|
|
|
Style Home |
King County Editorial Style Manual
-E- each. Takes a singular verb when each is the subject of a sentence: Each of us was a witness to the accident. When each precedes a noun or pronoun to which it refers, make the verb singular: Each candidate wants to speak. When each follows the noun or pronoun, make the verb plural: They each were sent a brochure. See either, neither. each other, one another. Two people look at each other. Three or more people look at one another. Either phrase may be used when the number is indefinite: We help each other. We help one another. Add 's to make these plural terms possessive: each other's guitars, one another's hands. Eastside. Capitalize when referring to the area that includes Bellevue, Kirkland, Redmond and other King County communities east of Lake Washington. See capitalization, directions and regions. e-business, e-commerce. See e-mail. ecology, Ecology. The study of the relationship between organisms and their surroundings. Not synonymous with environment, which refers to our surroundings. Also, the abbreviation after first reference for state Department of Ecology is Ecology. Don't use DOE. ecosystem. Lowercase, one word. It means the system in which a biological community exists. ecstasy. Commonly misspelled. editor. Capitalize before a name only when it is an official corporate or organizational name. Do not capitalize as a job description, when standing alone or after a name between commas. See titles. effect. See affect, effect. effect many changes. Consider replacing with less wordy change. See affect, effect. effectuate. Overstated and formal. Simplify. Try carry out or try. e.g., i.e. Often confused. The first is the abbreviation for exempli gratia, a Latin phrase meaning "for example." The second is the abbreviation for id est, a Latin phrase meaning "that is." It introduces a clarification of the words that precede it. Unless the material is scientific or academic, use the simpler English words. Commas or semicolons usually precede both, and commas usually follow both. Phrases containing these abbreviations may be contained in parentheses. either, neither. Either means one or the other, not both: Either color will do. When used as the subject of a sentence, both words take singular verbs: Neither of the candidates was found guilty. When used as adjectives, the nouns they modify always take a singular verb: Either answer is correct. See each. either ... or, neither ... nor. The nouns that follow these words do not make a compound subject. They are alternative subjects and require a verb that agrees with the nearer subject: Neither they nor he is going. Neither he nor they are going. See both ... and. elderly. Use this word carefully and sparingly. It is appropriate in generic phrases that do not refer to specific people: concern for elderly people, service for the elderly. Try phrases like people in their 70s and older instead. Apply the same principles to terms such as senior citizen. Election Day. Capitalize for the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November. eliminate. Consider replacing with simpler cut, drop or end. ellipsis. ( ... ). Avoid. An ellipsis is usually used to show the deletion of one or more words in condensing quotations, texts and documents. It also shows hesitation or trailing off in a quotation: "I wonder what I will say after we ..." Treat an ellipsis as a three-letter word, with three periods and a space on each end. Some software can create an ellipsis that can replace three separate periods. e-mail. A shortened version of electronic mail. OK to use e-mail (lowercase) in all references, including first. Capitalize as E-mail only to begin sentences, headings and headlines. Do not eliminate the hyphen. Follow the same style for words like e-business and e-commerce. See initial-based terms. Acceptable to use as a verb: He e-mailed her about the project. And used alone as a noun, e-mail refers to e-mail in bulk. It takes singular verbs and singular pronouns: He got so much e-mail it overloaded his inbox. All her e-mail was about the construction project. When writing about e-mail messages, it's now OK to refer to an e-mail or to several e-mails: She wrote an e-mail telling friends about her new e-mail address. He read six e-mails about the project. Write out e-mail addresses in all lowercase, following Web convention: theodore.roosevelt@whitehouse.gov. E-mail addresses are not case-sensitive. Avoid using the @ sign in other ways. See Internet, intranet, offline, online, World Wide Web. Also see King County Guidelines for Using King County E-mail (internal link). embarrass. Commonly misspelled. embayment. Jargon. Simplify. Use bay instead. employ. Overstated and formal if you mean "use." Simplify. Try use instead. employee. Not employe. enable. See allow, enable, permit. enact. See adopt, approve, enact, pass. endeavor (v.). Overstated. Simplify. Replace with try or carry out. endnotes. See bibliographies and notes; composition titles; footnotes, endnotes. en route. Always two words. enquiry, inquiry. See inquiry, enquiry. ensure, insure. Commonly confused, though ensure is usually the correct choice. Use ensure to mean guarantee or make certain of something, or try using simpler be sure or make sure. Use insure for references to insurance. See assure. entitled. Means "a right to do or have something." Do not use it to mean titled: "The famous Thornton Wilder play is titled Our Town." Note the lack of a comma between titled and the title. enumerate. Consider replacing with simpler list, count or name. environment. See ecology. environmental impact statement. Spell out on first reference. Capitalize only when used as part of a proper title: The Brown Street Tunnel Project Environmental Impact Statement. EIS (all caps, no periods) is acceptable on second reference. Avoid overuse of the abbreviation by substituting impact statement. As with other abbreviations, don't identify the abbreviation when first spelling out the term if the abbreviation won't be repeated in your document. Always spell out draft, final or supplemental when used with the document name or abbreviation: The project team printed the draft EIS last month. The supplemental impact statement is ready for printing. Not: The project team printed the DEIS. The SEIS is ready. Environmental Protection Agency. Spell out on first reference: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. EPA (all caps, no periods) is acceptable on second reference. environmental reports. Some exceptions to editorial style rules in this manual might be appropriate for some established standards and practices of environmental reports. See exceptions. equal employment opportunities. King County provides equal employment opportunities. Avoid abbreviating except in second references to the Equal Employment Opportunities Commission: EEOC. -er, -est. See more, most. Eskimo, Eskimos. See American Indian, Eskimo. espresso. Most Seattle/King County residents probably know that a double-tall nonfat latté contains espresso, not expresso (even when served to commuters at a park-and-ride lot). estimated. See about. et al. Abbreviation for et alibi or et alii, meaning "and elsewhere" or "and others." Avoid using this abbreviation. Be specific, if possible. It may be used in technical reports as a reference citation: Light rail uses 34 BTUs of energy (Healy, et al., 1984). etc. Abbreviation for et cetera, a Latin phrase meaning "and others," "and so on," "and the rest." It's usually used for things, not people; the Latin et al. is the correct abbreviation for referring to people. But avoid using the abbreviations; use the simpler English words instead. Also, don't use etc. if introducing a list with for example or such as. If using etc., set it off with commas at both ends. ethnic. See race. euphemisms. Avoid unnecessary euphemisms. People die, not pass away. Call things by their most common names. everyday (adj.), every day (adv.). Use every day (two words) to mean "all days": She goes to work every day. Use everyday (one word) to mean "commonplace, ordinary": He wears everyday clothes. everyone, every one, everybody. Everyone and everybody are interchangeable, though everyone is used more often. Use every one to refer to each individual item: Every one of the clues was worthless. Use everyone (or everybody) as a pronoun meaning all people: Everyone supported the proposal. Everyone takes singular verbs and pronouns. evident. Consider replacing evident with simpler clear. See clearly evident. ex-. Don't hyphenate words that use ex- to mean out of: excommunicate. Hyphenate when using ex- to mean former: ex-director. See prefixes. except. See accept, except. except for. Wordy. Consider dropping for, depending on the context. exceptions. This style manual notes exceptions or variations for some editorial style rules that may arise in correspondence and a few other uses. Style exceptions might be appropriate for limited space in charts, tables, maps and signs, and for established standards and practices in marketing and advertising copy, technical publications, environmental documents and legal documents. Style exceptions should be applied consistently in all related documents, and style within a document must be consistent. Of course, clarity to readers and correct grammar are always high priority in all King County documents. See motion, ordinance for guidance on editorial style for legislation of the King County Council. For all other King County documents, follow the editorial style of county motions and ordinances only when quoting them directly. Likewise, follow the editorial style used in other government acts, amendments, bills, charters, codes, constitutions, laws, resolutions and statutes only when quoting them directly.
except when. Wordy. Simplify. Try unless. exclamation point (!). Use sparingly and only to express a high degree of surprise, incredulity or other strong emotion. The exclamation point goes within the quotation marks when it applies to the quoted matter only. Use only one space after an exclamation point at the end of a sentence, unless a particular type font and size, such as 10-point Times New Roman, needs two spaces to provide a stronger visual break. executive. See King County Executive. excessive number of. Wordy. Simplify. Replace with too many. exit numbers. Capitalize them when referring to freeway exits: Exit 6, Exit 52. expect. See anticipate, expect. expedite. Overstated and commonly misspelled. Simplify. Replace with hasten or speed up. express. See route number. expresso. See espresso. extension. See telephone numbers. Back to Top
-F- FAA. See Federal Aviation Administration. facilitate. Consider replacing with simpler ease, make easier or help. facility. Unless this word is part of a proper name, avoid using it when possible, especially as a bureaucratic euphemism for building. Be more specific by naming or describing individual facilities, such as base, building, laboratory, office, plant, warehouse: The council appointed her director of the new jail [not facility]. facsimile, fax. As a noun, verb or adjective, fax may be used in all references, including first. Don't capitalize as FAX; the word fax is neither an acronym nor a proper noun. See reproduce, telephone numbers. fact. Use this word only if a statement can be verified as accurate, true or correct, not for matters of judgment. Also, a true fact is redundant; drop true. When possible, avoid using the phrase the fact that. Omit needless words: since or because, not because of the fact that; though or although, not despite the fact that; remind you or tell you, not call your attention to the fact that; we were unaware that (or did not know that) instead of we were unaware of the fact that; her success instead of the fact that she had succeeded; and our arrival, not the fact that we had arrived. fact-finding (adj.). factor. Hackneyed. Instead, use part, fact, aspect, feature, condition or circumstances. Or be specific and name the specific factor. Fahrenheit. In texts, on first reference use numerals and spell out degrees. Also, spell out and capitalize Fahrenheit: The mercury hit 86 degrees Fahrenheit. On later reference if the context is clear, the degrees may be dropped and the abbreviation for Fahrenheit used: The mercury hit 86 F yesterday (space before and no period after the F). See temperatures. fairly. Vague adverb. Consider omitting or be more precise. family. See collective nouns. family, genus, species. In scientific or biological names for plants or animals, capitalize the broad Latin family name and generic Latin genus name. But lowercase the specific species name: Homo sapiens, Tyrannosaurus rex. See fish, species. FAQ. Abbreviation for plural frequently asked questions; it doesn't end with a redundant s. Except in headings, spell it out on first reference;FAQ is fine for later references. If referring to more than one FAQ document, use FAQ pages, FAQ listings, FAQ documents, etc. farebox. One word. far-ranging (adj.). farther, further. Often misused or confused. Farther implies measurable physical distance: The plant was farther away than they thought. As an adjective, further implies time, degree, amount or quantity: She had further news. As a verb, further means to advance: He worked to further his career. Memory aide: The far in farther refers to physical distance. fats. See collective nouns. fax. See facsimile, fax. feasible. Means capable of being accomplished or capable of being used or handled to good effect. Use less ambiguous possible or probable to mean reasonable or likely. federal. Use a capital letter for corporate or governmental bodies that include the word as part of their formal names: Federal Express, the Federal Trade Commission. Lowercase when used as an adjective: federal assistance, federal government, federal judge. Always lowercase the phrase federal courts. Use the proper name of the court on first reference. Federal Aviation Administration. FAA is acceptable on second reference. Federal Emergency Management Agency. FEMA is acceptable on second reference. Federal Highway Administration. If necessary, abbreviate on second reference as FHWA. Don't abbreviate as FHA, typically considered the abbreviation for Federal Housing Administration. feedback. Jargon. Try rephrasing with advise, comments, response or opinions. female. See sex, sexism. ferryboat. One word. Ferry is acceptable as both a noun and a verb. Plural is ferries. fewer, less. Fewer (or few) emphasizes number, and less emphasizes degree or quantity. Use fewer for plural nouns and individual items that can be counted, less for singular nouns and a bulk, amount, sum, period of time or concept that is measured in other ways: Fewer than 10 applicants called. I had less than $50 in my pocket. Fewer dollars, less money. Less food, fewer calories. See less than, under. file name acronyms. Capitalize the acronym for computer file name extensions when used in text; lowercase the acronym when part of a complete document name. Examples: GIF, flowchart.gif; JPG or JPEG, countyexec.jpg or countyexec.jpeg; PDF, newsletter.pdf; DOC, report.doc; HTM or HTML, index.htm or index.html. The acronym is acceptable on first use if the context is clear; spell it out or explain if it's not: Word document instead of DOC. See Internet. finalize. Often misused. Use only to mean "make final" or "put into final form." Otherwise, replace with finish, end or complete, depending on your point. Change: I will finalize the report. To: I will finish the report. See complete. first-. Include a hyphen when used as a part of a compound adjective modifying a noun: first-line supervisor, first-degree murder, first-quarter touchdown. Otherwise, use two words: first line of defense, murder in the first degree, scored in the first quarter. first-come, first-served. Use hyphens when used as a modifier before a noun: a first-come, first-served policy. But don't include hyphens after a verb: The policy was first come, first served. Note the comma have come and the letter d in served. firsthand. One word. first names. See names. fiscal, monetary. Fiscal applies to budgetary matters. Monetary applies to money supply. fiscal year. The 12-month period that a governmental body or corporation uses for bookkeeping. Spell out phrases like the 1999 fiscal year on first reference. For later references, use fiscal 1999, not fiscal year 1999. Don't capitalize. Avoid FY 1999. fish. Lowercase the name of all fish species, such as chinook, coho, silver, blackmouth and spring. Do not capitalize salmon or trout when used either alone or with the species name (such as chinook salmon or bull trout). However, capitalize the Latin family name, if you are using it: chinook Salmonidae). See family, genus, species; species. flammable, inflammable. Both mean combustible, but use less ambiguous flammable. Use nonflammable to mean will not burn. flextime. Lowercase, one word, no hyphen. flier, Flyer. Use flier to mean a bulletin, handbill or aviator: King County distributed fliers about the public meeting. Flyer is a proper name of some buses and trains. Also see freeway station. flood. If describing how high the water is in a flood and where it is expected to crest, provide some information for comparison. List the flood stage and how high the water is above or below flood stage: Road Services expects the river to crest at 20 feet, six feet above flood stage. floodplain. One word. floodwaters. One word. floppy disk. Use diskette. Flyer. See flier, Flyer, freeway station. fluorescent. Commonly misspelled. following. Usually a noun, verb or adjective: She has a large following. He is following his conscience. The committee is considering the following projects. Also, after is preferred as a preposition: He spoke after dinner. Not: He spoke following dinner. follow up (v.), follow-up (n. and adj.). fonts. See type fonts. foot. Use figures and spell out in texts: She jumped 5 feet. Hyphenate if used as a compound adjective: The 4-foot box is heavy. Foot or feet may be abbreviated to ft. in charts and tables. See dimensions. footnotes, endnotes. Footnotes go at the foot, or bottom, of pages; endnotes go at the end of chapters, articles and books. Avoid using them except for bibliographic references or citations. They interrupt reading by forcing readers to look somewhere else on a page or on another page for the information they contain. Instead, try putting the information in parentheses within the text. If you must use them, consider footnotes first. See bibliographies and notes; composition titles. forecast. Use forecast also for the past tense, not forecasted. foreign, international. Use foreign to describe foreign cars, cities, governments, languages, markets, money, names, products, trade, words and other foreign people, places and things (not in or from the United States). Foreign-made (or imported) and foreign-born are acceptable adjectives. Use international when writing about activities, groups, operations, people and relations involving more than one country. Also, don't define or italicize foreign words and phrases that are commonly used in English and listed in English dictionaries: bon voyage, versus. Avoid using unfamiliar foreign words and phrases. Replace them with an English alternative -- or define, explain or translate them when using them. Italicize an unfamiliar foreign word or term the first time it's used, and put complete translations in quotation marks. foreword, forward. Commonly confused and misspelled. Foreword is an introductory statement at the beginning of a book or other work. Forward means "at or toward the front" or describes movement toward a point in time or space. former. Always lowercase. But capitalize an official title used immediately before a name: former County Executive Gary Locke. formulate. Overstated. Simplify. Replace with work out, devise or form. for the reason that. Overstated and wordy. Simplify. Replace with because. forward. Not forwards. See foreword, forward above. for your information. Consider dropping this overused phrase or replace it with something more original. fractions. Spell out amounts less than one in stories, and hyphenate between the words: one-third, three-fourths. Use numerals for specific amounts larger than one: 5 2/3, 59 5/8. Whenever practical, convert fractions to decimals: 5.5, 43.5, 8.25. If using a whole number with a fraction, do not hyphenate: 4 3/8, 15 ½. Avoid numerals separated by a slash--5 1/2--when the typeface contains case fractions as special characters, such as ½. The fractions 1/4, 1/2 and 3/4 are usually available as special characters in word-processing and desktop-publishing programs. With phrases like three-fourths of X, the verb agrees with X: Three-fourths of the project is done. Three-fourths of the visitors are from Andorra. In charts and tables, always use numerals. Convert to decimals if the amounts involve extensive use of fractions. See decimals. free. Free is an adjective that means "for nothing." Using for free is redundant; drop for. Also redundant is free gift; drop one word or the other. freelance (v. and adj.). The noun: freelancer. freeway station Freeway station (or freeway stop) is preferred: Houghton Freeway Station, the freeway station. To avoid reader confusion, don't use the outdated term Flyer stop or flier stop. See flier, Flyer; park-and-ride lot. frequently asked questions. See FAQ. from ... to. See between ... and, from ... to; time. front line (n.), front-line (adj.). FTE. See full-time equivalent. fulfill, fulfilled, fulfilling. Commonly misspelled. One l in the middle of fulfill, two at the end. full-. Hyphenate when used to form compound modifiers: A full-length film. A full-scale attack. full-time equivalent. Refers to a full-time employment position. Spell out on first reference. FTE is acceptable on second reference. full time, full-time. Hyphenate when used as a compound modifier: He works full time. She has a full-time job. fund. Lowercase as a common noun when referring generally to sums of money set aside for specific purposes: fund, the general fund, the current expense fund, the county's general fund, the departmental current expense fund. When mentioning a specific, unique fund that's identified in budget documents, county ordinances and so on, capitalize the proper name: the 2004 King County Current Expense Fund, the King County General Fund for 2004, the county's 2004 General Fund. Lowercase later references to generic parts of the name. fundamental. Consider dropping or replacing with simpler basic. fundraising, fundraiser. One word; no hyphen or space. Fundraising for charity is a good cause. The committee planned the annual fundraising campaign. The division sponsored a fundraiser. further. See farther, further. future plans. Redundant. Simplify. Drop future. See advance planning. Back to Top |
|
Updated: Nov. 28, 2006. |
|
King County | News | Services | Comments | Search
Links to external sites do not constitute endorsements
by King County. |