Titivillus Editing for the Health Sciences: Style Checklist

Titivillus Editing for the Health Sciences

Preparing Ideas and Research Results for Publication

Timothy DeVinney, Author's Editor and Copy Editor

Titivillus Editorial Services

Style Checklist: Key Points to Consider in Copyediting

Note: this checklist was designed for use with works in the humanities and is retained here only to illustrate the principles involved.

Key

" "--an example or statement quoted from the source cited

AMA American Medical Association Manual of Style. 9th ed. Chicago, Ill: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins; 1998.

AP The Associated Press Stylebook and Libel Manual. Norm Goldstein, ed. Reading, Mass: Perseus Books; 1998. (References are to page numbers.)

CMS14 The Chicago Manual of Style. 14th ed. Chicago, Ill: University of Chicago Press, 1993. (References are to section numbers.)

eg indicates an example cited purely for illustrative purposes

Johnson Edward Johnson. The Handbook of Good English. New York, NY: Washington Square Press; 1991.

MLA2 Joseph Gibaldi. MLA Style Manual and Guide to Scholarly Publishing. 2nd ed. New York: Modern Language Association; 1998. (References are to section numbers.)

MW10 Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary. 10th ed. Springfield, Mass: Merriam-Webster; 1998.

Walsh Bill Walsh. Lapsing into a Comma. Chicago: Contemporary Books, 2000.

Style Sheet
Date:
Job number:

A. Client

1. name of client
2. contact

B. Job

1. author(s)
2. working title
3. length of MS and description
4. intended audience (register)

C. Style References

1. style sheet:
__ to be provided (specify: )
__ to be completed as part of the job
__ other

2. style guide (specify)
__ CMS14 (Chicago)
__ MLA
__ AP
__ other:

3. reference for spelling, hyphenation, and style (in order of preference):
__ client's style sheet (see above)
__ Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, 10th ed.
__ query author and (wait for reply/leave it at that)
__ query client and (wait for reply/leave it at that)

4. reference for word breaks (if different from the above)
__ specify:______________________________

5. reference for people's names:
__ client's style sheet (see above)
__ Merriam-Webster's Biographical Dictionary, rev. ed.
__ query author and (wait for reply/leave it at that)
__ query client and (wait for reply/leave it at that)

6. reference for geographical names:
__ client's style sheet (see above)
__ Merriam-Webster's Geographical Dictionary, 3rd ed.
__ query author and (wait for reply/leave it at that)
__ query client and (wait for reply/leave it at that)

7. reference for transliteration of foreign words:
__ client's style sheet (see above)
__ specify:_________________________

D. Permissions, Credits, Figures

(List here)

E. Typecoding and Special Characters

ellipsis points
___ separated from each other and before and after, by 3-to-em spaces (CMS14, 10.48: " . . . "); use this code for 3-to-em spaces:_________________
___ separated from each other and before and after, by word spaces
___ use ANSI character … [ALT+0133] with a non-breaking space before and after (AP, 272)
___ use periods inside brackets, with spaces between the periods but not before or after (MLA2, 3.9.5: "medical thinking [. . .] stressed")

em dash
entering
___ two hyphens (MLA2, 3.4.5: use --, where dash is unavailable, see below)
___ three hyphens (use ---)
___ let Word AutoFormat: --- to -
___ use ALT+0151 for - (MLA2, 3.4.5: use where available)
___ other:
spacing
___ close up (CMS14, 5.106; MLA2, 3.4.5:-)
___ space before and after (AP, 272: - )

en dash
entering
___ two hyphens (use --)
___ equals sign and one hyphen (use =-)
___ let Word AutoFormat: -- to -
___ use ALT+0150 (for - )
___ other:
format
___ close up (CMS14, 5.115:-)
___ not available, use hyphen or write out (AP, 174: - )

quotation marks
double
___ use straight double quotation marks
___ let Word AutoFormat smart quotes
___ use ALT+0147 (curly opening double quotation mark) and ALT+0148 (curly closing)
___ other:
single/apostrophe
___ use straight single quotation marks/apostrophe
___ let Word AutoFormat smart single quotation mark/apostrophe
___ use ALT+0145 (curly opening single quotation mark) and ALT+0146 (curly closing)
___ other:

small caps
entering in electronic file
___ typecode: <sc></sc>, other:
___ set using Word formatting

special characters, handling of special characters beyond 7-bit ASCII
___ typecode according to the file:
___ ANSI (MS-Word: ALT+code)
___ Unicode (MS-Word: Insert Symbol)

symbols
list on style sheet etc., in order of
___ ASCII/ANSI
___ ISO-8859-1

F. Style Specifications (for humanistic text)

abbreviations, acronyms, and initialisms
academic degrees
___ with periods (CMS14, 14.11; AP, 4, 157: "M.A.," "Ph.D.," "M.D."; but AP, 4: prefer spell out "a master's degree," "with a doctorate in . . . ")
___ without periods (AMA, p 284; MLA2, 8.1; MW10: "MA," "PhD")
___ follow author

countries
___ with periods (CMS14, 14.19: "U.S.," "U.K. (or G.B.)"; AP, 215: "U.S." ["Used as an adjective not as a noun"])
___ without periods (MLA2, 8.1, 8.3; MW10: "US," "UK")
___ follow author

general
___ capitalize, without periods (AP, 58, 106, 212; MLA2, 8.4: DDT, IOU, UFO)
___ follow author

organizations
___ capitalize, without periods (CMS14, 14.15; AP, 4: ISO, NATO, NBC, UN, YMCA; MW10)
___ for acronyms of five letters or more pronounced as one word, cap first letter only (e.g., Nafta, Basic)
___ exceptions?
___ follow author

personal titles
___ with periods (CMS14, 14.6: Mr., Mrs., Ms., Dr.; MLA2, 3.6.2; AP, 135)
___ without periods (MW10: Mr, Mrs, Ms, Dr)
___ follow author

plurals of abbreviations. See plurals, abbreviations

scholarly abbreviations: handling
___ replace Latin abbreviations with English equivalents (e.g., replace "e.g." with "for example.")
___ use Latin abbreviations for tables, notes, and parenthetical remarks only (MLA2, 8.4)
___ use Latin abbreviations in all types of copy
___ follow author

scholarly abbreviations: specific. See also section G. Alphabetical Listing
___ ca. (CMS14, 14.33: roman, with period)
___ ca. (italics, with period)
___ cf. (CMS14, 14.33: roman, with period)
___ fl. (CMS14, 14.33: no ital, with period, abbreviation for Latin floruit, flourished)
___ [sic] (CMS14, 6.70: italics inside roman brackets)
___ other:________________________
___ follow author

spell out name in addition to abbreviation, acronym, or initialism? [note: CMS14 n/e?]
___ spell out name and follow with abbreviation, acronym, or initialism in parentheses, on first use (AP, 4: avoid this "awkward construction")
___ abbreviation, acronym, or initialism first, then spell out name in parentheses, on first use
___ don't spell out abbreviation, acronym, or initialism, if listed on style sheet (AP, 4)
___ follow author

U.S. states
___ do not abbreviate in running text (CMS14, 14.17: preferred)
___ abbreviate in running text for addresses only (MLA2, 83; AP, 195: use two-letter postal abbrev. with full address and ZIP code only)
___ use traditional abbreviations in bib., notes, and tables (CMS14, 14.17: Calif., Mass., N.Y.)
___ use two-letter postal abbreviations in bib., notes, and tables (CMS14, 14.17: CA, MA, NY)
___ other:

colon, capitalization of first word following
___ capitalize first word of clause following colon, if that clause is a complete sentence
___ capitalize first word of clause following colon, if that clause is a complete sentence and the colon is being used to introduce not to link (Johnson, p. 126: "The chairman offered us the following choice: We could jail the treasurer or fine the security officer." Cf. below)
___ capitalize first word of clause following colon, if that clause is a complete sentence and the colon is being used to link not introduce (Johnson, p. 128: "The chairman offered us a shocking choice: several of us gasped.")
___ always lowercase first word of clause following colon even if it is a complete sentence (Johnson, p. 128)

comma
after introductory phrase
___ omit for short introductory phrases ("Yesterday I went shopping.")
___ use for short introductory phrases ("Yesterday, I went shopping.")

serial
___ use serial comma (CMS14, 5.57; MLA2, 3.4.2b)
___ don't use serial comma unless necessary to avoid confusion
___ don't use serial comma unless an element in the list includes a conjunction, or if the elements are complex phrases (AP, 270)
___ follow author

company names
___ do not set off Inc. or Ltd. with a comma (AP, 45, 102: "J.C. Penney Co. Inc. announced … "; note: Walsh, p. 78, points out that AP's logic for this is that this construction is "inherently restrictive")
___ set off Inc. or Ltd. with a comma
___ in straight text or notes, Inc. or Ltd. usually dropped (CMS14, 7.60, 14.12: and spell out Co. in straight text: e.g., J. C. Penney Company announced . . .)

contractions
___ leave contracted (e.g., it's, don't, can't)
___ spell out (MLA2, 3.4.7: contractions are "rarely acceptable in scholarly writing")
___ follow author
___ use only in informal speech (AP, 49)

cross references to parts of work
numbered parts
___ lowercase and always use numerals even if the part itself is spelled out (MLA2, 3.7.1, 3.10.3; CMS14, 7.140, 8.32: chapter 1, section 4, page 101)
___ capitalize and always use numerals (Chapter 1, Section 4, Page 101)
___ capitalize and follow normal styling for numbers (Chapter One, Page 101)
___ follow author

parts with names or titles
___ lowercase part titles (e.g., we have outlined our future program in conclusions and future research)
___ capitalize part titles (e.g., we have outlined our future program in Conclusions and Future Research)

dates
traditional or "common era"
___ B.C./BC and A.D./AD (CMS, 8.41; MLA2, 8.2)
___ B.C.E./BCE and C.E./CE

punctuation: B.C. and A.D.
___ SMALL CAPS, with periods (CMS14, 8.41: A.D. and B.C.)
___ SMALL CAPS, without periods (AD and BC)
___ capitalize, with periods (AP, 3: A.D. and B.C.)
___ capitalize, without periods (MLA2, 8.2: AD and BC)

punctuation: BCE and CE
___ SMALL CAPS, with periods (B.C.E. and C.E.)
___ SMALL CAPS, no periods (BCE and CE)
___ capitalize, with periods (B.C.E. and C.E.)
___ capitalize, without periods (BCE and CE)
___ other:
___ follow author

calendar
___ day month year (CMS14, 8.36: prefers "27 April 1981" but will accept "April 27, 1981," if consistent; MLA2, 3.10.5: use either, but be consistent)
___ day month<comma> year (1 January, 1900)
___ month day<comma> year (AP, 134, and 58: example for D-Day: "June 6, 1944, the day the Allies invaded Europe in World War II")

centuries
___ follow style for numbers—whatever it is (e.g., the fifth century; the 18th century)
___ spell out all centuries (MLA2, 3.10.5: fifth century, eighteenth century)

decades
___ 1860s (CMS14, 8.35: "class of '84"; 8.40, 8,64: "the 1830s and 1840s"; MLA2, 3.10.5 [but see also below]; AP, 59: "1890s," "the '90s," "the mid-1930s")
___ 1860's
___ spell out (MLA2, 3.10.5: usually written out: "the nineties," but numerals also acceptable)
___ follow author

month and year
___ month year (CMS14, 8.36; MLA2, 3.10.5; AP, 134: "January 1972 was a cold month.")
___ month<comma> year (e.g., January, 1900)
___ follow author

diacritics
general
___ never use
___ retain if part of a quotation (MLA2, 3.3.4)
___ retain if used by author
___ retain or add if missing
___ other (MLA2, 3.3.4: add for transcribed titles or quotations, where all caps are rendered in lower case)

on capital letters
___ delete on French and Spanish words (note [source of this?]: the French preposition à [a-grave] never carries the accent when capitalized; French: CMS14, 9.33: practice of some publishers [but see also below]; Spanish: CMS14, 9.81: "safely dispensed with for ordinary text work")
___ add or leave (French: CMS14, 9.33: practice of some publishers [but see also above]; MLA2, 3.3.4: accent never unacceptable over a capital letter that would require one if it were lowercase)
___ follow author

diaereses
in English words
___ follow MW10 (e.g., "naïve")
___ drop (e.g., "naive")

in foreign words (including umlauts)
___ use diaereses ä, ö, ü (CMS14, 9.11; but MLA2, 3.3.5: use diaereses unless normally spelled out in English: use "Götz, but Goethe")
___ spell out, with e for the umlaut (use "ae" for "ä," "oe" for "ö")

dimensions. See numbers, specific uses—dimensions

ellipsis points
with period or without
___ add period at end of a grammatically complete sentence, even if only part of quoted sentence and place ellipsis points after that (CMS14, 10.55: preferred)
___ use three points of ellipsis in any omission, regardless of where it falls in the sentence quoted (CMS14, 10.49-50: also acceptable)

em dash
special or debatable uses (aside from normal punctuation)
___ for attribution (after a quotation) close up, no spaces, usually placed on following line (CMS14, 10.33: -William Shakespeare, The Tempest)
___ for attribution (after a quotation) one space either side (AP, 272: - William Shakespeare, The Tempest)

en dash [note: MLA2 n/e?]
special or debatable uses (aside from normal punctuation)
___ for a range of numbers (CMS14, 5.115: "pp. 38-45," "1968-70")
___ if not available, use hyphen or write out with to (AP, 174: "$12 million to $14 million.")
___ "in place of a hyphen in compound adjective when one of the elements of the adjective is an open compound . . . or when two or more of the elements are hyphenated compounds" (CMS14, 5.117: "New York-London flight" and "post-Civil War period")

foreign words and phrases (for those not listed in MW10 as adopted into English)
___ italics on first use, roman thereafter
___ italics throughout (MLA2, 3.5.2)
___ single quotation marks on first use, without thereafter
___ single quotation marks throughout
___ double quotation marks on first use, without thereafter
___ double quotation marks throughout

headline style
capitalization, general
___ lowercase all articles, coordinating conjunctions, prepositions, and to of the infinitive (CMS14, 7.127; MLA2, 3.7.1)
___ lowercase articles, prepositions, and coordinating conjunctions, of three letters or fewer (AP, 323; AMA, p 239)
___ lowercase prepositions of four letters or fewer (e.g., "Without" but "with")
___ other

capitalization of hyphenated words
___ capitalize both if of equal weight
___ cap only first, if it modifies the second (e.g., Medium-sized Libraries)
___ cap both elements, where first modifies the second (CMS14, 7.128: "Medium-Sized Libraries")
___ lowercase elements after the first if they are an article, preposition, or coordinating conjunction (CMS14, 7.128: "Run-of-the-Mill Responses" and "A Run-in with Authorities")
___ if first element is a prefix, cap second word if it is a proper noun or adjective only, if not, lowercase it (CMS14, 7.128: "Anti-intellectual pursuits" and "Non-Christian Religions")
___ always capitalize both words in hyphenated compounds

ligatures
___ use special character (MLA2, 3.3.6: for specialized audience only: æ, Æ, œ, Œ, ß)
___ spell out (CMS14, 6.61: don't use for English rendering of Greek or Latin words: use Encyclopaedia Britannica, not Encyclopædia Britannica, and for English words derived from Greek or Latin use e for æ: i.e., use maneuver, not manæuver; MLA2, 3.3.6: for the general reader use: ae, AE, oe, OE, and ss, for the corresponding ligatures)
___ exceptions to using e for æ (CMS14, 6.61: spell out aesthetics and archaeology)

lists, vertical
colon to introduce
___ avoid using unnecessary colon after word introducing the list (CMS14, 5.10: e.g., after "that")
___ always use colon after word introducing list (e.g., "The menu includes: [vertical list]")

bullets
___ use bullets
___ don't use bullets (CMS14, 8.77: "sometimes resorted to, but . . . may be considered cumbersome, especially in scholarly work.")
___ follow author

numbered
___ use numbers, only if sequence is meaningful
___ use numbers
___ follow author

measurements, units
hyphenation of number plus unit
___ hyphenate numeral plus unit of measurement (AP, 62; CMS14, table 6.1: "three-mile limit," "150-yard skid"; e.g., 4-foot wall, 20-mile-an-hour speed limit)
___ do not hyphenate numeral plus abbreviated unit of measurement (CMS14, table 6.1: "4 ft. high wall," "12 kg weight")

standard followed
___ use U.S. measurements only (AP, 127, but see also below)
___ use SI (metric) measurements only
___ use U.S. measurements with metric equivalent in parentheses (AP, 127: if important to the story)
___ use metric measurements with U.S. equivalent in parentheses (AP, 127: if important to the story)
___ follow author

"mid"
with numbers
___ use as prefix (CMS14, table 6.1, p.229: "mid-nineteenth century," p. 219: "mid-eighteenth-century poet"; AP, 129: "mid-30s")
___ use as adjective (e.g., mid 19th century)
___ follow author

with words
___ follow CMS14, table 6.1, pp. 220 and 226; then dictionary
___ follow dictionary:
___ follow author

money
foreign
___ use abbreviation and space (CMS14, 8.29: "Fr 120" and "DM 45 million")
___ use abbreviations listed in GPO style manual
___ use symbol and close up (CMS14, 8.26: "£175.64")
___ convert to dollars, or spell out name of currency (AP, 164)

hyphenate as adjective
___ hyphenate (e.g., a $300-billion budget, a 25-dollar book)
___ do not hyphenate (AP, 65: "a $300 billion budget")

large sums
___ use currency sign, numerals, and spell out "million" or "billion" (CMS14, 8.25: "$3 million")
___ spell out (e.g., five million dollars)

spell out or not, general
___ follow normal rules for numbers (CMS14, 8.23: "twenty-five cents," "five dollars," "$325")
___ always use numerals, except in casual reference or reference without a number (AP, 64, : "$4," "$25," "$1,000," "Dollars are flowing overseas.")

names of people
initials in personal names
___ no space between initials (AP, 104: J.R. Tolkein)
___ space between initials (CMS14, 7.6; MLA2, 8.1: e.g., J. R. Tolkein)

Jr. and Sr.
___ do not set off with a comma (CMS14, 8.55, 14.8: "recommended"; AP, 110: "Joseph P. Kennedy Jr."; note: Walsh, p. 78, points out that AP's logic for this is that this construction is "inherently restrictive")
___ set off with a comma (CMS14, 8.55: acceptable but not recommended; MLA2, 3.6.1: "Arthur George Rust, Jr.")
___ follow author

numbers, general rules
commas with numbers of four or more digits
___ use comma after third digit, for all numbers with four or more digits, except for dates of four digits (CMS14, 8.41 and 8.65; MLA2, 3.10.3: e.g., 4,500, 12,300, but date: 1945)
___ use comma after third digit, for all numbers of five or more digits (e.g., 4500, 12,000)
___ follow author
(see also numbers, general rules—commas with years of many digits, below)

commas with years of many digits
___ use comma after third digit, for dates BC of four or more digits (CMS14, 8.41 and 8.65; MLA2, 3.10.3: e.g., 1974, 4,500 BC, 35,000 BC)
___ use comma after third digit, for all dates of five or more digits (e.g., 1974, 4500 BC, 35,000 BC)
___ follow author

consistent style of number in the same list?
___ use the same style throughout, preferring numerals (CMS14, 8.8; MLA2, 3.10.3: "only 5 of the 250 delegates")
___ style each number in list regardless of how others are styled (only five of the 250 delegates)
___ change style of numbers in a list only if many of them are of one style (e.g., their scores were 3, 10, 145, and 151)

hyphenate number plus unit of measurement (see also measurements, units)
___ do not hyphenate numeral plus abbreviated unit of measurement (CMS14, table 6.1: "4 ft. high wall," "12 kg weight")

inclusive ranges
___ use all digits (e.g., pp. 101-102, 1916-1917)
___ use two digits or more (MLA2, 3.10.6: e.g., pp. 101-02, 1916-17)
___ use only the digits that change (e.g., pp. 101-2, 1916-7)
___ follow Chicago's elision system (e.g., pp. 100-102, pp. 101-2, 1916-17)
___ do not use a hyphen, but use numerals and "to" (e.g., 25 mg to 35 mg)
___ follow the author

plurals of numerals
___ 747s (CMS14, 8.64: "4½s"; AP, 7: "woman is in her 30s"; AP, 159: two "727s")
___ 747's

sentence, begin with numeral?
___ never (CMS14, 8.9, 14.3: spell out, or recast sentence; MLA2, 3.10.2)
___ spell out or recast, except for year, which is acceptable to use at the beginning of a sentence (AP, 145: "1976 was a very good year.")

spell out
___ nine/10, and spell out multiples of one hundred, one thousand, etc. (AP, 146)
___ ten/11
___ one hundred/101, and spell out any of those whole numbers followed by "hundred," "thousand," "hundred thousand," "million," etc. (CMS14, 8.3; MLA2, 3.10.2)
___ other:

spell out, exceptions (See also numbers, specific types)
___ always use numerals with units of measurement (e.g., 4 miles)
___ always use numerals for ages of people (AP, 7)
___ always use numerals with abbreviated units of measurement (CMS14, 8.15: "3 mi," "55 mph," "13 g," "50 lb"; MLA2, 3.10.4)

numbers, specific uses
age
___ use numeral (e.g., the 9-year-old)
___ spell out number if it would normally be spelled out (e.g., the nine-year-old)

counted thing
___ follow normal rule for spelling out numbers (e.g., three trees; 102 trees--but see also number, general rules-consistent style in list)

dimensions (see also measurements, units)
___ use numeral and spell out unit (AP, 62: "he is 5 feet 6 inches tall," "the 5-foot 6-inch man")
___ spell out number and unit
___ use numeral and abbreviate unit (MLA2, 3.10.2: "6 lbs.")

distance
___ use numeral with abbreviated unit (CMS14, 8.15: "3 mi")
___ spell out number if it would normally be spelled out (CMS14, 8.12: "Some students live more than fifteen kilometers from the school"; AP, 64: spell out one to nine, then numerals for 10 and above: "He walked four miles.")

fraction
___ spell out and hyphenate, both as adjective and noun (CMS14, p. 223: "two-thirds majority," and p. 228: "one-half" [n.])
___ spell out, but hyphenate only adjective (e.g., two-thirds majority, and one half [n.])
___ use numerals and hyphenate, both as adjective and noun
___ use numerals, but hyphenate only adjective

money. See money

ordinal
___ always use numerals (e.g., 1st, 9th, 12th; AP, 145: "Use 1st, 2nd, . . . etc. when the sequence has been assigned in forming names. . . . 1st Ward, 7th Fleet and 1st Sgt.")
___ spell out if it would normally be spelled out as a cardinal
___ spell out first through ninth, then use numerals for 10th and above (AP, 145: "when they indicate sequence in time or location: first base, the First Amendment")

percentage
___ always use numeral and spell out percent (CMS14, 8.17; AP, 156)
___ use numeral and symbol "%" [keyboard or ALT+037] in text and tables (MLA2, 3.10.4: "45%," but where numbers are rarely used, spell out number and "percent" if it can be done in three words or fewer: "forty-five percent")
___ spell out number and percent in text, but use numeral and symbol "%" in tables or parenthetical comments
___ follow author

speed
___ always use numeral and spell out unit (AP, 193: "The car slowed to 7 miles per hour")
___ spell out number, if it would normally be spelled out, and spell out unit (CMS14, 8.12: "The train approached at a speed of seventy-five miles an hour.")
___ use numeral and abbreviate unit (CMS14, 8.15: "55 mph"; MLA2, 3.10.2)

temperature
___ always use numeral and spell out unit (AP, 201: "The day's low was minus 10," but "The temperature rose to zero by noon.")
___ spell out number, if it would normally be spelled out, and spell out unit (CMS14, 8.12: "The temperature dropped twenty degrees in less than an hour.")
___ use numeral and symbol for unit (CMS14, 8.11: "10 °C" [ALT+0176]; MLA2, 3.10.2)

units of measurement (see also measurements, units of)
___ always use numerals with units of measurement (CMS14, 8.11: for scientific or technical text)
___ always use numerals with abbreviated units of measurement (CMS14, 8.15: "3 mi"; MLA2, 3.10.2)
___ follow normal rule for numbers (CMS14, 8.12: for nonscientific text: "The temperature dropped by twenty degrees in less than an hour."; AP, 64: for distances: "He walked four miles.")

weight
___ use numeral and spell out unit (AP, 227: "The baby weighed 9 pounds, 7 ounces.")
___ spell out number and unit
___ use numeral and abbreviate unit (CMS14, 8.15: "50 lb"; MLA2, 3.10.2: "6 lbs.")

plurals
of abbreviations or acronyms
___ no apostrophe with s (MLA2, 3.4.7g: "PhDs"; AP, 106 and 157: "IOUs," "Ph.D.s")
___ with apostrophe-s, only where abbreviation has more than one period (CMS14, 6.17: "M.A.'s and Ph.D.'s" but "vols." and "eds."; while 6.16: "CODs and IOUs")

of single letters
___ no apostrophe with s (CMS14, 6.16: "learned her three Rs" [but see also below, CMS14, 6.82, for some proverbial expressions which use apostrophe-s.])
___ with apostrophe-s (AP, 159: learned her three R's; but also CMS14, 6.82: some proverbial expressions use letter with apostrophe: "Mind your p's and q's"; MLA2, 3.4.7: for plurals of letters of the alphabet: "p's and q's")

of multiple letters
___ no apostrophe with s (AP, 159: ABCs; CMS14, 6.16; MLA2, 3.4.7g: "MAs"; but CMS14, 6.17: apostrophe-s for abbreviations with internal period: Ph.D.'s)
___ with apostrophe-s

of numbers. See numbers, general rules—plurals

of symbols
___ with apostrophe-s (e.g., AMA, 222: "There are 9 +'s on the page.")
___ no apostrophe with s (e.g., There are 9 +s on the page.)

of words used as words
___ no apostrophe with s (CMS14, 6.16; AP, 159: 'He spoke with too many "ifs," "ands," and "buts."' See also title of Theodore Bernstein's book Dos, Don'ts & Maybes of English Usage.)

possessives
singular common nouns ending in s
___ with apostrophe-s (CMS14, 6.24; MLA2, 3.4.7a: general rule)
___ with apostrophe-s, unless next word begins with s (AP, 268: "the hostess's invitation, the hostess' seat.")
___ apostrophe only, for some traditional expressions (CMS14, 6.19: "for appearance' (conscience', righteousness', etc.) sake")

singular proper nouns ending in s
___ with apostrophe-s (CMS14, 6.24: "Jones's reputation," "Dickens's novels"; MLA2, 3.4.7e)
___ apostrophe only (AP, 268: "Jules' seat," "Dickens' novels," but see below)
___ exception for names of more than one syllable with unaccented ending pronounced -eez (CMS14, 6.27: Hercules' labors, Xerxes' army; AP, 268: "Hercules' labors," "Xerxes' army," etc.)

pronouns for things or animals
___ use neuter pronouns for animals
___ use he or she for animals
___ use she for ships
___ other (specify: )

quotations, allowed to edit?
___ cap or lowercase first letter of first word to suit overall sentence (CMS14, 10.7, 10.13: may be changed in non-scholarly works)
___ cap or lowercase first letter of first word to suit overall sentence, but enclose in brackets if changed from original (CMS14, 10.13: preferred in scholarly work, and "essential in legal works and textual criticism.")
___ change terminal punctuation to fit grammar of sentence (CMS14, 5.11, 10.7)
___ change double to single or single to double quotation marks inside the quoted material (CMS14, 10.7)
___ change typography from that used by another publisher (CMS14, 10.8: e.g., change the type style of players' names in the dialogue of a play.)
___ change word or phrase to italics for emphasis, but indicate by "[italics added]"
___ use brackets to insert comments or additional information

sentence, begin with numeral? See numbers, general rules—sentence, begin with numeral?

shared proper noun
___ cap if it would be individually (CMS14, 7.43: Atlantic and Pacific Oceans)
___ lowercase (AP, 147: "Atlantic and Pacific oceans")

spelling
variants
___ follow first variant in dictionary listed above
___ follow author's preference

British spellings
___ let stand
___ change, if not part of a proper noun
___ change, even if part of proper noun

technical or key terms, introducing
___ use italics for first use, then roman
___ use italics throughout
___ use single quotation marks for first use, then drop
___ use single quotation marks throughout

times, a.m. and p.m.
___ l/c, with periods, no spaces, use only with numerals (CMS14, 14.30: also acceptable; MLA2, 8.2, 3.10.2: a.m., p.m.; AP, 160)
___ SMALL CAPS, with periods, no spaces, use only with numerals (CMS14, 14.30: A.M., P.M.; use with numerals: "8:00 A.M."; and not with "o'clock"; CMS14 also accepts "a.m.," "p.m.")
___ regular caps (A.M., P.M.)

titles, of works (see also headline style)
allowed to edit original titles appearing in text or bibliography?
allowed to edit only those elements checked off below:
___ capitalization (CMS14, 7.128: changes allowed)
___ century format (CMS14, 7.129: change to spell out all centuries)
___ dates (CMS14, 7.130f.: change, so that if not grammatically related to the title, set off with commas: "Thought and Letters in Western Europe, A.D. 500-900")
___ hyphenation (CMS14, 7.128: retain as it appears in the original: e.g., to-morrow)
___ numbers (CMS14, 7.129: change to spell out numbers if spelled out in text)
___ punctuation (CMS14, 7.130: changes allowed, except that hyphenation and dashes should not be changed)
___ spelling: variants or AmE and BrE (CMS14, 7.129: changes not allowed)
___ other (specify):

English language titles
___ in italics (CMS14, 7.127 and 7.133: capitalize all words except prepositions of any length, articles, coordinating conjunctions [and, but, or, nor, for], and the to in infinitives, unless they come at the beginning or end of the title [in which case they are always capitalized].)
___ place in quotation marks (AP, 46: in quotation marks, except for Bible and standard reference works; capitalize principal words, and any prepositions, conjunctions, or articles of four or more letters, or if they appear at the beginning or end of the title.)
___ in italics, sentence-style capitalization

French
___ sentence-style capitalization: cap only first word, even if not substantive, and proper nouns and proper adjectives (CMS14, 9.4: e.g., Les plus excellents bâtiments de France)
___ cap initial articles and adjectives until first substantive word (CMS14, 9.4n.: e.g., Les Plus Excellents Bâtiments de France)

Latin, ancient and medieval
___ use sentence-style capitalization: cap only first word, proper nouns, and proper adjectives (CMS, 9.56: for ancient and medieval titles: e.g., De materia medica)

Latin, Renaissance and modern
___ use headline-style capitalization (CMS, 9.56: for Renaissance and modern works in Latin: e.g., Newes Itinerarium Italiae)

titles, noble, royal, and professional
appositive
___ capitalize (Grove Dictionary of Art: e.g., Cosimo III de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany; CMS14, 7.26: only for titles of lawyers and some titles of academics: "Clyde M. Haverstick, Doctor of Law" and "Lee Wallek, Fellow of the Royal Academy," otherwise lowercase)
___ lowercase (CMS14, 7.19; AP, 207; e.g., Cosimo III de' Medici, grand duke of Tuscany; but CMS14, 7.26: exception for titles of lawyers and academics [see above])

combined titles (part of name)
___ hyphenate (Grove Dictionary of Art: e.g., Cardinal-Prince-Bishop Andreas von Habsburg of Austria)
___ leave open (e.g., Cardinal Prince Bishop Andreas von Habsburg of Austria)

generic
___ lowercase (CMS14, 7.18: e.g., the grand dukes of Florence)

possessive modifier
___ capitalize (e.g., engraver of the King's seals)
___ lowercase (e.g., engraver of the king's seals)

part of name
___ uppercase (CMS14, 7.16; e.g., King Francis I of France; but "the French king Francis I")

used as a name in running text
___ capitalize (e.g., I said goodbye to the Major as he boarded his plane.)
___ lowercase (CMS14, 7.18; e.g., The king and queen said goodbye.)

used as a name in direct address
___ capitalize (CMS14, 7.17: "I would have done it, Captain, but the ship was sinking.")
___ lowercase (e.g., Will that be all, sir?)

words used as words
___ use italics (CMS14, 6.76: Correctness and justness are not synonyms; AP, 230: if available, otherwise use quotation marks)
___ use double quotation marks (CMS14, 6.76: Tim had enough of her "maybe's."; AP, 159: He spoke with too many "ifs," "ands" and "buts")
___ use single quotation marks (e.g., we will define 'freedom' in a new way.)

G. Alphabetical List

[list here]

URLs linked to above, but not spelled out:

Sample Style Sheets at KOK Edit (for a novel, a medical textbook, and a work of literary criticism). Available at: http://www.kokedit.com/style_sheets.htm. Accessed March 18, 2002.

URL for this page: http://www.HeathSciEdit.com/tes-stylchk.htm
© 2003–2009 Timothy DeVinney. Page updated October 21, 2008.