalized, the month seemed more likely.

Mar was interesting. To mar something means to damage it. But capitalized, it's short for March.

Oct wasn't a complete English word on its own, but it's the abbreviation for October. The pattern was forming.

Jan could be a person's name, but in this context, it's clearly short for January.

Finally, Dec confirmed everything. December, the final month. All five are three-letter abbreviations for months of the year.

🏆 Answer: Pinpoint 475

Month abbreviations

📋 Words & How They Fit

Abbreviation	Full Month	Origin & Meaning
May	May	Named after Maia, Roman goddess of spring and growth
Mar	March	Named after Mars, Roman god of war
Oct	October	From Latin "octo" (eight), though it's the 10th month
Jan	January	Named after Janus, Roman god of beginnings
Dec	December	From Latin "decem" (ten), though it's the 12th month

💡 Lessons Learned From Pinpoint 475

• Abbreviations can be puzzling: Three-letter month abbreviations are common in dates and calendars.
• Historical naming confusion: October and December were originally the 8th and 10th months before January and February were added.
• Context is key: Capitalization hints that these are proper nouns (month names) rather than common words.
• Pattern recognition: Seeing multiple short letter combinations suggests abbreviations.

❓ FAQ

Q1: Why is October the 10th month if "oct" means eight? In the original Roman calendar, the year began in March, making October the eighth month. When January and February were added to the beginning, the numerical names became misaligned.

Q2: Why doesn't May have a period after it like other abbreviations? Technically, May doesn't need to be abbreviated since it's already three letters. Some style guides treat it as the full word rather than an abbreviation, so no period is needed.

Q3: What are all the three-letter month abbreviations? Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec. Most follow a simple pattern of the first three letters.

Q4: Who was Janus? Janus was the Roman god of beginnings, transitions, and doorways. He's depicted with two faces looking in opposite directions—one to the past, one to the future—making him perfect for the year's first month.