Stylebook
This guide is designed to suggest consistent solutions to common problems faced by anyone writing about the University of Cincinnati. Professional communicators from across the university originally developed the style guide in 1994. It is updated regularly through the Division of Governmental Relations and University Communications.
UC Stylebook is intended as an adjunct to the Associated Press Style Guide and Libel Manual and Merriam-Webster Dictionary. Some listings evoke grammar rules, and some address strictly style issues.
In choosing AP style as a basis to follow, the writers of UC's stylebook focused on external, general audiences. For some departments with specialized audiences other stylebooks, including those required by particular academic disciplines, may be better choices. Whether or not everyone agrees with all the recommendations in this guide, its intent is to help us achieve consistency of style in our writing university-wide.
When writing about the Academic Health Center, you may want to consult its own style guide. UC employees, especially new ones, may find it helpful to review this list of UC idioms and jargon.
If you have questions or comments, please email Deb Rieselman.
SEARCHING
- All information is listed in alphabetical order. Click a letter to go directly to that section.
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a or an
Use the article a before words pronounced with a beginning consonant sound, including a pronounced h, a long u and the word one. Examples: a historian, a horse, a hysterical joke, a union, such a one as this. Use an before words pronounced with a beginning vowel sound and a silent h (which results in a vowel sound). Examples: an onion, an umbrella, an hour, an honest man.
When an article appears before an abbreviation, acronym or numeral, choose one based upon pronunciation. Examples: a UC student, a U.S. senator, an 11th hour project, an NKU collaboration.
AAUP
Use American Association of University Professors on first reference.
abbreviations
When an abbreviation falls at the end of a sentence, do not add an another period. Example: We live in the U.S. The addition of punctuation other than a period is acceptable. Example: Do you live in the U.S.? (See entries for academic degrees, buildings, states, acronyms, tabular material, also.)
(See acronyms to distinguish them from abbreviations.)
academic degrees
Two-year undergraduate degrees are associate degrees. When referring to generic bachelor's or master's degrees, make them lowercase and possessive. When referring to a specific degree by its full name, write Bachelor of Science, Master of Arts, and so forth. When referring to the PhD in general, use doctorate for the noun and doctoral for the adjective. Consider your audience when deciding whether to abbreviate or spell out on first reference. If abbreviating, don't use periods (which is contrary to AP). Examples: BA, MA, MD, PhD.
The discipline in which the degree was earned also remains lowercase. Examples: bachelor of science degree in electrical engineering, master's degree in fine arts.
Do not routinely list all degrees in copy, but use as needed in the context. MD and RN are the two degrees most often needed to clarify a person's position of medical authority.
If listing a degree is necessitated by the audience and the degree is listed after a name, it must be set off with commas. Example: John Joseph, MS in biology, will lead the discussion.
academic departments
Capitalize words in academic departments only when using the official department name or if proper nouns are being used. Examples: He is studying journalism in the English department, but also spends a lot of time picking up classes in the math department. She wants to earn a professional writing certificate in the Department of English and Comparative Literature.
Academic Health Center
This term refers to UC's four health-related colleges (the College of Medicine, College of Allied Health Sciences, College of Nursing and the James L. Winkle College of Pharmacy), as well as Hoxworth Blood Center. The colleges are located on the university's medical campus.
See entry for campuses. For teaching, patient-care and research affiliates of the Academic Health Center, see affiliates.
academic ranks
The following are official full-time faculty ranks used at the university (from lowest to highest rank). Double-check any other ranks in the university telephone directory. This listing does not include part-time teachers who are usually called adjuncts or lecturers: instructor [in], assistant professor [of], associate professor [of], professor [of].
For librarians: beginning librarian, assistant librarian, associate librarian, associate senior librarian, senior librarian.
The following qualifiers, added to the above ranks, are used to denote faculty affiliation, but persons with qualified ranks are not eligible for tenure: field service, adjunct, research, clinical, visiting.
Very infrequently a professor is recognized for uncommon merit and achievement with one of the following ranks, reflecting affiliation not just with a particular department, but also with the entire university:
- Distinguished Research Professor
- Distinguished Teaching Professor
- University Professor
- Ohio Eminent Scholars — faculty brought to the university with the help of competitive grants awarded to the university by the Ohio Board of Regents Selective Excellence Program.
- Endowed chairs — faculty positions that are funded with endowments established in honor of, and named after, distinguished individuals.
- Emeriti — After faculty members retire from regular duties at the university, many of them, not all, are honored for their contributions by allowing them to continue to carry their academic titles. This is not a synonym for retired. See emeritus.
academic year
When referring to the academic year (August through May), use the format 2012-13. Do not capitalize fall semester or similar terms.
See years.
acronyms
An acronym is an abbreviation, written all in capital letters with no periods. To be an acronym, each letter represents a word in the official name or title, and the letters form a pronounceable word, such as CASE (Council for Advancement and Support of Education). FBI is not an acronym, but is an abbreviation. When using an acronym, explain what the letters stand for on first reference. Three examples:
- GEARUP is an acronym for Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs.
- In the name Lindner Honors-PLUS, PLUS stands for Promise (as a business professional), Leadership (in school and community activities), Understanding (of the global marketplace and diverse cultures) and Success (through talent, commitment, dedication and effort).
- CATapult is a partial athletics acronym; the first three letters stand for championships, academics and together.
University of Cincinnati is often written as an acronym -- UC (no periods). The United States is never written as one (U.S., not US) except in headlines, which follows an Associated Press guideline to drop the periods. Use U.S. only as an adjective; spell out United States for use as a noun.
See capitalization in company names — all letters in a name.
For a list of UC acronyms, see the UC Idioms and Jargon website.
A.D.
Written uppercase with periods, although this reference is usually unnecessary. It stands for Anno Domini, Medieval Latin for in the year of the Lord. The abbreviation precedes the numeral because that is the way the unabbreviated words would be read. Example: in the year of the Lord 12, A.D. 12. (Conversely, B.C. follows a numeral. See B.C.)
adage
Do not say old adage. There's no other kind.
addresses
The following guidelines are for using addresses in editorial copy.
Abbreviate St., Ave., Blvd. when using a numerical address. Examples: 2982 Main St., the Clifton Avenue building. For guidelines in abbreviating state names, see states. When a single street address is needed for the entire University of Cincinnati, use the physical address of the Welcome Gate (gatehouse). Example: 2600 Clifton Ave., Cincinnati, Ohio 45221. When referring to a post office box in editorial copy, place periods in the abbreviation P.O. Box.
When a correct street address is needed, refer to this website.
In tabular material or in a website footnote, it is acceptable to use the post office guidelines below. (See tabular material.)
addresses for post office use and tabular material
- UC ZIP codes — UC's West Campus, East Campus and resident housing have their own ZIP codes:
- 45221 for West Campus (excluding resident housing) and the College of Nursing
- 45267 for East Campus (excluding the College of Nursing)
- For residence hall addresses, see the Housing & Food Services website.
- UC mail locations — Four-digit mail locations are used to send on-campus mail. To receive UC mail through the U.S. Postal Service, a P.O. box and nine-digit ZIP code are necessary. Each UC ZIP code is created by attaching the mail location to the end of the five-digit ZIP code. The P.O. box is the last six digits of the ZIP code.
- West Campus: ML 0000 + 45221 = ZIP code 45221-0000 or PO Box 210000
- East Campus: ML 0000 + 45267 = ZIP Code 45267-0000 or PO Box 670000
- Format for USPS — The U.S. Postal Service requires a specific format for non-campus mail to accommodate its digital scanning technology. Most important on East Campus and West Campus where hundreds of mail locations exist, this format may help speed mail delivery. Postal Service scanners read only the bottom three lines. Regardless of how many lines in the address, the format for the last three is precisely as follows:
Name of Person
Name of Department or Division
Building Name, Room Number
University of Cincinnati
PO Box 21xxxx
Cincinnati OH 452xx-xxxx
Note that department, division or office names should be placed above "University of Cincinnati," not below it. Note, also, that no periods or commas are used in the last two lines of the address, including the PO abbreviation. In editorial copy in brochures and publications, however, insert proper punctuation -- periods in P.O. Box and a comma between a city and state.
- Addresses for package delivery — When a street address is needed for a package delivery (such as UPS or FedEx), place the four-digit mail location in parentheses after your name or department name:
Name of Person
Name of Department or Division (xxxx)
University of Cincinnati
xxx Street Name
Cincinnati OH 452xx
- Regional campuses — For the U.S. Postal Service, the only UC colleges that use a street address are the following:
UC Blue Ash College
9555 Plainfield Rd
Blue Ash OH 45236-1096
Clermont College
4200 College Dr
Batavia OH 45103-0162
More information is available in from the University Architect's office (Excel file).
addresses in news releases
When writing news releases about faculty and students, use the person's home address, when appropriate, following the person's name and enclosed in parentheses. Do not use house numbers on press releases. For Greater Cincinnati addresses, use street names and ZIP codes only.
When referring to an address beyond Greater Cincinnati, use the street name, city, postal state abbreviation and ZIP code. Example: Hanna Avenue, Middletown, OH 45102.
adverse, averse
Adverse means unfavorable, contrary or hostile. Averse means having a strong feeling of opposition, antipathy or repugnance. Example: I was averse to taking my prescription, which created an adverse relationship with my doctor.
adviser, advisor
Use adviser for general purposes. Many times, however, advisor is preferred in academic references. Consider the audience.
Teaching, patient-care and research affiliates include University of Cincinnati Medical Center hospital, UC Health Drake Center, UC Health West Chester Hospital, UC Health University of Cincinnati Physicians, Lindner Center of Hope, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Shriners Hospital for Children–Cincinnati, Jewish Hospital and Christ Hospital.
African-American
Hyphenate. The term is acceptable for an American black person of African decent, but be careful not to apply it to all blacks. For instance, Caribbean descendants generally refer to themselves as Caribbean-Americans. The term black is also acceptable. Follow an individual's preference.
ages
Always use figures. Examples: The student is 19 years old. The student, 24, has a daughter 6 months old. The policy is 4 years old.
Ages used as a noun or an adjective before a noun require hyphens. Examples: The 19-year-old student ran for office. The racetrack features 3-year-olds today. See compound modifiers.
An age range requires no apostrophe. Example: The instructor was in her 30s.
aka
Written without periods, aka stands for "also known as." The phrase is set off with commas or parentheses, but punctuation does not immediately follow the letters aka. It is used to mention another name, such as aliases, nicknames and pen names. Example: "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer" was written by Samuel Clemens, aka Mark Twain.
all, all of
Use the preposition of when the phrase all of is followed by a pronoun or a proper noun. Correct examples: all of your work, all of his effort, all of its contents fell out, all Americans. Incorrect: all your work.
When all is followed by a common noun, you may use of only if an article precedes the noun. Nevertheless, its use is discretionary. Acceptable: all of the ingredients, all the ingredients. Incorrect: all of ingredients.
all together, altogether
All together means together in a single group. Altogether means completely. Example: Let’s go all together. I’m altogether shocked at your response.
alphabetizing with numerals
For lists that contain words and a few numbers, alphabetize the list as if the numerals were spelled out. Examples:
Changing of the Guard
Houses of Parliament
Piccadilly Circus
10 Downing Street
Tower of London
And:
four hamsters
14 goats
hairless wart hogs
three blind mice
truck full of cows
An exception could be argued if a list contained so many numbers and words that the writer preferred to place the numerals in ascending order prior to the alphabetized words. Such is the standard for Microsoft Word alphabetizing. A shortened example:
6-foot board
20-ounce can of putty
5-pound bag of sand
6-by-9 tarp
box of nails
toolbox
ladder
paint
alumni
Alumnus refers to one male who attended a college or to a former student of unspecified gender. Alumna refers to one female. Alumni refers to two or more former students, all or some of whom are all male. Alumnae refers to two or more females. People who attended UC, but did not graduate, may be called alumni.
a.m., p.m.
Lowercase with periods. Avoid redundancies such as 10 a.m. Tuesday morning. (See entry for time duration.)
ampersand
Avoid, unless it is part of a company or institution's legal name. Examples: Procter & Gamble (P&G), McMicken College of Arts and Sciences. Note the acceptable second reference for the college is A&S.
an or a (See entry for a or an.)
and/or
Don't use together. Reword the sentence.
annual
Never say first annual. It's redundant. Second annual is acceptable.
annual meeting
Lowercase in all uses.
any one, anyone
Any one means any one person or item. Anyone means anyone in a general sense. Examples: Does anyone really know what time it is? You can have one of the raffle prizes; pick up any one you would like.
anyway, any way
Any way is a noun and is always two words. Anyway is an adverb and always one word. Examples: Is there any way out of this mess? (substitute “a way”) I hate those kinds of problems, but I’ll help you anyway.
anxious, eager
Anxious implies fear or concern for a negative impact. Eager is the positive term.
area codes
Use this format: 513-556-5225.
arguably
The word means "many would argue." It does not present a very strong case for an argument.
assume, presume
Assume means to suppose to be true without proof. Presume means to take for granted in the absence of proof to the contrary. Presume can also mean "take excessive liberties," as in the adjective form presumptuous.
assure, ensure, insure
Assure means to give someone confidence. Ensure means to make certain. Insure means to guarantee against loss (as in to issue an insurance policy). Example: The boss assures me that he will hire the right person because doing so will ensure the company continues.
attorney
A person legally empowered to act for another, usually but not always a lawyer. Lawyer is a generic term for anyone admitted to the bar to practice law. Consult AP Stylebook for a more detailed explanation.
autumn
Use fall semester.
awake, awoke, awaked
Awoken is not a word.
awhile, a while
A while is always a noun. Awhile is always an adverb. Example: Learning the new program takes a while, but if you wait awhile, I’ll help you.
bachelor's degree (See entry for academic degrees.)
B.C.
Written uppercase with periods. It stands for before Christ. The abbreviation follows the numeral because that is the way the unabbreviated words would be read. Example: in the year 125 before Christ, 125 B.C. (Conversely, D.D. precedes a numeral. See A.D.)
B.C.E. (before the common era) and C.E. (common era) may be appropriate in some professional publications, but they are not the standard for general-interest audiences.
because, due to, since, as
- Because is always followed by both a noun and verb. Example: I record this example because I can’t keep the rule straight.
- Due to introduces an adjective phrase that modifies a noun. Example: I record this example due to my poor memory.
- Since must contains a notion of duration over time — when the first event in a sequence leads logically to the second but is not its direct cause. Because is preferred over the word since, in that because always indicates a specific cause-and-effect relationship.
- As is a poor substitute for the above words unless you want to tone down the reason. Even the word for is better substitute than as.
bi-
Generally no hyphen. Examples: bimonthly, bilateral, bilingual.
biannual, biennial
Biannual is twice a year or semiannual. Biennial is every two years.
Big East Conference
Upper and lowercase all three words. This contradicts the way the conference writes BIG EAST Conference.
bimonthly, biweekly
Means every other month or week. Sometimes confused with semimonthly and semiweekly. But for readability, twice a month is preferred to semimonthly; likewise twice a week is preferred to semiweekly.
black
Acceptable for a person of the black race, according to AP Stylebook. Can be used interchangeably with African-American if you are sure the person is an American with African heritage.
branch campus
Preferred term is "regional campus" when referring to UC Blue Ash College or Clermont College.
branding (See entries for logo and seal, also.)
In 2002, the university adopted a consistent and coherent way to verbally and visually present itself to the public. For details, visit UC's Branding Initiative online. All uses of the university logo and seal are overseen by the University Brand Review Committee, headed by Angela Klocke.
Britain (See United Kingdom.)
buildings, facilities
Be mindful of your audience when naming campus buildings and facilities. In many cases, an abbreviated name commonly used on campus would be misunderstood by external audiences. Below are the names of buildings or facilities that can be confusing. In some instances, the complete official name includes a middle initial. Although the UC stylebook generally omits a middle initial (see entry for initials), they are included here because they are part of an official name. Use your own discretion in determining which wording works best for your audience.
When appropriate, use full names on first reference. For use on campus, however, certain unit, building and program names can be abbreviated on first reference if they are readily understood.
(Also, see entry for signature architect buildings. More information is available at the Campus Building Directory.)
The following are official names for some UC buildings. In some instances, their accepted abbreviations, locations and the first name of the honoree are listed, as well:
- 60 W. Charlton Building — the former Sander Dining Hall
- 840 Gallery — room 840 at the College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning
- Alms — an original DAAP building, aka Frederick and Eleanora Alms Building
- Annie Laws Drawing Room — room 410, Teachers College
- Aronoff Center for Design and Art — Aronoff Center (Stanlely Aronoff)
- Baur Room — room at CCM
- Bearcat Plaza — a three-level outcropping on the north side of TUC
- Blegen Library — houses Archives and Rare Books Library, Department of Classics and others (Carl Blegen)
- Braunstein Hall — also known as Old Physics (John Braunstein)
- Brodie Gallery — room 615J, Rieveschl Hall (in the Brodie Science Complex)
- Brodie Science Complex — includes several buildings, George Rieveschl Hall (formerly Brodie A1), Crosley Tower, Rhodes Hall and Zimmer Auditorium
- Calhoun Street Garage — formerly Calhoun Garage
- Campus Green — the lawn area east of the Alumni Center
- Campus Green Drive Garage — formerly CBA Garage
- Campus Recreation Center — Campus Rec Center on second reference
- CARE/Crawley — Center for Academic and Research Excellence/Crawley Building, connected to the Medical Sciences Building
- CCM Boulevard Garage — CCM Garage
- Champion’s Walkway — part of the Sheakley Athletic Complex
- Charles M. Barrett Center for Cancer Treatment and Research — Barrett Center
- Clifton Court Garage — formerly Brodie Garage
- Cohen Family Studio Theater — CCM's small black box theater with flexible seating (Dolly and Ralph Cohen)
- Corbett Auditorium — the College-Conservatory of Music's large 738-seat performance hall (J. Ralph and Patricia Corbett)
- Corbertt Center for the Performing Arts — part of the CCM Village (J. Ralph and Patricia Corbett)
- Patricia Corbett Theater — CCM's smaller 400-seat theater
- Corry Boulevard Garage — Corry Garage, located in the Edwards Center
- DAA Addition — one of the buildings that make up the DAAP complex
- Darwin Turner Hall — part of the Jefferson Residence Hall
Complex - Dieterle Vocal Arts Center — formerly Schmidlapp Hall, located in the CCM Village (Louise Dieterle Nippert)
- Dyer Hall — formerly Old Biology (Elizabeth Dyer)
- Ed Jucker Court — basketball court of Fifth Third Arena in the Shoemaker Center
- Edwards Center — contains four separate sections, each with its own front-door entrance on W. Corry Boulevard: Edwards One, Edwards Two, Edwards Three, Edwards Four. Corry Garage is also part of the Edwards Center. (Vera Edwards)
- Engineering Research Center — also known as the ERC, which is acceptable upon second reference
- Fifth Third Arena — consists of Ed Jucker Court, 13,176 seats, 16 private executive suites and a restaurant and lounge that overlook the court — all located in the Shoemaker Center. Fifth Third Arena is the preferred reference for the location of basketball games.
- Fifth Third Terrace — part of the Sheakley Athletic Complex
- Hastings L. and William A. French Building — houses the College of Allied Health Sciences, the former Shriners Burns Institute, aka the French Building
- French Hall — located on West Campus (Herbert Greer French)
- James and Joan Gardner Family Foundation Field — the large field of the Sheakley Athletic Complex
- Geology-Physics Building — hyphenated
- Gettler Stadium — the track and soccer complex (Ben and Dee Gettler)
- Jefferson Residence Hall Complex — comprises Schneider Hall and Turner Hall
- Kingsgate Circle Garage — Kingsgate Garage
- Kingsgate Conference Center — the Marriott facility on East Campus
- Kresge Auditorium -- College of Medicine's large lecture and performance hall, located on E-level of the Medical Sciences Building at the Albert Sabin Way entrance
- Langsam Library — main library on Woodside Drive (Walter Langsam)
- Carl H. Lindner Hall — Lindner Hall, two n's, houses the Carl H. Lindner College of Business
- Richard E. Lindner Center — Varsity Village's athletics center
- MainStreet — uppercase S, no space. A corridor that begins at the University Pavilion, includes TUC, the Student Life Center and the Student Recreation Center, then concludes at the Jefferson Residence Complex. It also includes the open spaces of McMicken Commons, Bearcat Plaza, the Mews and Sigma Sigma Commons.
- Marge Schott Stadium — the baseball stadium
- MarketPointe at Siddall — the dining room at Siddall
- Medical Sciences Building — s at the end of Sciences; aka MSB
- Mews — a secluded open space between Swift Hall the Steger Student Life Center
- Mick and Mack — k on both names
- Morgens Residence Hall — (Howard J. Morgens)
- Robert Werner Recital Hall — located on the third level of CCM's Emery Hall
- Russell C. Myers Alumni Center — alumni center, not the alumni house
- Procter Hall — e, not o
- Rieveschl Auditorium — located in the Vontz Center (George Rieveschl)
- Rieveschl Hall — located between Langsam Library and the DAAP complex (George Rieveschl)
- Room 525, Old Chemistry — a large lecture hall on West Campus
- Herman Schneider Residence Hall — part of the Jefferson Residence Hall Complex
- Marge Schott Stadium — the baseball stadium
- Sears building — Colloquial name for the Campus Services Building at 2900 Reading Rd., formerly a Sears store.
- Myrl H. Shoemaker Multipurpose Center — the Shoemaker Center, aka the Shoe, houses the Fifth Third Arena and support services for each of the Bearcat sports teams, including the women's basketball offices, meeting rooms, locker rooms and related facilities.
- Siddall Residence Hall — located behind the old YMCA building (Helen Siddall)
- Sigma Sigma Commons — the Tower of Light and amphitheater near French Hall (Sigma Sigma Fraternity)
- Sheakley Athletics Complex — the football practice field, formerly known as the Jefferson Avenue Sports Complex (Raymond D. Sheakley)
- Joseph A. Steger Student Life Center — Steger Student Life Center
- Tangeman University Center — TUC on second reference
- Teachers College — the building name, not the college name; no apostrophe
- University Avenue Garage — formerly Scioto-Jefferson Garage
- University Commons — the green space behind the Kingsgate Center
- University Hall — on East Campus
- University House at Edgecliff Point — the president's residence
- University Pavilion — on West Campus
- Asa and Julia Van Wormer Hall — Van Wormer Hall (formerly the Administration Building)
- Richard E. Lindner Varsity Village — Varsity Village
- Vera Clement Edwards Center — Edwards Center
- Veterans Affairs Medical Center — no apostrophe
- Veterans Bridge — The bridge between TUC and CCM.
- Albert H. Vontz Center for Molecular Studies — Vontz Center
- Walter C. Langsam Library — Langsam Library, UC's central library
- Wolfson — an original DAAP building
- Woodside Drive Garage — formerly Library Garage
- Zimmer Auditorium — Brodie Science Complex's large lecture/presentation facility
campuses
UC has several campuses that are designated as follows:
- Center Hill Campus — The Center Hill Research Center comprises UC's Large Scale Test Facility, Combustion Research Laboratory, High Temperature Erosion Lab, Gas Turbine Simulation Lab and Leather Industries Research Building. The center is located at 5997 Center Hill Ave., Cincinnati.
- Clermont College — UC's regional campus in Clermont County, referred to by address: 4200 College Dr., Batavia, OH 45103-0162.
- East Campus — The same as the medical campus, which is the preferred usage. (See below.)
- medical campus — This comprises the Academic Health Center (which consists of the buildings associated with the colleges of medicine, nursing, pharmacy and allied health sciences), as well as Kingsgate Marriott Conference Center, University of Cincinnati Medical Center hospital, Hoxworth Blood Center, UC Health Physicians Office — Clifton and the Charles M. Barrett Center for Cancer Research and Treatment. Usage preferred over the term "east campus." See affiliates for teaching and research affiliates.
- Reading Campus — The UC-owned buildings at 2180 E. Galbraith Rd. in Reading, Ohio, formerly known as the Genome Research Institute. The UC Metabolic Diseases Institute is the primary research program at this campus.
- UC Blue Ash College — UC's regional campus in Blue Ash, referred to by address: 9555 Plainfield Rd., Blue Ash, OH 45236-1096.
- Uptown Campus — East Campus and West Campus combined. Replaces the outdated term Central Campus.
- Victory Parkway Campus — The site of the former College of Applied Science. The street address is preferred for off-campus communication: 2220 Victory Parkway, Cincinnati, 45206-0103.
- West Campus — All academic colleges in the area bounded by Martin Luther King Drive, Jefferson Avenue, Calhoun Street and Clifton Avenue. It is often referred to as the Clifton Campus, which derives from its location along Clifton Avenue, but the area is not in Clifton, and that name is to be avoided.
Avoid these terms:
- Main campus — Sounds as if campuses are on a hierarchy. Use the term Uptown Campus instead.
- Branch campus — Sounds like a secondary campus. Use the term regional campus instead.
cancer institutes and centers
- Charles M. Barrett Center for Cancer Research and Treatment
A building on the UC medical campus located between the UC Health Physicians Office — Clifton and University of Cincinnati Medical Center. It opened in 1988. Much of the outpatient cancer services of the UC Medical Center are located here. The building is named for Charles Barrett, MD '39, once chairman and CEO of the Western-Southern Life Insurance Co. and chairman of the UC Board of Trustees. - Cincinnati Cancer Center
This is a joint cancer program involving the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center and University of Cincinnati Medical Center. The collaborative initiative brings together interdisciplinary research teams of caring scientists and health professionals to research and develop new cures, while providing a continuum of care for children, adults and families with cancer. - University of Cincinnati Cancer Institute
Part of the Cincinnati Cancer Center, the UC Cancer Institute organizes cancer adult patient care, research and education missions within the College of Medicine and throughout patient-care settings in UC Health, including adult cancer-care services provided at the Barrett Cancer Center, the UC Health Physicians Office — Clifton, the UC Health Physicians Office North, Precision Radiotherapy in West Chester and UC Health West Chester Hospital.
capitalization
Capitalize only proper names. Avoid capitalizing generic terms (such as university, college, professor, faculty, administration, student life). Always be sure to include UC or the University of Cincinnati in the name if the context does not make it obvious. Specific examples follow:
- awards — Always lowercase the word award when not used as part of an official name: the awards committee, the writing award, the A.B. Dolly Cohen Award
- academic calendar — Do not capitalize academic terms: fall semester.
- academic departments/subjects — Do not capitalize academic subjects unless a word is a proper noun: His favorite courses are archaeology and English. Capitalize words in academic departments only if they are proper nouns or they compose the official department name: He is studying journalism in the English department. She wants to earn a professional writing certificate in the Department of English and Comparative Literature.
- acronyms — See separate listing for acronyms.
- administrative offices — Do not capitalize units unless using the full proper name of the department: She is a photographer for University Relations. The Office of the President will be closed on Labor Day. The library staff held a party. She works in radiology.
- athletic teams — University of Cincinnati Bearcats, the Bearcats, the Cats, are all acceptable in context. Also do not capitalize the sport: Bearcat football, Bearcat football team. Both men's and women's teams are known simply as the Bearcats (not the Lady Bearcats).
- Big East Conference — Upper and lowercase all three words. This contradicts the way the conference writes BIG EAST conference.
- centers — Always lowercase the word center when not used as part of a proper name: the conference center, the UC Career Development Center.
- class titles — Use lowercase: sophomore, senior.
- colleges — Capitalize only full proper names of colleges: UC College of Law, UC’s law college, the college, the colleges of law and medicine.
- committee names — Capitalize full proper names of officially established committees. Lowercase otherwise: the Academic Coordinating Committee, the editorial committee.
- company, product names — See separate entry for company, corporate, product names. (Also, see acronyms.)
- degrees — Lowercase: bachelor of arts, master's degree, doctorate.
- departments — Do not capitalize generic department names: He is studying archaeology in the classics department. Or, Good resources are found in UC archives. Capitalize departments only when the official proper name is used: A new professor joined the UC Department of History. Visitors to the University Libraries should take time to check out the Archives and Rare Books Department. Also, always remember to capitalize individual proper names: English department.
- divisions — Capitalize full proper names; lowercase unofficial division names: the Division of Student Affairs and Human Resources, the human resources division.
- events — The name of some events can serve as either generic or proper names, particularly the words homecoming and commencement. To determine if they are being used as proper names, which would require capitalization, notice if you can structure the sentence without using an article: We are attending Homecoming. We are attending the homecoming. For comparison, this is similar to the following two sentences: That's my dad. That's Dad.
- headlines — See entry for headlines.
- offices — Do not capitalize units unless using the full proper name of the department: She works in the Disabilities Services Office. The Office of the President will be closed on Labor Day. The library staff held a party. She works in radiology.
- programs — Lowercase all common names. Correct: computer science, interior design, musical theater.
Also, some units write programs names in all uppercase letters even though the letters do not form an acronym, do not stand for anything and are not pronounced. For consistency of style, units other than those related to the program may choose to write the program name with only a single capitalized letter. Before doing so, be sure an acronym is not at play. Correct: GEARUP (which is an acronym for Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs). Subject to discretion: Advance program or ADVANCE (an African American, professional development, student organization at UC). - proper names — Capitalize the full proper name such as the Charles McMicken Society. On second reference, lowercase the shorter form: the society. More examples:
- University of Cincinnati, the university
- College of Law, the college
- Institute for Policy Research, the institute
- 14th Annual Cincinnati Conference on Romance Languages and Literatures, the conference
- American Medical Association, the association
- Ohio Board of Regents, the regents
- University of Cincinnati Board of Trustees, the board
- schools — Capitalize full proper names of schools: School of Architecture and Interior Design, the school.
- titles — Lowercase and spell out most titles relating to people: professor Jim Lange, coach Paul Brown, department head Joan Russell, astronaut Neil Armstrong. (See more examples under titles, publication titles and composition titles.)
- university — Uppercase only the full proper name: University of Cincinnati, the university, the universities of Cincinnati and Indiana.
Also see abbreviations, acronyms, capitalization in company names.
CATapult
The commitment by UC Athletics to win a Big East championship in every sport in five years — a goal that takes the Bearcats through 2011.
Caucasian
Preferred word is white because common ancestry related to the Caucasus Mountains region should not be assumed.
centers and institutes
Capitalize center names when names are used in their entirety. Lowercase the word center when used alone. Use full name for first reference. Examples of preferred second references follow in parentheses:
- Arlitt Child and Family Research and Education Center (Arlitt Center)
- Center for Academic Research Excellence (CARE)
- Center for Reproduction of Endangered Wildlife (CREW)
- Center for the Study of the Practice of Architecture (CSPA)
- Goering Center for Family/Private Business (Goering Center)
- Helen Weinberger Center for the Study of Drama and Playwriting (Weinberger Center)
- Institute for Learning in Retirement (ILR)
- Institute for Policy Research (IPR)
- Manney Language and Research Center (Manney Center)
- University of Cincinnati Information Technology (UCIT)
century
Lowercase. Use the 20th century, not the 1900s.
Takes a hyphen when used as a compound modifier. Example: 20th-century writers.
CEO, CFP, COO
Chief executive officer can be referred to as a CEO on first reference, but all other C-level positions should be spelled out the first time. Abbreviations can always be used on second reference. Use is tabular material could be an exception. (See tabular material entry.)
chair
Preferred over chairperson. Chairman and chairwoman are also acceptable, especially if it is the preference of the person.
cities
Follow the name of a U.S. city by its appropriate state abbreviation unless its location would be readily known to the reader. Example: Eugene, Ore. Usage will vary depending upon context and the geographic boundaries of one's readers.
Regardless, the following cities are so well known that they do not need to be followed by a state name: Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Honolulu, Houston, Indianapolis, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, New Orleans, New York, Oklahoma City, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, St. Louis, Salt Lake City, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, Washington. (See also states.)
For cities outside of the United States, follow the name of a city with the country in which it resides. The following cities, however, are so well known that including the name of its country is unnecessary:
Amsterdam, Baghdad, Bangkok, Beijing, Beirut, Berlin, Brussels, Cairo, Djibouti, Dublin, Geneva, Gibraltar, Guatemala City, Havana, Helsinki, Hong Kong, Islamabad, Istanbul, Jerusalem, Johannesburg, Kuwait City, London, Luxembourg, Macau, Madrid, Milan, Monaco, Montreal, Moscow, Munich, New Delhi, Panama City, Paris, Prague, Quebec City, Rio de Janeiro, Rome, San Marino, Sao Paulo, Shanghai, Singapore, Stockholm, Sydney, Tokyo, Toronto, Vatican City, Vienna, Zurich
clinical trials
The U.S. National Institutes of Health explain that clinical trails are conduced in four phases, denoted by Roman numerals -- Phase I, Phase II, Phase III and Phase IV. Phase IV takes place after the Federal Drug Administration has approved a medication. Phase III is the last phase before approval.
co-
Use hyphen only when forming words that indicate occupation or status. Example: co-worker.
coed
No hyphen. Short for coeducational. The word is generally not used to talk about a female student.
collective nouns
Some words can be singular or plural, depending upon their usage. Collective nouns can take a singular verb when they denote a single unit, but they can take a plural noun when they denote individual items. Examples:
- The faculty is meeting today. (as a unit)
- Many faculty are working on their projects this weekend. (individual members)
- A million dollars is a large request. (a unit)
- A million dollars were collected. (individual items)
colleges, degree-granting units
The university has 13 colleges and 14 degree-granting units. This is the list of official names of colleges and the one other degree-granting unit, with the acceptable second reference where applicable:
- Carl H. Lindner College of Business — Lindner College of Business upon second reference
- College of Allied Health Sciences — includes the School of Social Work
- Clermont College — Clermont
- College-Conservatory of Music — CCM (note hyphen in entire name)
- College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning — DAAP (Comma after Art is an exception to the punctuation rule; see entry for commas, in a series.)
- College of Education, Criminal Justice, and Human Services — CECH, not Teachers College, which is the name of a building (Comma after Justice is an exception to the punctuation rule; see entry for commas, in a series.)
- College of Engineering and Applied Science — CEAS
- College of Law (not the Law School)
- College of Medicine — The college, the UC Medical Center and medical campus are not synonymous.
- College of Nursing
- James L. Winkle College of Pharmacy — Winkle College of Pharmacy or College of Pharmacy, depending upon context
- Graduate School
- McMicken College of Arts and Sciences — A&S
- UC Blue Ash College — Blue Ash College (formerly Raymond Walters College or RWC)
(Also, see references in the entry for capitalization.)
commas
- in numbers — Use commas in numbers of four digits or more. Examples: 1,248 or 47,193.
- in a series — Do not use a comma before the word and in a series, unless the sentence structure is so complex that a comma keeps its meaning clear. Examples: Red, white and blue Popsicles are my favorites. The list of evidence includes a knife with fingerprints on it, cigarette butts and ashes, and a matchbook. Exceptions: College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning; College of Education, Criminal Justice, and Human Services
- with adjectives — See coordinate adjectives.
- with Jr. or Sr. — Do not use in names. Example: Ron Culhane Jr.
- with dates and times — Offset the date with commas, but not the time. Example: The president will address the faculty at 4 p.m. Wednesday, April 10, in Great Hall.
- with "which" — Phrases beginning with the word which are non-essential clauses. Place commas before and after the phrase. Example: My car, which is a Ford, needs new tires.
- in phrases giving times, distances, measurements — Do not use commas. Examples: He was 6 feet 4 inches tall. She ran the relay in 2 minutes 3 seconds.
- to indicate missing words -- Use a comma to indicate that words are missing from a phrase. Example: Among UC’s graduate programs, DAAP is nationally known for interior design; CCM, for opera/voice.
company, corporate, product names (See also trademarks.)
In general, follow the spelling and capitalization used by the company. Examples: inCircle, eBay, iPod, MasterCard, Macintosh, Kmart. Additional treatments of company names follow:
- capitalization in company names
- first letter -- Regardless of corporate policy, always capitalize the first letter of all sentences.
- word "the" -- Lowercase the before a company name regardless of the company’s preference, unless doing so makes the name confusing. This style recommendation is adopted outside of Associated Press guidelines and in alignment with “The Chicago Manual of Style” because using an uppercase the creates three problems. 1) It looks like a typographical error in many instances. 2) It is too difficult to know which companies officially used the capital T. 3.) It opens the door for worrying about making other articles part of a proper name (e.g., a or an). Examples: Procter & Gamble, Gannett Co., Microsoft Corp., the Kroger Co., the Cincinnati Enquirer, General Electric Aircraft Engine Group.
- all letters in a name -- Regardless of corporate policy, do not use all capital letters in a corporate name unless all the letters are pronounced or the name is an acronym. Correct: Big East (not BIG EAST), Imax (not IMAX), Ikea (not IKEA). Also correct: BMW, IBM, ESPN. When using a genuine acronym, be sure to explain what the letters stand for on first reference.
- ampersands in company names -- Use ampersands as the official company or product name dictates.
- abbreviations in company names -- Abbreviate Co. and Corp. Delete references to Ltd. or Inc., unless doing so makes the name confusing. When one needs to use Inc. or Ltd., do not use a comma before the abbreviation even if it is used in the formal name. Use the same guideline for the following abbreviations: LLC (limited liability corporation), LLLP (limited liability limited partnership), LC (limited company), PLLC (professional limited liability company), PL (professional limited company), LP (limited partnership), LLLP (limited liability limited partnership), PC (professional corporation).
- graphic elements in company names -- Although clever graphic elements may be part of a company’s logo, editorial content never uses typographic symbols or unusual fonts in a name, including exclamation points, quotation marks, plus signs, asterisks, bold type or italic type. Incorrect: Yahoo!, Toys”R”Us, E*Trade. Correct: Yahoo, Toys R Us, E-Trade.
Notes:
- Many of these guidelines have been implemented because editorial text, when treated as a graphic element, often looks like a typographical error to readers and is almost impossible for a proofreader to know what is correct. UC is adopting AP Style on this.
- To check on the formal names of many companies, consult the national stock exchanges: New York Stock Exchange (www.nyse.com), Nasdaq (www.nasdaq.com) or the American Stock Exchange (www.amex.com).
- (See entries for law firms and publication titles, too.)
compare to, compare with
When you compare to, you look at the similarities. Example: UC Magazine has been compared to Rutgers’ magazine.
When you compare with, you look at similarities and differences. Example: When you compare UC’s magazine with Notre Dame’s magazine, you find both are excellent publications for their audiences, yet not for each other’s audience.
compose, comprise, constitute
The whole comprises the parts. The parts compose or constitute the whole. The whole is composed of the parts. Never use the phrase comprised of. Consult AP stylebook for more information.
composition titles (See entry for publication titles, also.)
Use these guidelines for the titles of books, movies, operas, plays, poems, songs, television programs, lectures, speeches and works of art:
- Capitalize all principal words, including prepositions and conjunctions of four or more letters.
- Capitalize articles (the, a, an) and all shorter words if they are the first or last words in a title. Do not omit the first articles.
- Put quotation marks around the names of all such works except the Bible 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. Note: When listing series of two or more related publications — for example, a chapter in a volume of a series of books — using these guidelines can result in a too many quotation marks. In these cases, use quotations around the smallest subset of the series and no quotation marks around subsequent larger parts of the set.
- In general, translate a foreign title into English unless the work is generally known by its foreign name. Examples: Wagner's operas "Die Walküre" and "Gotterdammerung." Consider carefully the extent to which foreign titles will be generally known for your particular audience.
- For course names, capitalize only, use no quotation marks or italics.
compound modifiers
When two or more modifiers express a single concept before a noun, link the modifiers with hyphens. Examples: long-term assignment, full-scale investigations, small-business owner, part-time or full-time worker. But: She works part time.
The point is to clarify which word modifies which word. Examples: Squad helps dog bite victim. Squad helps dog-bite victim.
- Words ending in ly -- An exception is very or words ending in ly, which are never hyphenated. Examples: very good food, organically grown food.
- Understood words -- Another exception occurs when two words are so commonly associated together that no confusion would occur. Example: real estate agent.
- Campus differences -- There is one instance in which the East Campus and West Campus could arguably handle this differently involves using "health care" as a compound modifier. Health-care system is appropriate, but if an audience is quite accustomed to such phrases, it works as an open compound without the hyphen. Systems biology program is another example. The audience's familiarity should be the guide.
- Numbers -- For compound modifiers involving numbers, generally, hyphenate a compound modifier consisting of a cardinal number and a unit of measure. Do not hyphenate a compound modifier that contains "percent," which is not a unit of measurement. Example: 100-calorie snacks, 80-MB hard drive, 2-inch margins, 2-quart pitcher, 80-degree weather, 8-pound baby, 12th-grade class, 20th-century writers. ... But, 35 percent increase, 10 percent raise, 3 percent tax hike, 2 percent tuition increase.
comprise (See entry for compose.)
computer terms (See entry for Internet, also.)
Spelling of Internet-related words are aligned with the AP stylebook, including:
- World Wide Web (a proper name)
- the Web (abbreviated proper name), Web page
- website, webcast, webmaster
- Also:
- Andriod (uppercase)
- app (short for application on second reference)
- Blu-ray
- Bluetooth
- cyberspace
- CD-ROM
- download
- dot-com (informal adjective)
- DNS (domain name system)
- DSL (digital subscriber line)
- firewall
- freeware
- FTP (file transfer protocol)
- hashtag
- home page
- html (hypertext markup language)
- http (hypertext transfer protocol)
- hyperlink
- Instagram
- Internet, Internet2
- intranet
- IP address (Internet protocol address)
- Java (a trademark)
- listserv
- login, logon, logoff, log (nouns)
- log in, log on, log off (verbs) / Usage example: You can log in to this account.
- metadata
- MP3
- online
- Pinterest
- retweet
- screen saver
- shareware
- slide show (two words)
- Skype
- smart phone (two words)
- tablet
- tweet (lowercase)
- Twitter (tweet)
- URL (Uniform Resource Locator)
- VoIP (Use Voice over Internet Protocol on first reference.)
- Wi-Fi
- Zip drive, Zip disks (registered trademarks)
- Andriod (uppercase)
Congress, congressman, congresswoman
Capitalize the reference for the U.S. Congress and for foreign legislative bodies that use the word as part of a formal name.
Lowercase the words congressman and congresswoman.
Connection Center
MainStreet Connection Center, on first reference.
continual, continuous
Continual means repeated in rapid succession. Continuous means uninterrupted in time or space.
convince / persuade
- To convince is to change one’s mind: I convinced her that I was right. Convince cannot be followed by an infinitive, but could be followed by of or that.
- To persuade is to move someone to action: I persuaded him to go to lunch. Persuade may be followed by to, of or that.
co-op
Hyphenate the abbreviated reference to cooperative education. Use the longer word on first-reference if the audience is unfamiliar with the abbreviation. Avoid using the word as a verb, but when necessary to do so, the correct spelling follows: co-oped, co-oping.
cooperative education
No hyphen in cooperative, but hyphenate the abbreviated reference co-op.
coordinate adjectives
In strict grammatical terms, you should insert a comma between coordinate adjectives, although many people only insert commas when they clarify confusion. Whether you prefer the strict grammar approach or need to clarify a sentence, be sure you understand this usage.
Coordinate adjectives equally modify a noun. Example: the exciting, productive meeting. "Exciting" and "productive" equally modify the "meeting." Thus, commas are used.
In contrast, hierarchical adjectives modify each other in an order that sounds correct. The "little old lady" is a natural-sounding phrase, whereas the "old little lady" is unnatural. The order of the adjectives is important. Similarly, the "cold December wind" sounds correct, but the "December cold wind" sounds awkward. "Cold" modifies "December wind" more than it modifies the word "wind" alone. Those are hierarchical adjectives that do not take commas.
To identify coordinate adjectives, use the words in these two situations and see if they still sound correct.
- Add “and” or "but" between the adjectives.
- Reverse the order of the adjectives.
Examples:
- Please welcome the two new research assistants. — The sentence makes no sense when you insert "and" between the adjectives: two and new and research assistants. Similarly, the sentence cannot be understood if the adjectives are reordered: the research new two assistants. The order of the adjectives is critical; they are hierarchical. Therefore, commas should not be used.
- A lovely nostalgic song played on the radio. — Although you can argue for saying "a lovely and nostalgic song," it sounds awkward to say "nostalgic lovely song." In reality, "lovely" is modifying "nostalgic song." Commas should be avoided.
- Having an old, worn-out library chair in the living room looked tacky. — "Old and worn-out chair" sounds fine, so insert a comma between the words. "Worn-out and library chair" or "old and library chair" sounds wrong, so omit a comma before "library." Similarly, the sentence works fine if you change the order of the first two adjectives: a worn-out, old library chair, thereby verifying use of the first comma.
course names
Capitalize only, use no quotation marks or italics. When numbers are used in the course name, use Arabic numerals and capitalize the subject: History 6, Philosophy 209. Otherwise, lowercase: calculus, world history. (See composition titles.)
course work
Two words.
C-paw
Hyphenated and capital C only. Not C-claw.
cum laude
Italic type, lowercase. Latin for "with outstanding honor." Magna cum laude means "with high honor." Summa cum laude means "with highest honor."
Undergraduate students who have earned at least 90 hours toward a baccalaureate degree or 45 hours toward an associate degree at UC qualify for graduation with Latin honors as follows:
- cum laude honors if their university grade point average is between 3.6 and 3.7499
- magna cum laude honors if their university grade point average is between 3.75 and 3.8999
- summa cum laude honors if their university grade point average is between 3.9 and 4.0.
dangling modifiers
Make sure your modifiers actually refer to the proper word.
- Incorrect: Looking for safer ways to treat drinking water, the college's $750,000 grant will investigate ... . The college is looking, not the grant.
- Correct: Looking for safer ways to treat drinking water, the college has applied for and received a $750,000 grant from the Safer Water Association.
dashes (See entry for hyphens, also.)
Dashes are longer than hyphens. Hyphens should not be used in the place of dashes. Dashes are always preceded and followed by a space, except at the start of a paragraph and sports agate summaries.
Publishing systems enable you to create an em-dash (the length of a capital M). Word-processing programs feature dashes as a "symbol," found under the "Insert" menu. Most software programs also allow the character to be key stroked. The help menu will provide instructions for your software. When dashes cannot be produced, two hyphens typed together are substituted. For Internet use, two hyphens may be used for a dash because some browsers have trouble reading the symbol that some software uses to create the dash. If using two hyphens, insert the space before and after the pair.
Dashes can be used in the following instances:
- to denote an abrupt change in thought or add emphasis to a pause (Example: The actor spent nine hours improvising — and wrinkling — in a hot tub.)
- to set off a list items in place of commas because the extra punctuation would be confusing (Example: Most movies shot on location have poor sound quality because of the environment — planes, traffic and people making noise.)
- to set off attribution of a quote (Example: “Wherever you go, go with all your heart.” — Confucius) Note: The period goes at the end of the sentence, not at the end of the attribution.
dates (See entries for months and years, also.)
When dates include a month and date, abbreviate all months. Exceptions are March, April, May, June and July. Examples: Jan. 15 was Martin Luther King's birthday. Their anniverary is sometime in January. Spring break starts on March 14.
When a a date and month is followed by a year, surround it with a pair of commas. Examples: My son graduated on June 9, 2001, from the University of Cincinnati. My son graduated in June 2001 from the University of Cincinnati.
Use only Arabic numbers after the month. Correct: Jan. 1. Incorrect: Jan. 1st, January first.
For readability and clarity, express dates of events in this sequence: time, day of the week, date, place. Example: The colloquium will be held at 4 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 1, at the Faculty Club.
dawn, sunrise
Dawn is the twilight period immediately before sunrise.
dean's list
Use lowercase and possessive. To be on the dean's list, a UC student must have a term grade point average of 3.4 or higher while enrolled in six or more credits per term.
decimate
Means to destroy a small part (exactly one-tenth). Not synonymous with completely or widespread destruction. Do not say somewhat decimated.
degrees (See entry for academic degrees.)
departments (See entry for capitalization.)
different from, different than, differently
Different from is usually right. Different than requires a verb. Examples: Holiday parties at a state institution are different than parties corporations have. Holiday parties at a state institution are different from parties in the corporate world.
When using the word differently, use than. Example: He led the meeting differently than I would have.
dilemma
Refers to facing two unpleasant courses of action. Not a synonym for predicament.
directions and regions
Lowercase compass directions. Capitalize words that denote specific regions. Examples: He drove west. The Midwest is known for great basketball. (Consult AP stylebook for additional information.)
disabilities
Don't refer to people in terms of their disabilities, refer to them as people with disabilities.
disappointed in, disappointed with
You are disappointed in a person, with a thing.
disassemble, dissemble
Disassemble means to dismantle. Dissemble means to tell lies.
disc, disk
- disc brakes, compact disc, disc jockey, videodisc, a series of discs in a plow (from Latin discus)
- computer disk, floppy disk, slipped disk, solar disk, disk (v) the land (from Greek diskos)
discover
Not synonymous with invent or create. Something discovered already existed, but was unknown.
disinterested / uninterested
Disinterested means to not be biased about something, to have no personal stake in an issue. Uninterested means to not be interested. Example: She could chair the negotiations well because she was disinterested. But she would have been ineffective is she was totally uninterested in the points being made.
divisions (See entry for capitalization.)
dock
The dock is the water adjacent to a pier. You can dive off a pier into a dock, not visa versa.
doctor
Do not use Dr. and MD together. Incorrect: Dr. David Davis, M.D.
In most instances, Dr. is unnecessary — assuming the copy adequately explains the person's position.
Dr. only appears before a name on first reference and when the person is physician. Do not use the title Dr. for PhDs because the average reader associates it with an MD. When usage is required for someone with a PhD, copy should clearly explain the individual's type of degree.
(See entry for MD.)
dollar (See entry for cents, also.)
Use numerals like $5, rather than 5 dollars except in casual references or amounts without a figure. Example: My aunt gave me a dollar. For amounts of more than $1 million, use the $ and up to two decimal places. Example: He proposed a $4.5 billion budget.
dormitories or dorms
The preferred term is residence halls.
due to (See entry because / due to.)
East Campus (See entries under campuses, also.)
Officially called the Academic Health Center or the medical campus.
effect (See entry for affect.)
e.g.
This Latin abbreviation means "for example." A comma always follows it, and the phrase is either set off with a dash or put in parentheses. Example: UC has a large selection of club sports (e.g., ice hockey, handball, rugby).
electronic media
Spelled out on first reference. On second reference, e-media is acceptable.
ellipses
The three dots represent omitted words or a pause in speaking. They are preceded and followed by spaces: She talked about the morning traffic, her previous vacation, her son's wedding plans … and enough topics to bore everyone.
- With quotations — When extracting quotes for an article, do not use ellipses at the beginning and end of direct quotes, as long as the quotes constitute complete thoughts, even if they were condensed.
- With other punctuation — When using an ellipsis right before other punctuation, one should still insert a space after the three dots to make both punctuation marks distinct: "We gather here to dedicate this new exciting program … ," the chairman announced.
- Formatting — Most word processing programs will allow you to insert an ellipsis as a special character, which keeps the three dots united as a single unit rather than three separate ones. The advantage of this is that the dots will never become separated from each other in a line break.
email
No hyphen, lowercase. (But words like e-book and e-commerce retain the hyphen.)
For references to email functions that appear as official names, generally, write the names uppercase with quotation marks, separated by commas when needed, treating them as titles to distinguish them from generic words. Example: To send the same message again, click on "Message," "Send Again."
email addresses
Although UC email addresses are not case sensitive, writing letters lowercase is preferred for consistency of style.
emeritus
Not the same as retired. The titles emeritus (male) or emerita (female) are bestowed on many, but not all, retiring faculty. Place the word emeritus after the formal title. Examples: professor emeritus of biology, president emeritus, dean emerita of arts and sciences.
Emeriti (all men or both men and women) and emeritae (all women) are plural nouns. Emeritus and emerita can be singular nouns or adjectives for singular and plural nouns: among the ranks of emeriti (plural noun), among the ranks of emeritus professors (singular adjective). You can, however, change emeritus to emeriti when it follows a plural word: among the ranks of professors emeriti. (See also academic ranks.)
enormity
More commonly means a great wickedness, a monstrous or outrageous act. Should not be used to simply mean enormous size or extent.
entitled
Means a right to do or have something. Does not mean titled. Examples: She was entitled to the promotion. The book was titled "Gone With the Wind."
etc.
Avoid using this Latin abbreviation, which means "and so forth." A partial list should be denoted as being partial in another way. If you do use etc., never use the abbreviation with the conjunction “and.” Example: Students enjoy UC's large selection of club sports, including ice hockey, handball, rugby, wrestling, rowing, etc.
ethnic references
In most general uses, the preferred terms are the following:
American Indian
Asian
Asian-American
black or African-American
Hispanic
Mexican-American
Pacific Islander
white
See individual entries for more information.
events (See entry for capitalization — events.)
exclamation mark
As a rule, avoid using exclamation marks. They tend to look trite. If you absolutely must use one, never use more than one, and follow these guidelines in regard to placement with quotation marks:
- Place the exclamation mark inside quotation marks when it is part of the quoted material. Examples: ”How wonderful!“ he exclaimed. ”Never!“ she shouted.
- Place the mark outside quotation marks when it is not part of the quoted material. Example: I hated reading Spenser’s ”Faerie Queene“!
facilities (See entry for buildings and facilities.)
farther, further
Farther refers to physical distance. Further refers to an extension of time or degree.
fax
Acceptable as a shortened version of facsimile or facsimile machine. Use as a verb is also acceptable. Example: He faxed the results of the survey to his clients.
federal
Use lowercase unless it is part of a formal name. Examples: Federal Bureau of Investigation, federal District Court.
fewer, less
Fewer applies to numbers and modifies a plural noun. Less applies to quantities and modifies a singular noun. Example: She now eats fewer meals and less candy.
firm
Only refers to a business partnership (law firm, engineering firm, architectural firm), not just any business entity. The Kroger Co. is not a firm.
fiscal year
In copy for general external audiences, write out the word, lowercase, referencing both years in the period. Example: fiscal year 2011-12. For internal documents in which abbreviations are standard, use FY11. (See listing for years.)
food terms
Most proper nouns are capitalized when are used to name a food. (Note the word "most.") When the food name has become generic in use, lowercase is used. (It can be hard to distinguish between these two categories, but this is a list based upon AP style.)
- adobo sauce (spicy red sauce)
- agave (honey-like syrup made from plants)
- aioli (a garlic mayonnaise)
- a la carte (no accent mark)
- a la king (no accent mark)
- a la mode (no accent mark)
- al dente
- al fresco (2 words)
- Anjou pear
- baba ghanoush
- bananas Foster
- Bartlett pear
- bearnaise sauce
- beef Wellington
- bibb lettuce
- Bing cherries
- Black Forest cake
- bloody mary (all lowercase)
- Bolognese
- Boston brown bread, Boston cream pie, Boston lettuce
- Brazil nut
- Broccolini
- Brussels sprouts (uppercase B)
- bulkie roll
- Bundt pan
- Caesar salad
- cheeses: Asiago, Brie, Camembert, cheddar, chevre, Fontina, Gorgonzola, Gouda, Gruyere, havarti, Jarlsberg, manchego, mascarpone, Monterey Jack, Muenster, Neufchatel, Parmesan, pecorino, pepper jack, provolone, Roquefort, Stilton, Swiss, taleggio
- chicken cordon bleu, chicken Kiev
- California roll
- Cobb salad
- cupful, cupfuls (not cupsful)
- Danish pastry
- Dijon mustard
- Dr Pepper (no period after Dr)
- Dungeness crab
- Dutch oven, Dutch treat
- eggs Benedict, eggs Florentine
- English muffin
- fra diavolo (spicy Italian dish)
- Filet-O-Fish (as served at McDonald's)
- Fluffernutter (trademarked name for a sandwich)
- french fries, French bread, French dressing, French toast
- Golden Delicious apples
- graham crackers (named for Sylvester Graham)
- herbes de Provence
- jasmine rice
- Jell-O (trademark)
- johnnycake
- Kalamata olive
- ketchup (not catchup or catsup)
- Key lime
- kielbasa
- Kool-Aid (trademark)
- London broil
- Marshmallow Fluff (trademark)
- mousse de saumon (salmon mousse)
- napoleon (lowercase)
- pad thai (a Thai noodle dish with a lowercase T)
- po'boy (no space)
- pomme de terre
- Popsicle (trademark)
- ratatouille
- Reuben sandwich
- salad dressings: ranch, Russian, Thousand Island, Roquefort, French
- salade Russe (Russian salad)
- Sichuan (not Szechwan)
- Smithfield Ham (trademark, uppercase H)
- Sriracha sauce (hot chili sauce)
- Tabasco (trademark)
- Tex-Mex
- Vidalia onion
- vienna bread, vienna coffee, vienna sausages
- Waldorf salad
- wines: Beaujolais, Bordeaux, Burgundy, cabernet sauvignon, Champagne, chardonnay, Chianti, Madeira, Marsala, merlot, pinot grigio, pinot noir, port, prosecco, sauvignon blanc, shiraz
- Worcestershire sauce
- Yukon Gold potato (trademark)
- zip-close bag (not Ziploc, which is a brand name)
fort
Do not abbreviate for cities and military forts. Examples: Fort Lauderdale, Fort Bragg, Fort Mitchell.
fortuitous
Means happening by chance, accidental. Not a synonym for fortunate.
founder / flounder
Founder means to fill with water and sink. Flounder means to flop around as a fish, clumsy, confused.
fractions
Spell out amounts less than one, using hyphens: two-thirds, seven-sixteenths. Use figures for precise amounts larger than one, converting to decimals whenever practical. In tabular material, use figures exclusively.
To determine verb usage, follow this guideline: When the subject is a fraction or a word such as "half," "part," "plenty" or "rest," its intended number is suggested by the object of the preposition that follows it. Examples: Three-fourths of the enemy's army is wounded. Three-fourths of the enemy's soldiers are wounded.
fundraising, fundraiser
One word in all uses.
GED
Abbreviation for General Education Development. Use as an adjective: GED tests, GED certificate. GED is not a noun.
gender (See also sexist language.)
When possible, avoid words that assume maleness. Use humanity, instead of mankind. Male pronouns (he, his) are acceptable when the antecedent could be male or female — and are preferred over combination pronoun forms: he or she, his/her. Yet a better option is to revise nouns to plural forms: they, theirs. Avoid forcing neutrality with a construction that calls attention to itself. Avoid manufactured words such as spokesperson.
general education
The General Education Program requires students in all academic programs to have an exposure to a variety of traditional academic disciplines, in addition to a concentration within a program or major.
generations
Lowercase the words traditionalists, millennials and baby boomers. Uppercase Generation X, in keeping with AP style.
genus and species (See entry for scientific names.)
geographical regions (See entry for directions and regions.)
grade point average
May use GPA in all references.
graduate
A person who earns a degree, including an honorary degree, is called a graduate. (See entry for alumni, also.)
Great Britain (See United Kingdom.)
greater
Capitalize when referring to a specific community: Greater Cincinnati.
green card
Lowercase the reference for the country's permanent residency document.
hay, straw
Hay is a grassy plant used as animal fodder. Straw is the dry stalk of a cereal plant after the grain has been removed.
headlines
Capitalize only the first word and proper nouns. If a single headline continues on more than one line, do not capitalize the first word of the other lines. Use numerals for all numbers and single quotation marks where quotation marks are needed. Follow standard spelling for all words, except for US, UN and UK, which have no periods in headlines. For U.S. states in headlines, use no periods for those abbreviated with two capital letters. Examples: NY, NJ, NH, NM, NC, SC, ND, SD and RI. Other states retain periods. Examples: Ind., Ky.
health care
Two words. Never one word. It may need to be hyphenated as a compound modifier if usage would confuse a particular audience. (See entry for compound modifiers, also.)
heroic, heroics
Don’t confuse the two. Heroics involve dramatic talk or behavior intended to seem heroic.
historic, historical
Historic describes an event of importance and shaped history. Historical describes something that just happened in the past.
holidays, holy days
Capitalize formal names. Examples: Christmas Eve, Kwanzaa, Rosh Hashana. Although Hanukkah has several spellings, this version is preferred by Associated Press. The 10 federal holidays follow: New Year’s, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Washington’s Birthday, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas.
hopefully
Means with hope, not I hope or it is hoped. Correct: We hope the budget will pass. Incorrect: Hopefully, the budget will pass.
hospital names
In December 2012, University of Cincinnati Medical Center became the name of UC's primary teaching hospital. The hospital has changed its name several times since it first opened in 1823. The changes follow:
- 1823 — Commercial Hospital and Lunatic Asylum
- 1861 — Commercial Hospital
- 1869 — Cincinnati Hospital
- 1915 — Cincinnati General Hospital
- 1982 — University of Cincinnati Hospital
- 1994 — University Hospital
- 2010 — UC Health University Hospital
- 2012 — University of Cincinnati Medical Center
In addition, there is a UC Health West Chester Hospital.
hype
Means to inflate or exaggerate the worth, even deceive. Synonyms are trick, swindle, not promoting or publicizing.
hyphens
In type, hyphens are different than dashes. (See entry for dashes.)
Hyphens are sometimes used to avoid ambiguity. Examples: He recovered from financial collapse. He re-covered his sofa in gray leather.
Hyphens are used for connecting words, as in compound words (father-in-law), prefixes (pre-election), suffixes (emulsion-like), fractions (two-fifths), ratios (2-to-1 ratio) and scores (12-6 victory). They are also used to create compound modifiers (full-time employee). (See entry for compound modifiers.) To determine if a prefix or suffix requires a hyphen, refer to Merriam-Webster Dictionary.
Hyphens are also used to denote timeframes, such as 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. No spaces are required before or after the hyphen.
i.e.
This Latin abbreviation means "that is." Do not use this to mean "for example." You should be able to substitute i.e. for the phrase "in other words." A comma always follows it, and the phrase is either set off by a dash or put in parentheses. Correct: At UC's open-access colleges (i.e., Raymond Walters College and Clermont College), a variety of two-year degree programs are available. Incorrect: UC has a large selection of club sports — i.e., ice hockey, handball, rugby. Correct: UC has a large selection of club sports (e.g., ice hockey, handball, rugby).
imply, infer
To infer is to read between the lines. To imply is to suggest something. Example: When Jessie said she was going home early, she was implying that she had nothing left to do, and I inferred that I should find more work for her to do each day.
importantly, important
Importantly means something done in an important manner. Never write “more importantly.” Example: More important, enrollment is on the rise.
incorporated
Delete Inc. from a name unless doing so makes the name confusing. Do not use a comma before Inc., even if it is included in the formal name.
inflammable
Does not mean something cannot be set on fire. It means the same thing as flammable. It means an item can be inflamed.
institutes related to health
Four institutes operate in partnership with the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine and UC Health: the University of Cincinnati Cancer Institute, University of Cincinnati Neuroscience Institute, University of Cincinnati Cardiovascular Institute and Cincinnati Diabetes and Obesity Center.
interdisciplinary (See entry for multidisciplinary.)
Internet (See entries for computer terms, links, and Web addresses, also.)
Uppercase as a proper name to distinguish it from other kinds of nets. May also be referred to as the Net, also uppercase. Spelling of Internet-related words are aligned with the AP stylebook, including:
- World Wide Web (a proper name)
- the Web (abbreviated proper name)
- Web page, Web feed
- website, webcam, webcast, webmaster
Related terms:
- app (acceptable on second reference for application)
- avatar
- blog
- click-throughs
- cyberspace
- download
- dot-com (informal adjective)
- DNS (domain name system)
- DSL (digital subscriber line)
- e-book, e-magazine
- emoticon
- firewall
- Flickr
- freeware
- FTP (file transfer protocol)
- geolocation, geotagging
- Google, Googling, Googled
- home page
- hyperlink
- Internet
- Internet2
- intranet
- IP address (Internet protocol address)
- iPad, iPhone
- Java (a trademark)
- keyword
- instant messaging (IM acceptable on second reference, also IM'ing, IM'ed)
- listserv
- liveblog
- login, logon, logoff, log (nouns)
- log in, log on, log off (verbs) / Usage example: You can log on to this account.
- metadata
- microsite
- MP3
- MySpace (one word)
- online
- PDF (abbreviation for Portable Document Format)
- retweet
- RSS (abbreviation for Really Simply Syndication)
- search engine optimization (SEO acceptable on second reference)
- shareware
- social media
- social networks
- status update
- text messaging
- unfriend
- URL (Uniform Resource Locator)
- VoIP (Use Voice over Internet Protocol on first reference.)
- widget
- wiki
- Wikipedia
- YouTube (one word)
irony
Means the opposite of what is appropriate, expected or fitting. It is not synonymous with coincidence. Example: It’s ironic that the city building did now clear snow out of its parking lot. It is not ironic that it snowed on my camping trip.
its, it's
The first is possessive; the second is a contraction of it is.
Koran
Preferred spelling for the sacred book of Muslims.
landmarks
Certain landmarks on campus are referred to with familiar shorthand. Be sure to use official names or designate locations before resorting to shorthand, as required by context for clarity:
- Campus Green — the grassy lawn between Martin Luther King Dr. and the Alumni Center
- Corbett Theater — Patricia Corbett Theater in the College-Conservatory of Music
- Great Hall — The largest meeting hall in Tangeman University Center
- Hiatt Plaza — the brick back porch on the east side of McMicken Hall
- Lindner Auditorium — Room 112 Lindner Hall
- McMicken Commons — the green space between McMicken Hall and TUC
- Mick and Mack — the twin lions guarding the entrance at McMicken Hall
- Ronald Walker Light Tower — located at Sigma Sigma Commons, near French Hall
- (the) Shoe — Shoemaker Center (but preferred reference is now Fifth Third Arena)
- Quad — Herman Schneider Quadrangle, bounded by Swift and Baldwin Halls and the Old Chemistry Building. On the west side, the Herman Schneider monument honors the founder of cooperative education.
- TUC — Tangeman University Center, the student union building
last
Not a synonym for past.
Latino, Latina
Latino is the masculine word; Latina, the feminine. Latino can refer to a mixed group of both genders. The word refers to people of Latin American descent. When referring to Latinos plus all people with a cultural heritage related to Spain, use Hispanic. Use specific nationalities when available. Examples: Peruvian, Bolivian, Mexican, Cuban, Puerto Rican, Colombian.
lay, laid, laid, laying
In meaning to put or to place, lay is a transitive verb that requires an object. Example: I want to lay my books down. Notice, however, that once someone lays an object down, it continues to lie there of its own accord. (See entry for lie.)
lend / loan
Lend is a verb. Loan is a noun. Example: Please lend me the money. I will repay the loan.
less / fewer
Less represents quantities and units of measure (e.g., expenses, work, respect, money). Example: Everyone has less work than I do.
Fewer represents multiple things, things you can count (e.g., co-workers, faculty, appointments). Example: I wish I had fewer appointments.
Less also represents singular items. Example: I actually have one less paper on my desk this morning. But ... I have fewer papers today than yesterday.
Level I Trauma Center
University of Cincinnati Medical Center hospital is a Level I Trauma Center, as verified by the American College of Surgeons. Usage style of the term is the one adopted by the ACS.
Lindner Center of Hope
A nonprofit, mental health center offering scientifically-advanced treatment for mental illnesses. Part of the University of Cincinnati Medical Center. Can be refered to as LCOH on second reference.
lie, lay, lain, lying
In meaning to rest or to recline, lie is a intransitive verb that cannot use an object. Example: He was lying on the floor. (See the entry for lay.) Lie is also the proper verb to use for inanimate objects in some uses: Once someone lays the newspaper on the counter, the paper lies there on its own.
like / as
Like applies to nouns and pronouns. Example: The sun shone like a red rubber ball.
As applied to phrases and clauses containing a verb. Example: She ran as if her life depended upon it.
likely / probably
Likely is an adjective, meaning a likely outcome, not an adverb or synonym for probably. Examples: The board is likely to do so. Never say: The board will likely do so.
Limited, Ltd.
Delete Ltd. from a name unless doing so makes the name confusing. Do not use a comma before Ltd., even if it is included in the formal name. Use the same guideline for the following abbreviations: LLC (limited liability corporation), LLLP (limited liability limited partnership), LC (limited company), PLLC (professional limited liability company), PL (professional limited company), LP (limited partnership), LLLP (limited liability limited partnership), PC (professional corporation).
lineup / line up
Lineup is a noun. Line up is a verb.
links
Generally, write the names of Internet links uppercase with quotation marks, separated by commas when needed, treating them as titles to distinguish them from generic words. Example: When you visit www.magazine.uc.edu, click on "Web Exclusives," "Audio Clips" to hear a champion whistler.
logo (See entries for seal and branding, also.)
The UC logo consists of two elements: the words "University of Cincinnati" and the UC symbol. All UC publications must carry the UC logo in a prominent location, preferably on the front cover. Web publications must include the symbol on every page.
Use of the university's logo is protected under trademark laws. The logo elements cannot be separated, altered, retyped or recreated in any way. Please refer to the UC Branding guidelines online for complete information.
For use of the logo on specialty items such as T-shirts, mugs and banners, contact Carla Crabtree, UC director of licensing and contracts in the Office of General Counsel (513-556-3483). Any use of the logo by non-university entities must also be approved by that office.
Other uses not covered by those guidelines should be referred to the University Brand Review Committee. Contact Angela Klocke, 513-556-5223.
MA, MS
No periods. (See entry for academic degrees.)
magazine, journal titles (See entry for publication titles.)
Capitalize the initial letters of the name but do not place quotation marks around it.
magna cum laude
Lowercase, in italics. Undergraduate students qualify for graduation with magna cum laude honors if their university grade point average is between 3.75 and 3.8999. (See cum laude.)
main campus
Preferred term is Uptown Campus. Main campus makes other campuses sound inferior.
MainStreet
Uppercase S, no space. A corridor that begins at the University Pavilion, includes TUC, the Student Life Center and the Student Recreation Center, then concludes at the Jefferson Residence Complex. It also includes the open spaces of McMicken Commons, Bearcat Plaza, the Mews and Sigma Sigma Commons.
master class
Lowercase. No apostrophe s.
master's degree (See entry for academic degrees.)
matriculated student
A student who has been officially admitted to a college.
may, might
Use may if something may have really happened. Use might if something is totally hypothetical. Examples: Her proposal may have been approved if she had submitted a formal report. (possible) Her proposal might have changed the future of the company if she had submitted it. (purely hypothetical)
MD
As with all academic degrees, do not use periods. (This is an exception to AP.) (See entry for doctor.)
medal (See entry for awards.)
medical campus
This comprises the Academic Health Center (which consists of the buildings associated with the colleges of medicine, nursing, pharmacy and allied health sciences), as well as Kingsgate Marriott Conference Center, University of Cincinnati Medical Center, Hoxworth Center, UC Health Physicians Office — Clifton and the Charles M. Barrett Center for Cancer Research and Treatment. Usage preferred over the term "east campus."
See entry for campuses.
mid- (See entry for directions and regions, also.)
Use a hyphen only when a capitalized word follows. Examples: mid-American, midterm. But the geographic region Midwest is capitalized.
Also use a hyphen when connecting a word with a numeral. Example: mid-'70s.
middle initials (See entry for initials.)
midwife
Use a hyphen when referring to nurse-midwife. Example: University Nurse-Midwifery Associates.
mike
Short for microphone. Use only on second reference or in casual usage. The verb and adjective forms are miked, miking.
military titles
When listing military rank as a title before a person's name, capitalize and abbreviate it in most instances. In secondary references, use only an individual's last name; omit the military rank. When naming the rank without a name attached, it is lowercase. Do not confuse rank with job descriptions such as machinist or radarman. Examples: Gen. George Patton is a general who served in North Africa. Patton received 12 medals during his career.
The following list shows how to write the more commonly used ranks as a title before a name. Any title not listed here is likely to be spelled out and not abbreviated. A complete list of military titles is available in the AP Stylebook, but is too long to list here.
admiral — Adm.
brigadier general — Brig. Gen.
captain — Capt.
colonel — Col.
commander — Cmdr.
corporal — Cpl.
general — Gen.
first lieutenant — 1st Lt.
first sergeant — 1st Sgt.
lieutenant — Lt.
lieutenant colonel — Lt. Col.
lieutenant commander — Lt. Cmdr.
lieutenant general — Lt. Gen.
major — Maj.
major general — Maj. Gen.
master sergeant — Master Sgt.
private — Pvt.
private first class — Pfc.
rear admiral — Rear Adm.
second lieutenant — 2nd Lt.
sergeant — Sgt.
sergeant first class — Sgt. 1st Class
sergeant major — Sgt. Maj.
specialist — Spc.
staff sergeant — Staff Sgt.
vice admiral — Vice Adm.
months (See entry for dates, also.)
Abbreviate Jan., Feb., Aug., Sept., Oct., Nov. and Dec. when used with a specific date. My birthday is Jan. 15. Spell out when used alone or only with a year. Example: January 1989 was the coldest on record. When using a month, date and year, set off the year with commas. Example: June 6, 1944, was D-Day.
moot
Means debatable. Use irrelevant or null, if that’s what you mean.
mount
Spell out in all uses. Examples: Mount Healthy, the College of Mount St. Joseph.
mouse, mice
Mice is the word to use when referring to the more than one computer mouse.
multidisciplinary
Multidisciplinary means many disciplines are present. Interdisciplinary means many disciplines are not only present, but are working together to accomplish something. Cross-disciplinary relates to the involvement of two or more academic disciplines, but in a less formalized involvement than multidisciplinary or interdisciplinary situations. Example: A multidisciplinary meeting might attract faculty from several colleges, each making individual presentations. An interdisciplinary meeting would attract the same experts, but instead of just listening to one another's presentation, they work together toward a common goal.
myriad
When used as a noun, the word means exactly 10,000. When used as an adjective, it means many.
names
See listings for any of the following: company, corporate, product names; trademarks; publication titles; composition titles; course names; capitalization.
nationalities and races
See entries for African-American, American Indian, Asian, Asian-American, black, Native American, Oriental.
nauseous, nauseated
Technically speaking, nauseous describes something that is sickening to contemplate, and nauseated indicates being sick at the stomach.
New Year's Day
The word "year" is possessive in this usage and requires an apostrophe. Examples: New Year's Eve, but happy new year.
9/11
This format is acceptable when referring to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States.
non-
Generally, hyphens are not used for words with this prefix. Hyphens are necessary before proper nouns, when a word is not listed in the dictionary or when confusion would result. Examples: noncredit, nonprofit, nontenured, nontraditional, non-nuclear, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, non-load-bearing tile.
noon
Use word noon instead of 12 p.m. in all instances.
notoriety
The word is related to notorious. It is not synonymous with noted.
numbers
Use Arabic numerals for numbers 10 and higher. Spell out numbers under 10. This holds true for all casual uses and distances. Examples: hundreds of items, two miles. The exceptions, which use numerals exclusively, are ages ;(the 4-year-old child), acres, cents, dimensions (the rug is 6 feet wide), dollar amounts ($1 million), formulas, heights, military and political designations (2nd District Court, 7th Fleet), percentages (7 percent), ratios (a 2-1 ratio), sizes (a size 9 shoe), speeds (50 mph), temperatures (except zero), volume (2 ounces) and weights.
Numerals in proper names are written as the organization writes them. When the word number is used with a figure to express a concept, use "No." Examples: No. 1 team, No. 3 choice. Consult the AP stylebook entry for numerals.
For plural numerals, add an s with no apostrophe. Example: 1990s
on to / onto
When on is part of the verb, it’s two word. Example: Step on to the stage. Log on to the website. If it is part of the preposition, it’s one word. Example: Attach the Word document onto the previous document.
One Stop Student Service Center
May abbreviate to One Stop on second reference.
organizations and institutions (See entry for company, corporate, product names.)
orthopedic
Preferred spelling. Orthopaedic is appropriate only when used in publication titles.
over / more than
Over relates to a concept of space. When referring to quantities, use more than. Example: Over 6 feet tall. More than $1,000. More than 10 minutes.
PDF
All caps. Abbreviation for Portable Document Format.
penultimate
Means next to last. Not synonymous with ultimate.
percent
Use as one word, preceded by numerals. Example: 5 percent.
periods
Only one space should follow the period at the end of a sentence. (See entry for spaces for a greater explanation.)
persons, people
Persons mean individuals with identities. People mean a large and anonymous mass.
PhD
No periods. (See entry for academic degrees.)
phone numbers (See entry for telephone numbers.)
plurals
- compound words — For those terms that include two or more separate words or a hyphenated word, add the s to the most significant word. Examples: attorneys general, daughters-in-law, deputy chiefs of staff, lieutenant colonels.
- multiple letters — Add an s with no apostrophe. Examples: ABCs, VIPs.
- numerals — Add an s with no apostrophe. Example: 1990s.
- single letters — Add 's to avoid confusion. Example: His report card was full of A's and B's.
P.O. Box
Periods in the abbreviation when used in editorial copy in brochures or publications. Omit the periods for U.S. postal use on labels and in tabular material if needed. (See entry for tabular material.)
podium
A podium is a small raised platform on which someone like a conductor stands. One stands behind a lectern. Tip: Podium comes from podos, meaning foot. Think of podiatrist.
police
When referring to police, use University of Cincinnati Police or UC Police Division. The UC Police are a division of the Office of Public Safety. As a state-designated police district, the UC Police are never correctly referred to as "campus security."
The UC Police department has two types of officers: police officers (sworn officers who carry guns) and security officers (unarmed, non-sworn). All are employed by the UC Police. Occasionally (usually at large events), UC will hire contract guards who are not, technically, part of the department — but even they are hired by the UC Police.
pompous words
Be wary of words such as conceptualize, signage, health-care delivery systems, explicate, linkages, interface, replicate, input, output, utilize. Never use a big word when a small one will do.
possessives
- descriptive phrases — An apostrophe is usually omitted on a plural word ending in s, when the word is part of a descriptive phrase and does not show possession. To determine if that is the case, usually the word for or by could be appropriately inserted rather than of. Examples: citizens band radio (a radio band for citizens), writers guide (guide for writers), children's hospital (because children does not end in s) and the boy's dog (the dog belonging to the boy).
- double possessive — A double possessive is a phrase such as the friend of Joe's. (The possessive apostrophe seems duplicative because the word of already denotes possession.) An apostrophe is not used in all cases. To determine if a possessive form of the word following of (thus an apostrophe) is needed, two things must exist: The word after of must be animate, and the word before of must include only a portion of the animate object's belongings. Examples: a few friends of Joe's, the theories of Marx, the friends of the program.
- compound words — In keeping with the related guidelines for a particular word, add an apostrophe or 's to the word closest to the item being possessed. Examples: the attorney general’s opinion, the deputy chief of staff’s vacation, John Smith Jr.’s report.
- possessive adjectives — The words minute, hour, day, week, month and year require an apostrophe when used as an possessive adjective. Examples: an hour's work, two weeks' vacation. You can more clearly hear the latter by using a singular amount and noticing the need for an "s" in this phrase: one week's vacation. The same is true for amounts using the words dollars or cents: 2 cents' worth.
- joint possession — Use 's only with the last name in a series. Example: Ted, Tom and Mary's car.
- individual possession — Use 's with both names. Example: Tom's and Mary's clothes.
- singular proper names ending in s — Use only an apostrophe. Example: Dickens' novel.
- singular proper names ending in z or an s sound — Add an apostrophe s.
- singular common nouns ending in s or an s sound — Add 's unless the final word begins with s. Examples: the princess’s crown, the dress’s hem, the stylus’s nib, the boss’ strategic plan. When a common noun either ends in s or ends with an s sound AND the noun is followed by a word beginning in s, add only an apostrophe only to show possession. Examples: for appearance' sake, for conscience' sake, for goodness' sake.
- plural nouns ending in s — Add only an apostrophe. Examples: the athletes’ locker room, the girls' toys, the passengers’ itineraries.
- pronouns — The following pronouns do not contain an apostrophe to show possession: ours, yours, hers, its, theirs.
post
When referring to the Internet, avoid confusion with publish. You publish on a site and post responses to a site or in a chat room.
poured, pored
You pour water. You pore over a book. (Hint: If you poured something over what you were reading, you wouldn't be able to read it anymore.)
pre-
When a word begins with the prefix pre, hyphenate the word if the first letter after the prefix is an e. Examples: pre-eminent, pre-election. Otherwise, follow Merriam-Webster Dictionary usage. If a coined word uses the pre suffix and is not listed in Merriam-Webster, use a hyphen. Examples: pre-convention, pre-dawn.
premier, premiere
The word with e on the end relates to entertainment (a first performance). This version is the only one with a verb form. Premier means leader of a country, as well as first or most important.
presently
One of its meanings is in the near future. It does NOT mean at the present time. To avoid confusion, use currently.
principal, principle
Principal (n., adj.) refers to someone or something first in authority or importance. Examples: school principal, principal player, principal problem. Principle (n.) refers to a fundamental truth. Example: principle of self-determination.
principal investigator
Lowercase. Do not abbreviate as PI on first reference.
product names (See entry for company, corporate, product names.)
professor
Spell out and lowercase in all uses. (See entry for titles.)
programs
Titles of an academic program are lowercase, unless proper names are used. Example: the fashion design program.
For names of non-academic programs, see entry for company, corporate, product names.
pronouns
Be sure pronouns match the noun they represent in tense. Example: The Board of Trustees at its meeting (not theirs) ... .
Sometime, revising the sentence is necessary to avoid writing his or her. Incorrect: The survey allows each student to express their opinions. (Singular student does not work with plural pronoun.) Correct:The survey allows all students to express their opinions. (Students has the plural pronoun required.)
publication titles (See entry for composition titles, too.)
For newspapers, magazines, journals and other regularly occurring publications, capitalize the name but do not use quotes or italics unless needed for clarity. Examples: People magazine interviewed our visiting scholar. "People" interviewed our visiting scholar.
Capitalize only words that are part of the publication's formal name -- not the word magazine, for example, if it is not part of the official name. Examples: Time magazine, the journal Science. Check the mastheads to confirm formal names.
Although clever typographic elements may be part of a publication's nameplate, editorial content never uses graphic symbols or stylized fonts, including exclamation points, quotation marks, plus signs, asterisks, bold type or italic type. Furthermore, regardless of another publication's own styleguide, UC style says to always capitalize the first letter of all sentences, lowercase the word the when part of a publication's title and refrain from using all capital letters in a title unless all the letters are pronounced. Incorrect: The Cincinnati Enquirer, TIME magazine, ESPN The Magazine, LIFETIMES. Correct: the Cincinnati Enquirer, Time magazine, ESPN the Magazine, Lifetimes.
Place quotation marks around names of poems, books, movies, plays, operas, songs, television programs, lectures and works of art.
punctuation
See entry for abbreviations, colons, commas, dashes, exclamation marks, ellipses, hyphens, quotation marks, semicolons, spaces, that/which.
quotation marks (See entry for publication titles, too.)
Periods and commas, when used with quotation marks, always go within the quotation marks. Example: The project is "long overdue," said Angela. Dashes, semicolons, question marks and exclamation points go within quotation marks only when they relate to the quoted matter. Examples:
- You never saw "The Wizard of Oz"?
- Ask him, "How do you plan to implement the proposal?"
quintessential
Means perfect example of quality. Not a synonym for epitome, which means means abstract, summary or embodiment. (See entry for epitome.)
rack
Rack has many definitions, including to rack one's brain, stretching one's brain as if it were on a torture rack. Do not confuse with wrack, which means to destroy.
re-
When a word begins with the prefix re, hyphenate the word if the first letter after the prefix is an e. Examples: re-elect, re-enter. Otherwise, follow Merriam-Webster Dictionary and common sense. Examples: resign (quit), re-sign (sign again).
Reading Campus (See entry for campuses.)
refer, revert
Don't refer back or revert back to something. It's redundant. Back is the only way to go.
regard
Be careful of the phrase in regard to (never in regards to).
regions (See entry for directions and regions.)
renown, renowned
Renown is a noun. Renowned is the adjective.
RN
Use RN for internal Academic Health Center stories only. For most external uses, content should spell out that the person is a nurse.
room numbers
For consistency (before building names), use the following format: The class will meet in Room 392, Swift Hall.
ROTC
Reserve Officers' Training Corps (plural possessive)
Saint, Sainte
Abbreviate as St. and Ste. in city name or person's name.
Schneider, Herman
Former UC president who founded cooperative education while dean of the UC College of Engineering.
scientific names
The scientific names for animals and plants are composed of two words, known as generic name and trivial name. The common house cat, for example is Felis domesticus. The first, or generic, name is always capitalized. The second, or trivial, is always lowercase. Both words are italicized.
seal (See entries for logo and branding.)
The University Seal is reserved for formal presidential, academic or board-related university publications as approved by the University Brand Review Committee. Use of the university's seal is protected under trademark laws, and seal elements cannot be separated, altered, retyped or recreated in any way.
seasons
All four seasons should use lowercase. Examples: spring, summer, fall and winter. Lowercase references to academic semesters, too. Example: spring semester. Uppercase all words in a formal name. Example: SAE Spring Fling.
secondly, thirdly
There's no firstly, so you can't have a secondly, either. It's first, second, third.
self
Always hyphenate when used as a prefix. Example: self-appointed self-cleaning, self-destructive.
senior (See entry for junior.)
sexist language (See entry for freshman, freshmen, too.)
Unless referring to a known gender in context, avoid the use of masculine and feminine forms and masculine- or feminine-marked words as much as possible. This avoidance includes using alternatives to generic terms that contain masculine or feminine markers. Use parallel terms for both sexes: men and women, husband and wife, mothers and fathers. Don't refer to men as husbands and fathers unless women are also being identified as wives and mothers.
Be alert to phrases that suggest all readers are men. Use graduate students and their spouses were invited, rather than graduate students and their wives were invited. Avoid unnecessary references to a person's marital status. Examples:
- businessperson, business executive, business manager for businessman
- camera operator or videographer for cameraman
- chair for chairman
- member of Congress or representative for congressman
- firefighter forfireman
- police officer for policeman
- mail carrier formailman
- humanity for mankind
- workforce, workers, employees formanpower
- leader, public servant for statesman
Also be cautious about pronoun usage. Plural pronouns can eliminate the need for gender-specific pronouns. Avoid: A student nurse gains a clinical experience after she completes a certain amount of class work. Preferred: Student nurses have clinical experiences after they complete a certain amount of class work.
signature architect buildings
A major component of UC's Campus Master Plan, developed by Hargreaves Associates, are the following buildings, listed with the date they opened and the signature architects who designed them:
- Edwards Center, 1992 (designed by David Childs of Skidmore, Ownings and Merrill, in collaboration with local firm Glaserworks)
- Engineering Research Center, 1995 (designed by Michael Graves, DAAP ’58, HonDoc ’82, in collaboration with local firm KZF Design)
- Aronoff Center for Design and Art, 1996 (designed by Peter Eisenman in collaboration with Lorenz & Williams of Dayton, Ohio)
- College-Conservatory of Music Village, 1999 (designed by Henry Cobb of Pei Cobb Freed & Partners, in collaboration with local architects NBBJ Architects)
- Vontz Center for Molecular Studies, 1999 (designed by Frank Gehry in collaboration with local firm BHDP Architects)
- University Pavilion, 2003 (designed by Andrea Leers and Jane Wienzapfel of Leers Weinzapfel Associates in collaboration with local firm GBBN Architects -- the only women signature architects on campus)
- Steger Student Life Center, 2004 (designed by Buzz Yudell of Moore Ruble Yudell Architects & Planners, in collaboration with local firm Glaserworks)
- Tangeman University Center, 2004 (designed by Charles Gwathmey of Gwathmey Siegel & Associates Architects, in collaboration with local firm GBBN Architects)
- Lindner Center, May 2006 (designed by Bernard Tschumi of Bernard Tschumi Architects and by local firm: Glaserworks)
- Campus Recreation Center, 2006 (designed by Thom Mayne, of Morphosis, in collaboration with local firm KZF Design)
- Van Wormer Library renovation, 2006 (designed by Beyer Blinder Belle Architects & Planners, in collaboration with Lorenz & Williams of Dayton, Ohio)
- Medical Sciences Building renovation/CARE-Crawley addition, 2008 (designed by Eric Sueberkrop, DAAP ’72, of Studios Architecture, in collaboration with local firm HarleyEllis)
For formal building names, see entry for buildings, facilities.
In addition, the following green spaces and plazas were designed by signature architects:
- Library Plaza, 1995 (designed by George Hargreaves and Mary Margaret Jones of Hargreaves Associates)
- Campus Green, 2000 (designed by George Hargreaves of Hargreaves Associates)
- Sigma Sigma Commons, 1998 (designed by George Hargreaves and Mary Margaret Jones of Hargreaves Associates)
- Ronald Walker Light Tower, 1998 (designed by Rodolfo Machado of Machado & Silvetti)
- MainStreet open space, 2004 (designed by George Hargreaves of Hargreaves Associates, in collaboration with local firm Glaserworks)
- McMicken Commons, 1990 (designed by George Hargreaves of Hargreaves Associates)
- Mews Gardens, 2004 (designed by Buzz Yudell of Moore Rubles Yudell Architects & Planners)
- University Commons, 2000 (designed by George Hargreaves of Hargreaves Associates)
- Eden Quad greenspace, 2008 (designed by George Hargreaves of Hargreaves Associates, in collaboration with local firm HarleyEllis)
slide show
Two words.
social media
This term refers to tools for sharing information among online communities. This can be done through blogs, Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, YouTube, Flickr, wikis and other forums. (See Internet for list of related terms.)
spaces
One space should be placed after all punctuation, including periods and question marks, at the end of sentences.
The use of two spaces between sentences was preferred with typewriters because mono-spaced characters made it difficult to determine the end of sentences. Books and newspapers, however, never used double spaces. The typographer took care of setting the proper spacing regardless of the text that had been turned in. Today, most computer software programs use proportionally spaced fonts, which automatically insert the proper amount of space after punctuation. As a result, single spaces between sentences are appropriate for all copy.
For people who find it hard to break the two-space habit, most versions of Microsoft Word will let you set a preference for how many spaces you want between sentences, and grammar-check will flag inconsistencies. You can also do a global search and replace (searching for two spaces and replacing it with one) after you are finished writing.
states
When using a state name with a city name in editorial copy, surround the state name with commas. Example: Her office in Evansville, Ind., has shown great profits. Follow the guidelines below for deciding when and how to abbreviate the state's name:
- Preferred abbreviations in editorial copy are: Ala., Ariz., Ark., Calif., Colo., Conn., Del., D.C., Fla., Ga., Ill., Ind., Kan., Ky., La., Md., Mass., Mich., Minn., Miss., Mo., Mont., Neb., Nev., N.H., N.J., N.M., N.Y., N.C., N.D., Okla., Ore., Pa., R.I., S.C., S.D., Tenn., Vt., Va., Wash., W. Va., Wis., Wyo. Eight state names are never abbreviated: Alaska, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Ohio, Texas and Utah.
- The U.S. Postal Service's two-letter state abbreviations are not used in general editorial copy. For other uses, here they are: AL, AK, AZ, AR, CA, CO, CT, DE, DC, FL, GA, HI, ID, IA, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, ME, MD, MA, MI, MN, MS, MO, MT, NE, NV, NH, NJ, NM, NY, NC, ND, OH, OK, OR, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, TX, UT, VT, VA, WA, WV, WI, WY.
- Never abbreviate states written without a city. Example: We are going to Florida for vacation.
- In editorial copy, state names must be included along with city names except in the following cases: Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus and other well-known cities as listed in the cities entry.
- In general editorial uses, lowercase the word state. Examples: state of Ohio, state Rep. John Doe.
Guidelines for writing press releases differ. (See the entry for addresses.)
STEMM
UC's preferred acronym for collectively referring to the disciplines of science, technology, engineering, mathematics and medicine. The Ohio Board of Regents uses the acronym STEM, omitting the reference to medicine. When appropriate to use the state's style, do so.
street names
Many campus street names are confusing to an external audience and should be used only when necessary. Be aware that the following street names were changed in August 2004:
- College Court — now Clifton Court
- Corbett Drive — now CCM Boulevard
- Campus Drive (in front of McMicken Hall) — now Campus Way
(Also, see entry for addresses for post office use and tabular material.)
summa cum laude
Lowercase and in italics. Undergraduate students qualify for graduation with summa cum laude honors if their university grade point average is between 3.9 and 4.0. (See cum laude.)
tabular material
The use of abbreviations and addresses that meet postal regulations, but not typical editorial guidelines, are acceptable in tabular material when lengthier material will not fit. Making such exceptions to standard style guidelines are also appropriate in website footer areas if it makes the content clearer and more usable.
Teachers College
No apostrophe. This is the name of a building, not a college.
temperatures
Use figures for all except zero. Use a word, not a minus sign, to indicate temperatures below zero. Example: The day's low was minus 10, or 10 below zero.
that, which
That and which are two pronouns that are often used incorrectly. In general, if the clause in question could be omitted without leaving the noun it modifies incomplete or without altering the meaning, which should be used to introduce the clause, preceded by a comma. If the clause is limiting or defining, that is the word to use. Correct: He has invented a process that will supply the world with free fuel. The process, which was invented by A.J. Smith, will supply the world with free fuel. Incorrect: He has invented a process, which will supply the world with free fuel. (Consult AP stylebook entries for essential clauses and non-essential clauses.)
three-D
3-D is preferred.
time, duration
Consistently use either the format from 3 to 5 p.m., or 3-5 p.m. In most cases, use only the starting time. The ending time is relevant only when listing a series of events. Example: Jeremy Johnson will be at CCM from 8 to 9 a.m. and in the Great Hall from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. ... Jenny Jones will be in the library from 11:45 a.m.-1:15 p.m.
In general, list the time, day and date in that order: 2 p.m., Wednesday, April 1.
time of day
Write a.m. and p.m. lowercase, using periods and with a space after the numeral. Correct: 8 a.m. Incorrect: 8am
Use noon or midnight, rather than 12 a.m. or 12 p.m., which are confusing. Avoid redundancy as in 10 a.m. this morning.
titles
Lowercase and spell out most titles relating to people.
- formal titles — The only title to ever be uppercase is a formal title appearing directly before a name. Formal titles reflect positions so impressive that they are as much a part of people's identities as their names. Examples: President Gregory Williams, former President Steger, Pope Benedict, Dean Herman Schneider, Presidents Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter; but the university president, the pope. Formal titles appearing before a name are lowercase when they are set off with commas. Example: The president, Joan Brown, will address the meeting.
- occupational titles — Lowercase titles that mostly describe occupations. Examples: professor Jim Lange, coach Paul Brown, department head Joan Russell, astronaut Neil Armstrong.
- abbreviated formal titles — These formal titles are capitalized and abbreviated when used before a name outside quotations. Examples: Dr., Gov., Lt. Gov., Rep., Sen. and certain military ranks. (See entry for military titles.)
- honorifics — Honorifics, such as Esq. and His Royal Highness, are not used in general editorial text.
(Also, see entries for composition titles, professor, publication titles.)
toward
Not towards.
trademarks
Trademarks must be capitalized, yet certain trademarks have become so common in English usage that we forget they are trademarks. Examples: Allen wrench, AstroTurf, Band-Aid, Breathalyzer, Dumpster, Fiberglas, Freon, Frisbee, Heimlich Maneuver, Jacuzzi, Jaws of Life, Jazzercise, Jell-O, Kleenex, LaserJet printer, Lucite, Mace tear gas, Magic Marker, Muzak, Photostat, Plexiglas, Realtor, Rolodex, Scotch Tape, Seeing Eye dogs, Sno-Kone, Styrofoam, Xerox.
Trademarks should be followed with generic terms, when appropriate. Example: Kleenex tissues. Better yet, avoid trademarks and just use the generic term as long as it is easily understood. For a more complete listing of trademarks, visit the International Trademark Association's website.
The Associated Press Stylebook states, "There is no legal requirement to use the trademark symbol."
Tristate (See entry for directions and regions, also.)
Uppercase when referring to the specific geographical Tristate area involving Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky area of Greater Cincinnati.
Twitter
A Twitter message is called a tweet. The verb form of the word is to Twitter or to tweet.
UC
To signify the University of Cincinnati, use UC, without periods.
UC Health
The university's health system that includes University of Cincinnati Medical Center, UC Health University of Cincinnati Physicians, UC Health West Chester Hospital, UC Health Drake Center, UC Health Surgical Hospital and Lindner Center of Hope. UC Health came into existence when the Health Alliance of Greater Cincinnati dissolved in 2010.
UC Health University of Cincinnati Physicians
This is the multi-specialty clinical practice group of the UC College of Medicine faculty and is affiliated with UC Health. The group includes approximately 650 physicians and an additional 200 nurse practitioners, physicians assistants, psychologists and certified nurse anesthetists who provide care to more than 1 million patients annually through all Greater Cincinnati hospitals and nearly 30 outpatient locations. The group also provides physician coverage for the region’s only Level I adult trauma center and emergency departments at University of Cincinnati Medical Center, Jewish Hospital and UC Health West Chester Hospital.
The group has three offices, none of which use the words University of Cincinnati, as in the group's official name:
- UC Health Physicians Office — Clifton
- UC Health Physicians Office — North
- UC Health Physicians Office — South
On second reference, you can refer to the group as UC Physicians.
UC Medical Center (See University of Cincinnati Medical Center.)
UC Physicians (See UC Health University of Cincinnati Physicians, above.)
UC ID
No periods, all uppercase, two words. This is an abbreviation, not an acronym.
UC2019►
UC's strategic academic master plan, implemented by President Gregory Williams and unveiled at his investiture. Can be written as UC2019. The formal name is "UC2019►Accelerating our Transformation."
UC|21
The university's strategic academic plan, implemented by former President Nancy Zimpher. The formal name was "UC|21: Defining the New Urban Research University."
under way
Two words in nearly all uses. According to AP, underway is used as an adjective before a noun only in a nautical sense. Example: an underway flotilla.
unique
Not a synonym for unusual. It means strictly one of a kind. Nothing can be rather unique or most unique.
units of measure
Express the unit of measure in a singular form, and hyphenate the numeral and the unit when used as a compound modifier. Examples: 100-calorie snacks, 80-MB hard drive, 2-inch margins, 2-quart pitcher, 80-degree weather, 8-pound baby. Note: Do not hyphenate a compound modifier that contains "percent," which is not a unit of measurement. Examples: 35 percent increase, 10 percent raise, 3 percent tax hike, 2 percent tuition increase.
university
Do not capitalize university, except when used in a proper name. Examples: Classes begin at the University of Cincinnati on Sept. 22. The university began classes Sept. 22. The same usage applies to college, center, board, council.
University Hospital
This is an old name. See current name, University of Cincinnati Medical Center.
University of Cincinnati Medical Center
Primarily refers to the hospital formerly known as University Hospital, but also includes the Charles M. Barrett Center for Cancer Research and Treatment, Holmes Hospital, the Magnetic Resonance Imaging Center, Hoxworth Center outpatient clinics, the UC Health University of Cincinnati Physicians Office — Clifton and psychiatry services at the former Deaconess Hospital. UC's health colleges are not part of this center.
Do not precede the name University of Cincinnati Medical Center with the article "the."
Uptown Campus
East Campus, West Campus and the Victory Parkway Campus combined. Replaces the outdated term Central Campus. Both words uppercase.
URLs (See entry for Web addresses.)
U.S., USA, United States
To signify the United States, use U.S., with periods. The abbreviation is acceptable as a nouns and an adjective. Periods are omitted from US in headlines. When writing USA, no periods are used.
verb usage
The trickiest part of selecting the proper verb is determining whether the subject is singular or plural. Some tips for making that determination follow:
- Agreement — Usually, the verb needs to agree with the related noun, not the object of a preposition. Example: The goal of their efforts was to cultivate goodwill.
- Fractions, pieces — The exception involves fractions or a word such as half, part, plenty or rest. In such cases, one must determine the plurality of the entire phrase. Examples: Half the students are sick. One-third of the students are sick. Half a class is not enough to complete the project. There are plenty of ways to remedy the situation. Sometimes the plurality of the noun is only suggested: So many students are sick that half are going home.
- To be — When using a verb that is a form of to be, the verb must agree with the subject, not the predicate nominative. Example: The best item on the menu was the meatballs. ("Item was," not "meatballs were.")
- Always singular — These words always take a singular verb — each, either, neither, one, no one, every one, anyone, someone, everyone, anybody, somebody, everybody. Examples: Each can have a piece. Everyone is invited.
- When the words "every" or "many a" appear before a word, the subject takes a singular verb. Examples: Every man, woman and child was asked to leave. Many a college student wishes to return to the easy days of high school.
- Some singular nouns look plural, such as: economics, physics, mathematics, civics, measles, mumps. Example: Economics is an interesting field.
- Always plural — These words always take a plural verb — several, few, both and many. Examples: Many are on their way. Several know the answer.
- Singular or plural — These words can be singular or plural — some, any, none, all, most. You need to determine if they represent a whole entity or individual pieces of one. Example: None of us is perfect. (Not one of us is perfect.) None of the committee members agree on the next step. (No two agree.)
- Don't let phrases baffle you — These phrases do not affect the subject: together with, as well as, in addition to, accompanied by. Example: Josh, accompanied by his father, is on his way.
- Or, nor — When a singular and plural subject are joined by "or" or "nor," the verb agrees with the nearer subject. Examples: Neither the mice nor the cat is paying any attention to each other. Neither the cat nor the mice are paying any attention to each other.
- Collective nouns — Collective nouns refer to a group and can be plural or singular in usage, including words such as class, faculty, army, audience, class, crowd, media, public, team. To determine verb usage, decide whether the collection considered as a whole or as individuals. Examples: The media is covering the event in several ways. (each media outlet) The media is driving us crazy. (all the media) (See entry for collective nouns for more examples.)
- Amounts — Amounts are usually singular, including time, money, measurement, weight, volume, fractions. Examples: Four hours is enough time for the exam. Be aware that $25 is the price of admission.
verbal agreement
Verbal means written or oral. Say oral, if that’s what you mean.
versus
Abbreviate as vs. in all uses.
vice
In titles, use as a separate word without a hyphen. Example: vice president.
virtual
Not a synonym for actual or nearly. It means something has the effect but not the form. Example: When the president resigned, the vice president became the virtual head of the company, even though he had not been so named.
wake, woke, waked
"Woken" is not a word.
Washington, D.C.
When the name appears in copy not at the end of a sentence, set off D.C. with a pair of commas. Example: I am attending a Washington, D.C., conference.
Web (See entries for Internet and computer terms, also.)
Uppercase as an abbreviation of a proper name, but lowercase compound words formed with the word Web. Examples: World Wide Web, the Web, Web page, website, webcast, webmaster. Spelling is aligned with the AP stylebook.
In regards to formatting, generally follow the UC Stylebook for editorial copy. For content within the footer area of a Web page, however, you can use abbreviations when needed to make the content fit the space and to create copy that might be easier to read. (See related entry for tabular material.)
Web addresses, URLs
To save space, do not include http:// if the URL contains www. If the URL does not include www, the http:// may be necessary to avoid confusion. Use your own best judgment, but be sure the URL can be perceived as a URL and not as plain text.
Always include a period at the end of a sentence even if a Web address or email address appears at the end. Example: My email address is bearcat@uc.edu. When possible, enclose URLs and email addresses in parentheses or brackets. Example: Please send me the file via email (bearcat@uc.ed).
If a Web address cannot be kept together on one line of copy, never add a hyphen or other punctuation to a URL. Only allow a line-break to occur before a period, slash, dash or underscore so it remains obvious that the two lines belong together.
website
One word, but Web page is two words. (See Internet for list of terms.)
West Campus
All academic colleges in the area bounded by Martin Luther King Drive, Jefferson Avenue, Calhoun Street and Clifton Avenue. It is often referred to as Clifton Campus, which derives from its location along Clifton Avenue, but the area is not in Clifton.
which (See entry for that, which.)
while
While means during the time that. It is used to link simultaneous occurrences. Do not use to mean although, whereas, and or but. In such circumstances, often only a semicolon is necessary.
X-ray
Use X-ray in all uses, whether noun, verb or adjective. Use for both the photographic process and the radiation particles themselves.
years
Set the year off with two commas when it appears with a full date. Example: Jan. 15, 1993, was the target date.
For decades, use an s without an apostrophe. Examples: 1960s and '60s, not the 1960's and 60's. On first reference, use 1960s, not '60s.
For centuries, the preferred format is the 20th century, not the 1900s.
Do not routinely name the current year unless it is necessary for avoid confusion. Correct: the April 1 meeting. Incorrect: the April 1, 2004, meeting.
For periods covering multiple years (academic and fiscal years, in particular), use 2006-07, not 2006-2007. Writing about the end of a century is an exception. Example: 1999-2000.
(See entries for academic year and fiscal year.)
year-round
Hyphenate as an adjective and an adverb.
ZIP codes
The ZIP is uppercase because it stands for Zoning Improvement Plan. (See entry for addresses for on-campus ZIP code usage.)
Zip drive, Zip disks
Uppercase. Registered trademarks.
First reference for spelling and usage is the UC Stylebook followed by the AP Style Guide, followed by Merriam-Webster Dictionary.
First references for spelling of names on campus are the UC Faculty and Staff Directory and Student Directory.
When the dictionary lists more than one acceptable spelling, use the first one.
When adding a suffix that begins with a vowel (-ed, -ing, -able), double the final consonant only if: 1) the word ends in a single consonant preceded by a single vowel, 2) the word has only one syllable or is accented on the last syllable. Example: planning, traveled, forgetting, preferable.
A
ABCs
accommodate
adverse (unfavorable)
adviser
advisory
affidavit
afterward (not afterwards)
aggression
all right (not alright)
a.m.
a lot (alot is not a word)
amid (not amidst)
anyone (usually 1 word)
anytime (always 1 word)
averse (reluctant)
a while (n.), awhile (adv.)
axle (for wheels)
axel (for skaters)
B
baccalaureate
bachelor's degree
back up (v.), backup (adj., n.)
backward (not backwards)
bail (bail out of ...)
bale (for hay, etc.)
bare (uncover, naked)
bear (to carry, or an animal)
blond (adj., n.)
blonde (secondary usage, avoid)
Breathalyzer
browsable
brunet (adj., n.)
brunette (secondary usage, avoid)
Burnet Woods
buses (plural for buses)
C
C-paw
car pool (n.), carpool (v.)
cellphone (1 word)
Celsius
CD-ROM
check in (v.), check-in (n., adj.)
chord (musical usage)
commitment
complement (to supplement, complete)
compliment (praise)
consensus
co-op, co-oped, co-oping
cooperative
copy editor (2 words)
cord (regarding rope or wood)
co-sponsor
cum laude
D
discreet (sneaky)
discrete (separate)
distinguished
dot-com
download
downstage
drive-thru (contrary to Merriam-Webster)
E
e-book, e-commerce
ecotourism
email
embarrassment
every day (adv.)
everyday (adj.)
F
Fahrenheit
filet (beef)
fillet (fish)
filmgoer
filmmaker
Findlay Market
first come, first served
flier
freelance
freelancer
freeware
frontman
Fulbright
full-time (adj.), full time (adv.)
fundraising (n., adj.)
fundraiser
G
gibe (heckling remarks)
great-grandfather
grisly (gruesome)
grizzly (grayish, including bears)
H
Hanukkah
harassment
hemorrhage
high-five, high-fived
hoard (accumulate)
home page
horde (large group)
I
implement
impresario
inadvertent
incompatible
influential
inoculate
Internet
Internet2
intranet
intrigue
J
JPEG, JPG
judgment
L
landline
levee (prevents flooding)
levy (regards taxes)
liaison
liquefy
listserv
loath (reluctant)
loathe (hate)
login, logon, logoff, log (n.)
log in, log on, log off (v.)
M
man-made
master class
Mick and Mack
moviegoer
N
New Year's
nitpicker
noncredit
nonprofit
nontenured
nontraditional
noticeable
O
occasion
offstage
OK, OK'd, OK'ing, OKs (not okay)
One Stop Student Service Center
online
onstage
P
palate (roof of mouth)
palette (artist's tool)
pallet (low platform in warehouses)
part-time (adj.), part time (adv.)
pavilion
peak (mountain top)
peek (glance)
pique (to excite or wound)
playwright (person)
playwriting (action)
plug in (v.)
plug-in (adj., noun)
p.m.
pom-pom (refers to a weapon)
pompom (for cheerleaders; type of flower)
postdoctoral
postgame
postsecondary
potato, potatoes
precede (not preceed)
pregame
premed
premier (first, most important, leader)
premiere (first performance)
preventive (not preventative)
prime time (n.), prime-time (adj.)
Procter & Gamble
Procter Hall
programming, programmer (exception to accent rule)
R
rarefy
Realtor (capitalize)
reek (stink, see wreak)
rehearsal
rein (from the word restrain)
reign (to rule, as a ruler does)
renovate
resuscitate
Rhodes scholar
ROM
S
screen saver
shareware
siege
sizable
slide show (2 words)
Smithsonian Institution
smartphone (1 word)
some place (always 2 words)
soundstage
spell-check, spell-checker
supplement
supersede
surprise
T
teenage, teenager
theater (Theatre OK in proper names)
theatergoer
thumbs-up, thumbs-down
T-shirt
tomato (singular), tomatoes (plural)
trade show (two words)
Tristate (uppercase for geographic area)
troop (soldiers)
troupe (performers)
trouper (one who handles adversity well)
U
under way (2 words in nearly all uses)
upperclassmen
upstage
V
vice president
Vietnam
vocal cords
X
X-ray
Y
year-round (adj., adv.)
Z
ZIP code
Zip drive, Zip disks (registered trademark)