Quiz 1
o days of the week
Capitalize them. Do not abbreviate, except when needed in a tabular format: Sun, Mon, Tue, Wed, Thu, Fri, Sat (three letters, without periods, to facilitate tabular composition). See time element and today, tonight.
o Abbreviation of titles, dates, addresses (a big one)
A few universally recognized abbreviations are required in some circumstances. Some others are acceptable depending on the context. But in general, avoid alphabet soup. Do not use abbreviations or acronyms that the reader would not quickly recognize. Abbreviations and most acronyms should be avoided in headlines. Guidance on how to use a particular abbreviation or acronym is provided in entries alphabetized according to the sequence of letters in the word or phrase. An acronym is a word formed from the first letter or letters of a series of words: laser (light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation). An abbreviation is not an acronym. Some general principles: BEFORE A NAME: Abbreviate titles when used before a full name: Dr., Gov., Lt. Gov., Mr., Mrs., Rep., the Rev., Sen. and certain military designations listed in the military titles entry. For guidelines on how to use titles, see courtesy titles; legislative titles; military titles; religious titles; and the entries for the most commonly used titles. AFTER A NAME: Abbreviate junior or senior after an individual's name. Abbreviate company, corporation, incorporated and limited when used after the name of a corporate entity. See entries under these words and company names. In some cases, an academic degree may be abbreviated after an individual's name. See academic degrees. WITH DATES OR NUMERALS: Use the abbreviations A.D., B.C., a.m., p.m., No., and abbreviate certain months (Jan., Feb., Aug., Sept., Oct., Nov., Dec.) when used with the day of the month. Right: In 450 B.C.; at 9:30 a.m.; in room No. 6; on Sept. 16. Wrong: Early this a.m. he asked for the No. of your room. The abbreviations are correct only with figures. Right: Early this morning he asked for the number of your room. See months and individual entries for these other terms: IN NUMBERED ADDRESSES: Abbreviate avenue, boulevard and street in numbered addresses: He lives on Pennsylvania Avenue. He lives at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. See addresses. STATES: The names of certain states and the United States are abbreviated with periods in some circumstances. See state names; datelines; and individual entries. AVOID AWKWARD CONSTRUCTIONS: Do not follow an organization's full name with an abbreviation or acronym in parentheses or set off by dashes. If an abbreviation or acronym would not be clear on second reference without this arrangement, do not use it. Names not commonly before the public should not be reduced to acronyms solely to save a few words. SPECIAL CASES: Many abbreviations are desirable in tabulations and certain types of technical writing. See individual entries. CAPS, PERIODS: Use capital letters and periods according to the listings in this book. For words not in this book, use the first-listed abbreviation in Webster's New World College Dictionary. Generally, omit periods in acronyms unless the result would spell an unrelated word. But use periods in most two-letter abbreviations: U.S., U.N., U.K., B.A., B.C. (AP, a trademark, is an exception. Also, no periods in GI, ID and EU, among others.) In headlines, do not use periods in abbreviations, unless required for clarity. Use all caps, but no periods, in longer abbreviations when the individual letters are pronounced: ABC, CIA, FBI. Use only an initial cap and then lowercase for abbreviations and acronyms of more than five letters, unless listed otherwise in this Stylebook or Webster's New World College Dictionary.
o dangling modifiers
Avoid modifiers that do not refer clearly and logically to some word in the sentence. Dangling: Taking our seats, the game started. (Taking does not refer to the subject, game, nor to any other word in the sentence.) Correct: Taking our seats, we watched the opening of the game. (Taking refers to we, the subject of the sentence.)
o Difference between affect/effect
Affect, as a verb, means to influence: The game will affect the standings. Affect, as a noun, is best avoided. It occasionally is used in psychology to describe an emotion, but there is no need for it in everyday language. Effect, as a verb, means to cause: He will effect many changes in the company. Effect, as a noun, means result: The effect was overwhelming. He miscalculated the effect of his actions. It was a law of little effect.
o composition titles (use of quotation marks)
Apply these guidelines to the titles of books, movies, plays, poems, albums, songs, operas, radio and television programs, lectures, speeches, and works of art: — Capitalize all words in a title except articles (a, an, the); prepositions of three or fewer letters (for, of, on, up, etc.); and conjunctions of three or fewer letters (and, but, for, nor, or, so, yet, etc.) unless any of those start or end the title. More detail: — Capitalize prepositions of four or more letters (above, after, down, inside, over, with, etc.) and conjunctions of four or more letters (because, while, since, though, etc.) — Capitalize both parts of a phrasal verb: "What To Look For in a Mate"; "Turn Off the Lights in Silence." But: "A Life of Eating Chocolate for Stamina"; "Living With Both Feet off the Ground." (Note the different uses of for and off, and thus the different capitalization, in those examples.) — Capitalize to in infinitives: "What I Want To Be When I Grow Up." Also: — Put quotation marks around the names of all such works except the Bible, the Quran and other holy books, and books that are primarily catalogs of reference material. In addition to catalogs, this category includes almanacs, directories, dictionaries, encyclopedias, gazetteers, handbooks and similar publications. — Do not use quotation marks around such software titles as WordPerfect or Windows; apps; or around names of video, online or analog versions of games: FarmVille, Pokemon Go, The Legend of Zelda, Monopoly. — Do not use quotation marks for sculptures: The Thinker, Michelangelo's Pieta. — Translate a foreign title into English unless a work is generally known by its foreign name. An exception to this is reviews of musical performances. In those instances, generally refer to the work in the language it was sung in, so as to differentiate for the reader. However, musical compositions in Slavic languages are always referred to in their English translations. EXAMPLES: "The Star-Spangled Banner," "The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich," "Gone With the Wind," "Of Mice and Men," "For Whom the Bell Tolls," "Time After Time," the "Today" show, the "CBS Evening News," "This Is Us," "A Star Is Born," "Star Wars," "Game of Thrones." See television program titles for further guidelines and examples. REFERENCE WORKS: IHS Jane's All the World's Aircraft; Encyclopaedia Britannica; Webster's New World College Dictionary, Fifth Edition. FOREIGN WORKS: Rousseau's "War," not Rousseau's "La Guerre." But: Leonardo da Vinci's "Mona Lisa." Mozart's "The Marriage of Figaro" if sung in English but "Le Nozze di Figaro" if sung in Italian. Mozart's "The Magic Flute" if sung in English but "Die Zauberfloete" if sung in German. "Die Walkuere" and "Goetterdaemmerung" from Wagner's "Der Ring des Nibelungen" if sung in German but "The Valkyrie" and "The Twilight of the Gods" from "The Ring of the Nibelung" if sung in English. Janacek's "From the House of the Dead," not Janacek's "Z Mrtveho Domu." — For other classical music titles, use quotation marks around the composition's nicknames but not compositions identified by its sequence. EXAMPLES: Dvorak's "New World Symphony." Dvorak's Symphony No. 9
o Capitol/capital
Capital is The city where a seat of government is located. Do not capitalize. When used in a financial sense, capital describes money, equipment or property used in a business by a person or corporation. Capitol is Capitalize U.S. Capitol and the Capitol when referring to the building in Washington: The meeting was held on Capitol Hill in the west wing of the Capitol. Follow the same practice when referring to state capitols: The Virginia Capitol is in Richmond. Thomas Jefferson designed the Capitol of Virginia. Use capital for a city or town that is the seat of government.
o chairman, chairwoman
Capitalize as a formal title before a name: company Chairman Henry Ford, committee Chairwoman Margaret Chase Smith. Do not capitalize as a casual, temporary position: meeting chairman Robert Jones. Use chairperson, chair or co-chair if preferred by an organization. Chair is acceptable as a verb: She chaired the meeting; he chairs the committee.
Colon (capitalization after)
Capitalize the first word after a colon only if it is a proper noun or the start of a complete sentence: He promised this: The company will make good all the losses. But: There were three considerations: expense, time and feasibility. EMPHASIS: The colon often can be effective in giving emphasis: He had only one hobby: eating. LISTS: A frequent use of a colon is at the end of a sentence or phrase to introduce lists, tabulations, texts, etc. See lists, bulleted lists. LISTINGS: Use the colon in such listings as time elapsed (1:31:07.2), time of day (8:31 p.m.), biblical and legal citations (2 Kings 2:14; Missouri Code 3:245-260). DIALOGUE: Use a colon for dialogue. In coverage of a trial, for example: Bailey: What were you doing the night of the 19th? Mason: I refuse to answer that. Q AND A: The colon is used for question-and-answer interviews: Q: Did you strike him? A: Indeed I did. INTRODUCING QUOTATIONS: Use a comma to introduce a direct quotation of one sentence that remains within a paragraph. Use a colon to introduce long quotations within a paragraph and to end all paragraphs that introduce a paragraph of quoted material. PLACEMENT WITH QUOTATION MARKS: Colons go outside quotation marks unless they are part of the quotation itself. MISCELLANEOUS: Do not combine a dash and a colon.
o city council/city hall
Capitalize when part of a proper name: the Boston City Council. Retain capitalization if the reference is to a specific council but the context does not require the city name: BOSTON (AP) - The City Council ... Lowercase in other uses: the council, the Boston and New York city councils, a city council. Use the proper name if the body is not known as a city council: the Miami City Commission, the City Commission, the commission; the Louisville Board of Aldermen, the Board of Aldermen, the board. Use city council in a generic sense for plural references: the Boston, Louisville and Miami city councils. Capitalize with the name of a city, or without the name of a city if the reference is specific: Boston City Hall, City Hall. Lowercase plural uses: the Boston and New York city halls. Lowercase generic uses, including: You can't fight city hall.
o complement, compliment
Complement is a noun and a verb denoting completeness or the process of supplementing something: The ship has a complement of 200 sailors and 20 officers. The tie complements his suit. Compliment is a noun or a verb that denotes praise or the expression of courtesy: The captain complimented the sailors. She was flattered by the compliments on her project.
Apostrophe use
Follow these guidelines: POSSESSIVES: See the possessives entry in main section. PLURAL NOUNS NOT ENDING IN S: Add 's: the alumni's contributions, women's rights. PLURAL NOUNS ENDING IN S: Add only an apostrophe: the churches' needs, the girls' toys, the horses' food, the ships' wake, states' rights, the VIPs' entrance. NOUNS PLURAL IN FORM, SINGULAR IN MEANING: Add only an apostrophe: mathematics' rules, measles' effects. (But see INANIMATE OBJECTS below.) Apply the same principle when a plural word occurs in the formal name of a singular entity: General Motors' profits, the United States' wealth. NOUNS THE SAME IN SINGULAR AND PLURAL: Treat them the same as plurals, even if the meaning is singular: one corps' location, the two deer's tracks, the lone moose's antlers. SINGULAR NOUNS NOT ENDING IN S: Add 's: the church's needs, the girl's toys, the horse's food, the ship's route, the VIP's seat. Some style guides say that singular nouns ending in s sounds such as ce, x, and z may take either the apostrophe alone or 's. See SPECIAL EXPRESSIONS, but otherwise, for consistency and ease in remembering a rule, always use 's if the word does not end in the letter s: Butz's policies, the fox's den, the justice's verdict, Marx's theories, the prince's life, Xerox's profits. SINGULAR COMMON NOUNS ENDING IN S: Add 's: the hostess's invitation, the hostess's seat; the witness's answer, the witness's story. (A change from previous guidance calling for just an apostrophe if the next word begins with s.) SINGULAR PROPER NAMES ENDING IN S: Use only an apostrophe: Achilles' heel, Agnes' book, Ceres' rites, Descartes' theories, Dickens' novels, Euripides' dramas, Hercules' labors, Jesus' life, Jules' seat, Kansas' schools, Moses' law, Socrates' life, Tennessee Williams' plays, Xerxes' armies. (An exception is St. James's Palace.) SPECIAL EXPRESSIONS: The following exceptions to the general rule for words not ending in s apply to words that end in an s sound and are followed by a word that begins with s: for appearance' sake, for conscience' sake, for goodness' sake. Use 's otherwise: the appearance's cost, my conscience's voice. PRONOUNS: Personal interrogative and relative pronouns have separate forms for the possessive. None involves an apostrophe: mine, ours, your, yours, his, hers, its, theirs, whose. Caution: If you are using an apostrophe with a pronoun, always double-check to be sure that the meaning calls for a contraction: you're, it's, there's, who's. Follow the rules listed above in forming the possessives of other pronouns: another's idea, others' plans, someone's guess. COMPOUND WORDS: Applying the rules above, add an apostrophe or 's to the word closest to the object possessed: the major general's decision, the major generals' decisions, the attorney general's request, the attorneys general's request. See the plurals entry for guidelines on forming the plurals of these words. Also: anyone else's attitude, John Adams Jr.'s father, Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania's motion. Whenever practical, however, recast the phrase to avoid ambiguity: the motion by Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania. JOINT POSSESSION, INDIVIDUAL POSSESSION: Use a possessive form after only the last word if ownership is joint: Fred and Sylvia's apartment, Fred and Sylvia's stocks. Use a possessive form after both words if the objects are individually owned: Fred's and Sylvia's books. DESCRIPTIVE PHRASES: Do not add an apostrophe to a word ending in s when it is used primarily in a descriptive sense: citizens band radio, a Cincinnati Reds infielder, a teachers college, a Teamsters request, a writers guide. Memory aid: The apostrophe usually is not used if for or by rather than of would be appropriate in the longer form: a radio band for citizens, a college for teachers, a guide for writers, a request by the Teamsters. An 's is required, however, when a term involves a plural word that does not end in s: a children's hospital, a people's republic, the Young Men's Christian Association. DESCRIPTIVE NAMES: Some governmental, corporate and institutional organizations with a descriptive word in their names use an apostrophe; some do not. Follow the user's practice: Actors' Equity, Diners Club, the Ladies' Home Journal, the National Governors Association. QUASI POSSESSIVES: Follow the rules above in composing the possessive form of words that occur in such phrases as a day's pay, two weeks' vacation, three months' work, five years' probation. The apostrophe is used with a measurement followed by a noun (a quantity of whatever the noun is). The examples could be rephrased as a day of pay, two weeks of vacation, three months of work, five years of probation. No apostrophe when the quantity precedes an adjective: six months pregnant, three weeks overdue, 11 years old. DOUBLE POSSESSIVE: Two conditions must apply for a double possessive — a phrase such as a friend of John's — to occur: 1. The word after of must refer to an animate object, and 2. The word before of must involve only a portion of the animate object's possessions. Otherwise, do not use the possessive form of the word after of: The friends of John Adams mourned his death. (All the friends were involved.) He is a friend of the college. (Not college's, because college is inanimate). Memory aid: This construction occurs most often, and quite naturally, with the possessive forms of personal pronouns: He is a friend of mine. INANIMATE OBJECTS: There is no blanket rule against creating a possessive form for an inanimate object, particularly if the object is treated in a personified sense. See some of the earlier examples, and note these: death's call, the wind's murmur. In general, however, avoid excessive personalization of inanimate objects, and give preference to an of construction when it fits the makeup of the sentence. For example, the earlier references to mathematics' rules and measles' effects would better be phrased: the rules of mathematics, the effects of measles. OMITTED LETTERS: I've, it's, don't, rock 'n' roll, 'tis the season to be jolly. He is a ne'er-do-well. See contractions in main section. OMITTED FIGURES: The class of '62. The Spirit of '76. The '20s. PLURALS OF A SINGLE LETTER: Mind your p's and q's. He learned the three R's and brought home a report card with four A's and two B's. The Oakland A's won the pennant. DO NOT USE: For plurals of numerals or multiple-letter combinations. See plurals.
Compound adjectives (how to use the hyphen and when not to use)
Hyphens are joiners. Use them to avoid ambiguity or to form a single idea from two or more words. Use of the hyphen is far from standardized. It is optional in most cases, a matter of taste, judgment and style sense. But the fewer hyphens the better; use them only when not using them causes confusion (loose-knit group, but tax code changes). Think of hyphens as an aid to readers' comprehension. If a hyphen makes the meaning clearer, use it. If it just adds clutter and distraction to the sentence, don't use it. If the sheer number of hyphens in a phrase, or confusion about how to use them, can daunt either the writer or the reader, try rephrasing. It's a guide about how to use hyphens wisely, not it's a how-to-use-hyphens-wisely guide. These guidelines include changes in 2019, most notably removal of the requirement to hyphenate most compound modifiers after versions of the verb to be. In addition, see individual entries in this book and in Webster's New World College Dictionary. AVOID AMBIGUITY: Use a hyphen whenever ambiguity would result if it were omitted. See COMPOUND MODIFIERS section for details. Also: He recovered his health. He re-covered the leaky roof. The story is a re-creation. The park is for recreation. COMPOUND MODIFIERS: When a compound modifier — two or more words that express a single concept — precedes a noun, you must decide: Hyphenate that modifier, or not? Often there's not one absolute answer. But in general: No hyphen is needed if the modifier is commonly recognized as one phrase, and if the meaning is clear and unambiguous without the hyphen. Examples include third grade teacher, chocolate chip cookie, early morning traffic, special effects embellishment, climate change report, public land management, first quarter touchdown, real estate transaction. Do use a hyphen if it's needed to make the meaning clear and avoid unintended meanings: small-business owner, better-qualified candidate, little-known song, French-speaking people, free-thinking philosophy, loose-knit group. (Think of the different possible meanings or confusion if the hyphen is removed in each of those examples.) Often, arguments for or against a hyphen could be made either way. Is the term alternative rock playlist clear without the hyphen, or could it be read as a rock playlist that is an alternative to another playlist? Again, try to judge what is most clear and logical to the average reader. Also, consult Webster's New World College Dictionary. In this case, the dictionary recognizes alternative rock as a phrase. Thus: alternative rock playlist, no hyphen. Hyphenate well- combinations before a noun, but not after: a well-known judge, but the judge is well known. Generally, also use a hyphen in modifiers of three or more words: a know-it-all attitude, black-and-white photography, a sink-or-swim moment, a win-at-all-costs approach. Consider carefully, though, before deciding to use more than three modifiers. No hyphen is needed to link a two-word phrase that includes the adverb very and all adverbs ending in -ly: a very good time, an easily remembered rule. Many combinations that are hyphenated before a noun are not hyphenated when they occur after a noun: She works full time. She is well aware of the consequences. The children are soft spoken. The play is second rate. The calendar is up to date. (Guidance changed in 2019 to remove the rule that said to hyphenate following a form of the verb to be.) But use a hyphen if confusion could otherwise result, especially with longer compound modifiers or those that are not as commonly used: The steel surface should be blast-cleaned. The technology is state-of-the-art. The test was multiple choice and fill-in-the-blank. He will work arm-in-arm with the director. Also use hyphens to avoid nonsensical terms such as nonlife: Make it non-life-threatening, not nonlife-threatening. Often the better choice is to rephrase, even if it means using a few more words. COMPOUND VERBS: Don't use a hyphen in phrasal verbs (a verb combined with an adverb, a preposition or both). It's back up the car, not back-up the car; set out the desserts, not set-out the desserts. In general, do hyphenate other compound verbs: She speed-walked her way to victory; he spoon-fed the baby. COMPOUND NOUNS: Hyphenate compounds when needed to avoid confusion: merry-go-round, sister-in-law, hand-me-downs, so-and-so. MODIFYING ONE-WORD COMPOUNDS: Words that are usually one-word compounds (automaker, bookstore) should be separated when a modifier is added: fast-car maker, not fast carmaker or fast-carmaker. COMPOUND PROPER NOUNS AND ADJECTIVES: A change in 2019: Do not use a hyphen to designate dual heritage: African American, Italian American, Mexican American. PREFIXES AND SUFFIXES: See prefixes and suffixes, and separate entries for the most frequently used prefixes and suffixes. Prefixes that generally require hyphens include self-, all-, ex-, half-. Suffixes that generally require hyphens include -free, -based, -elect. AVOID DUPLICATED VOWELS, TRIPLED CONSONANTS: Examples: anti-intellectual, shell-like. But double-e combinations usually don't get a hyphen: preempted, reelected. (Exception added in 2019, reflecting common usage.) MULTIPLE COMPOUND MODIFIERS: If the phrase is easily recognized without hyphens, use a hyphen only to link last element: They hope to spark consumer interest in department store-based shopping. She said assistant vice president-managed courses should include real estate licensing-related materials. (Again, rephrasing may be a better option.) SUSPENSIVE HYPHENATION: Use these forms to shorten a compound modifier or a noun phrase that shares a common word: When the elements are joined by and or or, expressing more than one element: 10-, 15- or 20-minute intervals; 5- and 6-year-olds. But: The intervals are 10, 15 or 20 minutes; the children are 5 to 6 years old. When the elements are joined by to or by, expressing a single element: a 10-to-15-year prison term; an 8-by-12-inch pan. But: The prison term is 10 to 15 years; the pan is 8 by 12 inches.
o Academic degrees and titles
If mention of degrees is necessary to establish someone's credentials, the preferred form is to avoid an abbreviation and use instead a phrase such as: John Jones, who has a doctorate in psychology. Use an apostrophe in bachelor's degree, a master's, etc., but there is no possessive in Bachelor of Arts or Master of Science. Also: an associate degree (no possessive). Use such abbreviations as B.A., M.A., LL.D. and Ph.D. only when the need to identify many individuals by degree on first reference would make the preferred form cumbersome. Use these abbreviations only after a full name — never after just a last name. When used after a name, an academic abbreviation is set off by commas: John Snow, Ph.D., spoke. Do not precede a name with a courtesy title for an academic degree and follow it with the abbreviation for the degree in the same reference. Capitalize and spell out formal titles such as chancellor, chairman, etc., when they precede a name. Lowercase elsewhere. Lowercase modifiers such as department in department Chairman Jerome Wiesner.
o Capitalization
In general, avoid unnecessary capitals. Use a capital letter only if you can justify it by one of the principles listed here. Many words and phrases, including special cases, are listed separately in this book. Entries that are capitalized without further comment should be capitalized in all uses. If there is no relevant listing in this book for a particular word or phrase, consult Webster's New World College Dictionary. Use lowercase if the dictionary lists it as an acceptable form for the sense in which the word is being used. As used in this book, capitalize means to use uppercase for the first letter of a word. If additional capital letters are needed, they are called for by an example or a phrase such as use all caps. Some basic principles: PROPER NOUNS: Capitalize nouns that constitute the unique identification for a specific person, place, or thing: John, Mary, America, Boston, England. Some words, such as the examples just given, are always proper nouns. Some common nouns receive proper noun status when they are used as the name of a particular entity: General Electric, Gulf Oil. PROPER NAMES: Capitalize common nouns such as party, river, street and west when they are an integral part of the full name for a person, place or thing: Democratic Party, Mississippi River, Fleet Street, West Virginia. Lowercase these common nouns when they stand alone in subsequent references: the party, the river, the street. Lowercase the common noun elements of names in plural uses: the Democratic and Republican parties, Main and State streets, lakes Erie and Ontario. Exception: plurals of formal titles with full names are capitalized: Presidents Jimmy Carter and Gerald R. Ford. Among entries that provide additional guidelines are: animals holidays and holy days brand names legislature building months committee monuments Congress nicknames datelines organizations and institutions days of the week planets directions and regions plants family names police department food religious references geographic names seasons governmental bodies trademarks heavenly bodies unions historical periods and events POPULAR NAMES: Some places and events lack officially designated proper names but have popular names that are the effective equivalent: the Combat Zone (a section of downtown Boston), the Main Line (a group of Philadelphia suburbs), the South Side (of Chicago), the Badlands (of South Dakota), the Street (the financial community in the Wall Street area of New York). The principle applies also to shortened versions of the proper names of one-of-a-kind events: the Series (for the World Series), the Derby (for the Kentucky Derby). This practice should not, however, be interpreted as a license to ignore the general practice of lowercasing the common noun elements of a name when they stand alone. DERIVATIVES: Capitalize words that are derived from a proper noun and still depend on it for their meaning: American, Christian, Christianity, English, French, Marxism, Shakespearean. Lowercase words that are derived from a proper noun but no longer depend on it for their meaning: french fries, herculean, malapropism, pasteurize, quixotic, venetian blind. SENTENCES: Capitalize the first word in a statement that stands as a sentence. See sentences and parentheses. In poetry, capital letters are used for the first words of some phrases that would not be capitalized in prose. See poetry. COMPOSITIONS: Capitalize the principal words in the names of books, movies, plays, poems, operas, songs, radio and television programs, works of art, etc. See composition titles, magazine names and newspaper names. TITLES: Capitalize formal titles when used immediately before a name. Lowercase formal titles when used alone or in constructions that set them off from a name by commas. Use lowercase at all times for terms that are job descriptions rather than formal titles. See academic titles, courtesy titles, legislative titles, military titles, nobility, religious titles and titles. ABBREVIATIONS: Capital letters apply in some cases. See abbreviations and acronyms.
o directions and regions
In general, lowercase north, south, northeast, northern, etc., when they indicate compass direction; capitalize these words when they designate regions. Some examples: COMPASS DIRECTIONS: He drove west. The cold front is moving east. REGIONS: A storm system that developed in the Midwest is spreading eastward. It will bring showers to the East Coast by morning and to the entire Northeast by late in the day. Showers and thunderstorms were forecast in the Texas Panhandle. High temperatures will prevail throughout the Western states. The North was victorious. The South will rise again. Settlers from the East went to the West in search of new lives. The customs of the East are different from those of the West. The Northeast depends on the Midwest for its food supply. She has a Southern accent. He is a Northerner. Asian nations are opening doors to Western businessmen. The candidate developed a Southern strategy. The storm developed in the South Pacific. European leaders met to talk about supplies of oil from Southeast Asia. WITH NAMES OF NATIONS: Lowercase unless they are part of a proper name or are used to designate a politically divided nation: northern France, eastern Canada, the western United States. But: Northern Ireland, South Korea. WITH STATES AND CITIES: The preferred form is to lowercase directional or area descriptions when referring to a section of a state or city: western Montana, southern Atlanta. But capitalize compass points: — When part of a proper name: North Dakota, West Virginia. — When used in denoting widely known sections: Southern California, West Texas, the South Side of Chicago, the Lower East Side of New York. If in doubt, use lowercase. IN FORMING PROPER NAMES: When combining with another common noun to form the name for a region or location: the North Woods, the South Pole, the Far East, the Middle East, the West Coast (the entire region, not the coastline itself see coast), the Eastern Shore (see separate entry), the Western Hemisphere.
o clichés, jargon
It is tempting to advise writers to avoid cliches like the plague; they are the bane of our existence. Right there, you can see why they are so difficult to shun: Cliches are the junk food of the literary pantry, much loved by lazy writers. But platitudes and shopworn phrases serve as signals to the reader to move along, there's nothing to see here. Don't push readers away, or lull them to sleep. Engage them with original, specific phrasing. Jargon presents other issues. It has its place in specialized worlds whose inhabitants use jargon-speak as shortcuts (and sometimes, as code words for those in the know, or as tools to disguise, euphemize or editorialize). To a doctor, "symptomatology" is a patient's set of symptoms; to a businessperson, "due diligence" is putting the necessary effort into research before making a decision; to a military officer, "collateral damage" is the accidental killing of innocent people. To the rest of us, these words may be befuddling. William Strunk Jr. and E.B. White put it simply in "The Elements of Style": "Be clear." Jargon is the opposite of clarity. Don't just repeat the words. Translate them, and push for the true meaning when necessary. Here's what not to do: COMMUNITIES: Pivoting from her image as cheerleader touting pricey government entitlements, Mayor Begonia Jargonne voiced profound dismay at plunging revenue enhancements as she pushed back against self-professed economists who fault her policies. In taking this proactive stance, the tree-lined community's mayor aims to reach out to disgruntled constituents who have referenced her programs as irresponsible. To be sure, these critics had sanctioned such measures before, but more recently are dwelling on the mayor's pressure points as a big spender. For her part, Jargonne proclaims that citizens soon will witness a sea change in budgetary matters in her drive to rally past their objections. Far from working under the radar, she vowed to commission a blue-ribbon commission, a game-changer that she said that would leave no leaf unturned at the end of the day in formulating shots in the arm for at-risk populations. GOVERNMENT: Exercising his bully pulpit, the president touted his executive orders as a dramatic, no-holds-barred way to target a laundry list of problems. But his reform proposals sparked a backlash from legislators who said the president had become the poster boy for executive overreach. The disagreement fueled a constitutional standoff on steroids that prompted both sides to take their grievances to court and poisoned the atmosphere. In a major policy address, the president took the bull by the horns and reached out to disaffected Americans, kicking off a campaign to win over their hearts and minds with a litany of proposals to reduce red tape and cut pork-barrel spending by thinking outside the box. Casting the proposals as a no-brainer, he said his plan would drill down to put more boots on the ground in ramping up the fight against waste, fraud and abuse. POLITICS: Taking no vote for granted, the candidate crisscrossed the country to take his campaign to key battleground states, where he issued a campaign manifesto with a 10-point funding plan that he had penned on his own. Still facing an uphill battle after failing to get much traction, he huddled with key advisers to map out a new blueprint that would take his campaign to the next level and broaden his support beyond his traditional lane with conservatives, who consider him a rock star. But the new narrative threatened to tarnish his brand as a truth-teller. After amassing a huge campaign war chest and zigzagging across the heartland, the candidate pressed the flesh as he sprinted to the finish line. In a time-honored tradition, voters trooped to the polls in droves on what promised to be a long night. The candidate holed up in a hotel with top advisers to await the results, which were up for grabs. BUSINESS: Buoyed by the ongoing efforts of a cutting-edge staff that doubled-down on achieving deliverables to replenish the conglomerate's coffers, CEO Notso Frank — the company's cheerleader-in-chief — downplayed wide-ranging, continuing warnings that the local economy was about to crash and burn. Joining a chorus of naysayers who have chimed in to shed a little daylight on the equities at risk, he said that after crunching the numbers and drilling down into the problem, he was hesitant to put the cart before the horse but that it appeared the company would weather the storm by the skin of its teeth and was working to avoid a worst-case scenario. That said, Frank acknowledged that his arsenal holds no Hail Mary moves to yield dividends any time soon. Without saying the P-word by name, he termed it a wake-up call for all bucket owners to grow their bandwidth and broaden their portfolios to avoid worst-case scenarios that could be toxic for the more upscale segments. POLICE AND COURTS: Police say an intoxicated person of interest suffered a self-inflicted gunshot to his left foot in an officer-involved shooting after being pulled over on suspicion of driving at a high rate of speed on a tree-lined street. Police Chief I.M. Kleeshay said responding officers, who were responding to the scene, said the unnamed suspect got into a physical and verbal altercation with them. A gun fired during the fracas, grazing him in the lower extremity. He was transported to a local hospital for treatment of his glancing toe blow, then remanded to be lodged in the local jail after which he may be bound over for trial. "A slay this wasn't, but we must toe the line on gun crimes," Kleeshay said. Authorities responded to an active shooter situation after students reported seeing a juvenile male discharging a firearm in a dormitory before fleeing the scene on foot. The dorm was fully engulfed in flames and two students were observed to be deceased. A short time later, law enforcement officers spotted an individual matching the description of the suspect walking down a nearby street and he was apprehended without incident.
o Collective nouns
Nouns that denote a unit take singular verbs and pronouns: class, committee, crowd, family, group, herd, jury, orchestra, team. Some usage examples: The committee is meeting to set its agenda. The jury reached its verdict. A herd of cattle was sold. Team names and musical group names that are plural take plural verbs. The Yankees are in first place. The Jonas Brothers are popular. Team or group names with no plural forms also take plural verbs: The Miami Heat are battling for third place. Other examples: Orlando Magic, Oklahoma City Thunder, Utah Jazz, Alabama Crimson Tide. Most singular names take singular verbs, including places and university names in sports: Coldplay is on tour. Boston is favored in the playoffs. Stanford is in the NCAA Tournament. Some proper names that are plural in form take a singular verb: Brooks Brothers is holding a sale. PLURAL IN FORM: Some words that are plural in form become collective nouns and take singular verbs when the group or quantity is regarded as a unit. Right: A thousand bushels is a good yield. (A unit.) Right: A thousand bushels were created. (Individual items.)
Quotation marks - where to put punctuation at end of a quoted sentence, and
The basic guidelines for open-quote marks (") and close-quote marks ("): FOR DIRECT QUOTATIONS: To surround the exact words of a speaker or writer when reported in a story: "I have no intention of staying," he replied. "I do not object," he said, "to the tenor of the report." Franklin said, "A penny saved is a penny earned." A speculator said the practice is "too conservative for inflationary times." RUNNING QUOTATIONS: If a full paragraph of quoted material is followed by a paragraph that continues the quotation, do not put close-quote marks at the end of the first paragraph. Do, however, put open-quote marks at the start of the second paragraph. Continue in this fashion for any succeeding paragraphs, using close-quote marks only at the end of the quoted material. If a paragraph does not start with quotation marks but ends with a quotation that is continued in the next paragraph, do not use close-quote marks at the end of the introductory paragraph if the quoted material constitutes a full sentence. Use close-quote marks, however, if the quoted material does not constitute a full sentence. For example: He said, "I am shocked and horrified by the slaying. "I am so horrified, in fact, that I will ask for the death penalty." But: He said he was "shocked and horrified by the slaying." "I am so horrified, in fact, that I will ask for the death penalty," he said. DIALOGUE OR CONVERSATION: Each person's words, no matter how brief, are placed in a separate paragraph, with quotation marks at the beginning and the end of each person's speech: "Will you go?" "Yes." "When?" "Thursday." NOT IN Q-and-A: Quotation marks are not required in formats that identify questions and answers by Q: and A:. See question mark for example. NOT IN TEXTS: Quotation marks are not required in full texts, condensed texts or textual excerpts. See ellipsis. COMPOSITION TITLES: See composition titles for guidelines on the use of quotation marks in book titles, movie titles, etc. NICKNAMES: See nicknames. IRONY: Put quotation marks around a word or words used in an ironical sense: The "debate" turned into a free-for-all. UNFAMILIAR TERMS: A word or words being introduced to readers may be placed in quotation marks on first reference: Broadcast frequencies are measured in "kilohertz." Do not put subsequent references to kilohertz in quotation marks. See foreign words. AVOID UNNECESSARY FRAGMENTS: Do not use quotation marks to report a few ordinary words that a speaker or writer has used: Wrong: The senator said he would "go home to Michigan" if he lost the election. Right: The senator said he would go home to Michigan if he lost the election. PARTIAL QUOTES: When a partial quote is used, do not put quotation marks around words that the speaker could not have used. Suppose the individual said, "I am horrified at your slovenly manners." Wrong: She said she "was horrified at their slovenly manners." Right: She said she was horrified at their "slovenly manners." Better when practical: Use the full quote. QUOTES WITHIN QUOTES: Alternate between double quotation marks ("or") and single marks ('or'): She said, "I quote from his letter, 'I agree with Kipling that "the female of the species is more deadly than the male," but the phenomenon is not an unchangeable law of nature,' a remark he did not explain." Use three marks together if two quoted elements end at the same time: She said, "He told me, 'I love you.'" PLACEMENT WITH OTHER PUNCTUATION: Follow these long-established printers' rules: The period and the comma always go within the quotation marks. The dash, the semicolon, the colon, the question mark and the exclamation point go within the quotation marks when they apply to the quoted matter only. They go outside when they apply to the whole sentence. HEADLINES: Use single quote marks in headlines
Comma in a series (no second comma in "Red, white and blue")
The following guidelines treat some of the most frequent questions about the use of commas. Additional guidelines on specialized uses are provided in separate entries such as dates and scores. As with all punctuation, clarity is the biggest rule. If a comma does not help make clear what is being said, it should not be there. If omitting a comma could lead to confusion or misinterpretation, then use the comma. For detailed guidance, consult the punctuation section in the back of Webster's New World College Dictionary. IN A SERIES: Use commas to separate elements in a series, but do not put a comma before the conjunction in most simple series: The flag is red, white and blue. He would nominate Tom, Dick, Harry or Jeannette. Include a final comma in a simple series if omitting it could make the meaning unclear. The governor convened his most trusted advisers, economist Olivia Schneider and polling expert Carlton Torres. (If Schneider and Torres are his most trusted advisers, don't use the final comma.) The governor convened his most trusted advisers, economist Olivia Schneider, and polling expert Carlton Torres. (If the governor is convening unidentified advisers plus Schneider and Torres, the final comma is needed.) Put a comma before the concluding conjunction in a series if an integral element of the series requires a conjunction: I had orange juice, toast, and ham and eggs for breakfast. Use a comma also before the concluding conjunction in a complex series of phrases: The main points to consider are whether the athletes are skillful enough to compete, whether they have the stamina to endure the training, and whether they have the proper mental attitude. See dash and semicolon for cases when elements of a series contain internal commas. WITH EQUAL ADJECTIVES: Use commas to separate a series of adjectives equal in rank. If the commas could be replaced by the word and without changing the sense, the adjectives are equal: a thoughtful, precise manner; a dark, dangerous street. Use no comma when the last adjective before a noun outranks its predecessors because it is an integral element of a noun phrase, which is the equivalent of a single noun: a cheap fur coat (the noun phrase is fur coat); the old oaken bucket; a new, blue spring bonnet. WITH NONESSENTIAL CLAUSES: A nonessential clause must be set off by commas. An essential clause must not be set off from the rest of a sentence by commas. See essential clauses, nonessential clauses in the main section. WITH NONESSENTIAL PHRASES: A nonessential phrase must be set off by commas. An essential phrase must not be set off from the rest of a sentence by commas. See essential phrases, nonessential phrases in the main section. WITH INTRODUCTORY CLAUSES AND PHRASES: A comma is used to separate an introductory clause or phrase from the main clause: When he had tired of the mad pace of New York, he moved to Dubuque. The comma may be omitted after short introductory phrases if no ambiguity would result: During the night he heard many noises. But use the comma if its omission would slow comprehension: On the street below, the curious gathered. WITH CONJUNCTIONS: When a conjunction such as and, but or for links two clauses that could stand alone as separate sentences, use a comma before the conjunction in most cases: She was glad she had looked, for a man was approaching the house. As a rule of thumb, use a comma if the subject of each clause is expressly stated: We are visiting Washington, and we also plan a side trip to Williamsburg. We visited Washington, and our senator greeted us personally. But no comma when the subject of the two clauses is the same and is not repeated in the second: We are visiting Washington and plan to see the White House. The comma may be dropped if two clauses with expressly stated subjects are short. In general, however, favor use of a comma unless a particular literary effect is desired or if it would distort the sense of a sentence. INTRODUCING DIRECT QUOTES: Use a comma to introduce a complete one-sentence quotation within a paragraph: Wallace said, "She spent six months in Argentina and came back speaking English with a Spanish accent." But use a colon to introduce quotations of more than one sentence. See colon. Do not use a comma at the start of an indirect or partial quotation: He said the victory put him "firmly on the road to a first-ballot nomination." BEFORE ATTRIBUTION: Use a comma instead of a period at the end of a quote that is followed by attribution: "Write clearly and concisely," she said. Do not use a comma, however, if the quoted statement ends with a question mark or exclamation point: "Why should I?" he asked. WITH HOMETOWNS AND AGES: Use a comma to set off an individual's hometown when it is placed in apposition to a name (whether of is used or not): Mary Richards, Minneapolis, and Maude Findlay, Tuckahoe, New York, were there. If an individual's age is used, set it off by commas: Maude Findlay, 48, Tuckahoe, New York, was present. WITH PARTY AFFILIATION, ACADEMIC DEGREES, RELIGIOUS AFFILIATIONS: See separate entries under each of these terms. NAMES OF STATES AND NATIONS USED WITH CITY NAMES: His journey will take him from Dublin, Ireland, to Fargo, North Dakota, and back. The Selma, Alabama, group saw the governor. Use parentheses, however, if a state name is inserted within a proper name: The Huntsville (Alabama) Times. WITH YES AND NO: Yes, I will be there. IN DIRECT ADDRESS: Mother, I will be home late. No, sir, I did not take it. SEPARATING SIMILAR WORDS: Use a comma to separate duplicated words that otherwise would be confusing: What the problem is, is not clear. IN LARGE FIGURES: Use a comma for most figures greater than 999. The major exceptions are street addresses (1234 Main St.), broadcast frequencies (1460 kilohertz), room numbers, serial numbers, telephone numbers, and years (1876). See separate entries under these headings. PLACEMENT WITH QUOTES: Commas always go inside quotation marks. WITH FULL DATES: When a phrase refers to a month, day and year, set off the year with a comma: Feb. 14, 2020, is the target date.
Comma with nonessential/essential clauses
The following guidelines treat some of the most frequent questions about the use of commas. Additional guidelines on specialized uses are provided in separate entries such as dates and scores. As with all punctuation, clarity is the biggest rule. If a comma does not help make clear what is being said, it should not be there. If omitting a comma could lead to confusion or misinterpretation, then use the comma. For detailed guidance, consult the punctuation section in the back of Webster's New World College Dictionary. IN A SERIES: Use commas to separate elements in a series, but do not put a comma before the conjunction in most simple series: The flag is red, white and blue. He would nominate Tom, Dick, Harry or Jeannette. Include a final comma in a simple series if omitting it could make the meaning unclear. The governor convened his most trusted advisers, economist Olivia Schneider and polling expert Carlton Torres. (If Schneider and Torres are his most trusted advisers, don't use the final comma.) The governor convened his most trusted advisers, economist Olivia Schneider, and polling expert Carlton Torres. (If the governor is convening unidentified advisers plus Schneider and Torres, the final comma is needed.) Put a comma before the concluding conjunction in a series if an integral element of the series requires a conjunction: I had orange juice, toast, and ham and eggs for breakfast. Use a comma also before the concluding conjunction in a complex series of phrases: The main points to consider are whether the athletes are skillful enough to compete, whether they have the stamina to endure the training, and whether they have the proper mental attitude. See dash and semicolon for cases when elements of a series contain internal commas. WITH EQUAL ADJECTIVES: Use commas to separate a series of adjectives equal in rank. If the commas could be replaced by the word and without changing the sense, the adjectives are equal: a thoughtful, precise manner; a dark, dangerous street. Use no comma when the last adjective before a noun outranks its predecessors because it is an integral element of a noun phrase, which is the equivalent of a single noun: a cheap fur coat (the noun phrase is fur coat); the old oaken bucket; a new, blue spring bonnet. WITH NONESSENTIAL CLAUSES: A nonessential clause must be set off by commas. An essential clause must not be set off from the rest of a sentence by commas. See essential clauses, nonessential clauses in the main section. WITH NONESSENTIAL PHRASES: A nonessential phrase must be set off by commas. An essential phrase must not be set off from the rest of a sentence by commas. See essential phrases, nonessential phrases in the main section. WITH INTRODUCTORY CLAUSES AND PHRASES: A comma is used to separate an introductory clause or phrase from the main clause: When he had tired of the mad pace of New York, he moved to Dubuque. The comma may be omitted after short introductory phrases if no ambiguity would result: During the night he heard many noises. But use the comma if its omission would slow comprehension: On the street below, the curious gathered. WITH CONJUNCTIONS: When a conjunction such as and, but or for links two clauses that could stand alone as separate sentences, use a comma before the conjunction in most cases: She was glad she had looked, for a man was approaching the house. As a rule of thumb, use a comma if the subject of each clause is expressly stated: We are visiting Washington, and we also plan a side trip to Williamsburg. We visited Washington, and our senator greeted us personally. But no comma when the subject of the two clauses is the same and is not repeated in the second: We are visiting Washington and plan to see the White House. The comma may be dropped if two clauses with expressly stated subjects are short. In general, however, favor use of a comma unless a particular literary effect is desired or if it would distort the sense of a sentence. INTRODUCING DIRECT QUOTES: Use a comma to introduce a complete one-sentence quotation within a paragraph: Wallace said, "She spent six months in Argentina and came back speaking English with a Spanish accent." But use a colon to introduce quotations of more than one sentence. See colon. Do not use a comma at the start of an indirect or partial quotation: He said the victory put him "firmly on the road to a first-ballot nomination." BEFORE ATTRIBUTION: Use a comma instead of a period at the end of a quote that is followed by attribution: "Write clearly and concisely," she said. Do not use a comma, however, if the quoted statement ends with a question mark or exclamation point: "Why should I?" he asked. WITH HOMETOWNS AND AGES: Use a comma to set off an individual's hometown when it is placed in apposition to a name (whether of is used or not): Mary Richards, Minneapolis, and Maude Findlay, Tuckahoe, New York, were there. If an individual's age is used, set it off by commas: Maude Findlay, 48, Tuckahoe, New York, was present. WITH PARTY AFFILIATION, ACADEMIC DEGREES, RELIGIOUS AFFILIATIONS: See separate entries under each of these terms. NAMES OF STATES AND NATIONS USED WITH CITY NAMES: His journey will take him from Dublin, Ireland, to Fargo, North Dakota, and back. The Selma, Alabama, group saw the governor. Use parentheses, however, if a state name is inserted within a proper name: The Huntsville (Alabama) Times. WITH YES AND NO: Yes, I will be there. IN DIRECT ADDRESS: Mother, I will be home late. No, sir, I did not take it. SEPARATING SIMILAR WORDS: Use a comma to separate duplicated words that otherwise would be confusing: What the problem is, is not clear. IN LARGE FIGURES: Use a comma for most figures greater than 999. The major exceptions are street addresses (1234 Main St.), broadcast frequencies (1460 kilohertz), room numbers, serial numbers, telephone numbers, and years (1876). See separate entries under these headings. PLACEMENT WITH QUOTES: Commas always go inside quotation marks. WITH FULL DATES: When a phrase refers to a month, day and year, set off the year with a comma: Feb. 14, 2020, is the target date.
o Bus, buses, buss, busses
Transportation vehicles. The verb forms: bus, bused, busing. In a restaurant, to clear dishes from a table: The busboy buses tables. Kisses. The verb forms: buss, bussed, bussing. See bus, buses.
o decimal units
Use a period and numerals to indicate decimal amounts. Decimalization should not exceed two places in textual material unless there are special circumstances. For amounts less than 1, use the numeral zero before the decimal point: 0.03. See fractions and numerals.
o Ages (when to use figures and hyphenation)
Use when deemed relevant to the situation. If someone is quoted as saying, "I'm too old to get another job," the age is relevant. Generally, use ages for profiles, obituaries, significant career milestones and achievements unusual for the age. Use ages for people commenting or providing information only if their age is relevant to their comments (e.g., a teenager's comment on video games aimed at that age group). Appropriate background, such as a parent of two young children or a World War II veteran, may suffice instead of the actual age. Always use figures. The girl is 15 years old; the law is 8 years old; the 101-year-old house. When the context does not require years or years old, the figure is presumed to be years. Use hyphens for ages expressed as adjectives before a noun or as substitutes for a noun. Examples: A 5-year-old boy, but the boy is 5 years old. The boy, 7, has a sister, 10. The woman, 26, has a daughter 2 months old. The race is for 3-year-olds. The woman is in her 30s (no apostrophe). See also boy, girl; infant; youth; numerals and elderly. See comma in punctuation guidelines.
o Anonymous sources
Whenever possible, we pursue information on the record. When a source insists on background or off-the-record ground rules, we must adhere to a strict set of guidelines. Under AP's rules, material from anonymous sources may be used only if: — The material is information and not opinion or speculation, and is vital to the news report. — The information is not available except under the conditions of anonymity imposed by the source. — The source is reliable, and in a position to have accurate information. Reporters who intend to use material from anonymous sources must get approval from their news managers. Explain in the story why the source requested anonymity. And, when it's relevant, describe the source's motive for disclosing the information. The story also must provide attribution that establishes the source's credibility; simply quoting a source is not allowed. Be as descriptive as possible about the source of information. If space is limited, use source as a last resort. Official or a similar word will often suffice, including in headlines. See source. Examples: Speaking on customary condition of anonymity in line with government rules, the official said the two sides were engaged "in very fierce" battles near the border crossing, and that one woman was wounded by a stray bullet. Incorrect: Granting anonymity "on customary condition ... in line with government rules" is insufficient. Readers need a plausible explanation of such a condition, and why we're accepting it. For instance, "The rules of the official's job did not allow him to be quoted by name." A security official, who requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the case, said the suspect was monitoring and recording the movements of tourists before his arrest in July. Incorrect: First, we grant anonymity only to those who insist on it, not those who request it. Second, granting anonymity because of the sensitivity of the case is insufficient explanation. Did the official insist on anonymity because he was not allowed to speak with reporters? Because he was not authorized to release information in advance of a public announcement of details of the case? Speaking privately, a senior Foreign Ministry official said any further increase in tension could strengthen "warlike" sentiment on both sides and make a resolution of the problem even more difficult. Incorrect: Speaking privately isn't the same thing as insisting on anonymity, so we cannot use the privately explanation. Moreover, the official is speculating on something that might happen. We grant anonymity for factual information, not speculation or opinion. Sometimes a government or corporation intentionally leaks information, but insists we publish it attributed to an anonymous official. If we cannot convince the government or company to go on the record, it's best to use a formulation that implies that the release of the information was official, even though anonymous. For instance: "... according to the official, who insisted on anonymity because he was not allowed to use his own name in releasing the findings." For additional guidance, see Statement of News Values.
