City of Irvine Grammar and Punctuation Protocol
EFFECTIVE 10 n 1 8 n 2 3
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Table of Contents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Grammar and Punctuation . . . . . . . . 4 4 Ampersands(&).......................... 4 Apostrophes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 PluralNounsNotEndinginS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 PluralNounsEndinginS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Nouns Plural in Form, Singular in Meaning . . . . . 5 Nouns the Same in Singular and Plural . . . . . . . . 5 SingularNounsNotEndinginS . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Singular Common Nouns Ending in S . . . . . . . . . 5 Singular Proper Names Ending in S . . . . . . . . . . 5 Pronouns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 QuasiPossessives ......................5 DescriptivePhrases.....................5 Years . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Bold.................................. 6 Emphasis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Capitalization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Capitalize . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 ProperNouns.........................6 ProperNames.........................6 CommonNouns.......................6 CompositionTitles......................7 FormalTitles......................... 7 Abbreviations and Acronyms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Derivatives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Colons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7 Capitalization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Emphasis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7 Listings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Datelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Dialogue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Commas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 SimpleSeries .........................8 Complex Series and Series of Phrases . . . . . . . . . 8 Essential and Nonessential Clauses . . . . . . . . . . 8 Introductory Clauses and Phrases 8 Introduction Conjunctions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Introducing Direct Quotes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 PlacementwithQuotes..................8 HometownsandAges...................9 FullDates............................9 Dates,Time,andLocation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Contractions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Dashes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 AbruptChange........................9 SerieswithinaPhrase....................9 Attribution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Lists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 TimeSpans ......................... 10 Ellipses(…) ............................ 10 IndicateDeletions.....................10 IncompleteThought...................10 ExclamationPoints.......................10 Hyphenation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 AvoidAmbiguity......................10 CompoundModifiers...................10 Two-ThoughtCompound . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Compound Proper Nouns and Adjectives . . . . . 11 LargeNumbers.......................11 Suspensive Hyphenation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Parentheses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Periods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 EndaSentence.......................11 Possessives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 PrefixesandSuffixes.......................11 Prefixes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Suffixes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 QuestionMarks..........................12 EndaQuestion.......................12 Placement with Quotation Marks . . . . . . . . . . 12 Miscellaneous . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 QuotationMarks.........................12 DirectQuotations.....................12 RunningQuotations...................12 Dialogue or Conversation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 CompositionTitles ....................12 Nicknames . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 QuoteswithinQuotes..................12 Placement with Other Punctuation 12 Semicolons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 ClarifyaSeries....................... 13 Link Independent Clauses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Single Space Between Sentences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Slashes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
1
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Usage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Abbreviations and Acronyms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Abbreviations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Acronyms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 City Departments, Committees, andCommissions.....................15 COVID-19 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Dates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 ArabicFigures........................ 15 Years . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 FiscalYear...........................16 Contractions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Abbreviations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 StartofaSentence....................16 Hashtags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Numerals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Ages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 OrdinalNumbers......................17 Percentages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Using Numbers in Charts and Tables . . . . . . . . 17 ZIPCodes...........................18 Seasons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Figures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 HoursandMinutes....................18 Dashes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 TimesofDay.........................18 AvoidRedundancies...................18 TimeZones..........................18 Specific City of Irvine Style Guidelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 CityofIrvineName........................19 Capitalization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Names of Departments, Offices, andOtherEntities.......................19 City.................................19 citywide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 CityCouncil............................ 20 Councilmembers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 CouncilChamber.....................20 City Department, Commission, and CommiteeNames ........................20 Fonts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 FundNamesandNumbers..................21 Locations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Irvine Civic Center vs Irvine City Hall . . . . . . . . . 21 Abbreviations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Commonly Misused Words and Terms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Website . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 WebAddresses.......................23 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 a,an.............................. 24 accept,except........................ 24 adverse,averse.......................24 affect,effect......................... 24 after-school, after school . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 afterward . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 allright............................ 24 alltogether,altogether . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 alot .............................. 25 among . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 appraise,apprise......................25 assure,ensure,insure...................25 B . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 biannual, biennial, bimonthly . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 C . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 cannot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 capital,capitol ....................... 25 cents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 childcare...........................25 citywide............................ 26 complement, compliment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 compose, comprise, constitute . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 continual,continuous . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 co-chair, co-host, co-sponsor, co-worker . . . . . . 26 coed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 community-wide......................26 Uppercase . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Lowercase . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 PhoneNumbers .........................21 Dashes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Extensions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Titles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Ampersands(&) ......................22 CompositionTitles.....................22 FormalTitles.........................22 AbbreviationofTitles...................23 OccupationalTitles....................23 AdditionalGuidelines......................23 Email . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 MeasureW.......................... 23 MeasureS...........................23 Staff Reports 23
2
TABLE OF CONTENTS
N . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 nonprofit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 nonresident . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 online . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 on-site,off-site ....................... 29 onscreen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 over,morethan ......................29 P . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 percent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 pickup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 precede,proceed......................29 principal,principle.....................30 R . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 RSVP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 ribbon-cutting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 smartphone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 stationary,stationery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 Southern California 30 T . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 that,which..........................30 theater . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 their,theirs ......................... 30 then,than .......................... 30 till . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 toward . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 U . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 underway.......................... 31 usedto ............................ 31 W . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 weather,whether......................31 web . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 webpage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 website . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 who,whom,whose,who’s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 workday . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 workforce . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 workplace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 workstation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 worldwide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 Y . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 yearlong . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 year-round . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 your,you’re ......................... 31
county-wide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 copyedit ........................... 26 couldhave.......................... 26 D . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 daycare............................ 26 daylightsavingtime...................26 daylong . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 desert,dessert........................27 dilemma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 differentfrom........................ 27 disinterested, uninterested . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 discreet,discrete...................... 27 drop-off . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 E . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 e-blast . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 email . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 emigrate,immigrate...................27 entitled,titled........................ 27 etcetera(etc)........................ 27 F . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 fewer,less...........................27 firsthand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 flier . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 farther,further....................... 27 foreward,forward.....................27 fundraising, fundraiser . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 H . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 healthcare.......................... 27 highways, freeways, toll roads . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 homepage.......................... 28 I . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 ie,eg ............................ 28 in-person . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Internet,intranet......................28 information 28 irregardless . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 its,it’s ............................. 28 L . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 lay,lie ............................. 28 lectern,podium.......................29 lifestyle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 loose,lose...........................29 M . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 master-planned . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 midweek . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 monthlong.......................... 29 multicultural.........................29 multimedia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 multipurpose . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
3
GRAMMAR AND PUNCTUATION
Introduction
Ampersands (&)
The following style guide is designed to establish clear standards for consistent and high-quality communications citywide. The guidelines in this document apply to all City communications, with rare exceptions, which must be approved by the Public Information Office. The City follows the Associated Press (AP) Stylebook as its primary style and grammar guide. If you cannot find the information you are looking for in this document, please refer to the AP Stylebook directly. Strunk and White: The Elements of Style should only be followed if the information is not in the AP Stylebook or in this guide. For information not found in those three guides, please refer to Merriam-Webster . Finally, the City has a series of style guidelines which are unique to the City and su- percede all other style rules. These specific guidelines are identified starting on Page 17. Please contact the Public Information Office if you have questions or need further clarification. To access the AP Stylebook online, please contact the Admin- istrative Coordinator for your department for the username and password.
The ampersand can be used in titles or headers only, but should never replace the word “and” in text, unless the word in question is a City of Irvine department name (Public Works & Transportation, or Project Deliv- ery & Sustainability). See Titles , Page 21. The ampersand should be used in official City depart- ment names. City Department, Commission, and Committee Names , Page 20.
Correct Usage
n Join us for a hike at the Marsh & Wildlife Sanctuary. (This is how the Irvine Ranch Water District reflects the title of this location Therefore, it is acceptable to use an ampersand as part of the official title in body copy)
Rutan & Tucker, LLP
n
Traffic & Transit Guide
n
Public Works & Transportation
n
n Financial Management & Strategic Planning
n Come Play & Grow with the City of Irvine (as a title or email header). Come play and grow with the City of Irvine by signing up for our classes and programs (as a sentence in body copy).
Again, we encourage you to use the AP Stylebook if you cannot find your style answers here.
Incorrect Usage
The flag is red, white & blue.
n
John, Jane & Joe will attend the event.
n
n Financial Management and Strategic Planning
n Come play & grow with the City of Irvine by sign- ing up for our classes and programs (as a sentence in body copy).
4
GRAMMAR AND PUNCTUATION
Apostrophes
Singular Common Nouns Ending in S Add an ‘s unless the next word begins in s .
Plural Nouns Not Ending in S
The hostess’s invitation
n
The alumni’s contributions
n
The hostess’ seat
n
Women’s rights
n
The witness’s answer
n
Plural Nouns Ending in S Only add an apostrophe.
The witness’ story
n
Singular Proper Names Ending in S Only add an apostrophe.
The churches’ needs
n
The girls’ toys
Achilles’ heel
n
n
Descartes’ theories
n
Nouns Plural in Form, Singular in Meaning Only add an apostrophe.
Kansas’ schools
n
Pronouns Do not use an apostrophe with the following pronouns:
Mathematics’ rules
n
Measles’ effects
n
Apply the same principle when a plural word occurs in the formal name of a singular entity.
Mine
Ours
n
n
Your
Yours
n
n
General Motors’ profits
n
Its
His
n
n
The United States’ wealth
n
Hers
Theirs
n
n
Nouns the Same in Singular and Plural Treat them the same as plurals, even if the meaning is singular.
Whose
n
Quasi Possessives
One corps’ location
n
A day’s pay
n
The two deer’s tracks
n
Two weeks’ pay
n
The lone moose’s antlers
n
Your money’s worth
n
Singular Nouns Not Ending in S
Descriptive Phrases Do not add an apostrophe to a word ending in s when it is used primarily in a descriptive sense. Do not add an apostrophe to City of Irvine within event titles or when used in a descriptive sense.
The church’s needs
n
The girl’s toys
n
The horse’s food
n
The VIP’s seat
n
5
GRAMMAR AND PUNCTUATION
word. All caps means to capitalize all letters in a word or phrase.
Descriptive
A Cincinnati Reds infielder
n
See Specific City of Irvine use of Capitalization , Page 19.
A writers guide
n
City of Irvine Super Pet Adoption
n
Capitalize Capitalize the first word of every sentence, including quoted statements and direct questions. n Patrick Henry said, “Give me liberty or give me death.” n The story answers the question, Where does true happiness really lie? Proper Nouns Capitalize person, place, or thing, including City department names. See City Department, Commis- sion, and Committee Names , Page 20.
Possessive
The Cincinnati Reds’ infielder
n
The writer’s guide
n
Years Use an s without an apostrophe to indicate spans of decades or centuries. 1700s Do not use contractions for years. For more information about Contractions , see Page 9. n 1790s n For more information about Apostrophes/Possessives , see the AP Stylebook . Bold Bold may be used for titles and/or headers throughout the document.
John
n
Community Services Department
n
America
n
Proper Names When proper nouns are part of a full name for a person, place, or thing, they should be capitalized. See City of Irvine Name , Page 19.
Communications Plan
n
Section I
n
Democratic Party
Overview
n
n
Mississippi River
Goals
n
n
Common Nouns Lowercase common nouns when they stand alone in subsequent references.
Objectives
n
Do not bold titles of books, newspapers or periodicals. See Composition Titles, Page 21.
The party
n
Emphasis Do not use bold or all caps for emphasis. Use italics for emphasis. Capitalization
The river
n
Lowercase the common noun elements of names in plural uses.
Democratic and Republican parties
Capitalize means to uppercase the first letter of a
n
6
GRAMMAR AND PUNCTUATION
Main and State streets
Abbreviations and Acronyms See Page 14.
n
Erie and Ontario lakes
n
Derivatives Capitalize words that are derived from a proper noun and still depend on it for their meaning.
Exception
Plurals of formal titles with full names are capitalized.
American
n
n Presidents Jimmy Carter and Gerald R. Ford
Christian
n
Composition Titles Capitalize the principal words in the names of books, movies, plays, poems, operas, songs, radio and televi- sion programs, and works of art. See Titles , Page 18.
Christianity
n
English
n
Marxism
n
n Shakespearean Lowercase words that are derived from a proper noun but no longer depend on it for their meaning.
Formal Titles Lowercase and spell out titles when they are not used with an individual’s name. See Composition Titles , Page 21.
french fries
n
The president issued a statement.
n
venetian blind
n
The pope gave his blessing.
n
manhattan cocktail
n
For all other references to formal titles, the City’s style is to capitalize the titles.
Colons
The most common use of colons is to introduce lists, tabulations, and texts.
Correct Usage
n Director of Community Development John Smith
Capitalization Capitalize the first word after a colon only if it is a proper noun or the start of a complete sentence. n He promised this: The company will make good all the losses. n There were three considerations: expense, time, and feasibility.
John Smith, Director of Community Development
n
n John Smith is the Director of Community Devel- opment
Incorrect Usage
John Smith, director of community development
n
Emphasis Use colons for emphasis.
n John Smith is the director of community develop- ment
He had only one hobby: eating.
For more information about Titles , see Page 21.
n
7
GRAMMAR AND PUNCTUATION
Listings
Essential and Nonessential Clauses The presence or absence of commas provides the reader with critical information about the writer’s intended meaning. n Reporters who do not read the AP Stylebook should not criticize their editors. (The writer is saying that only one class of reporters, those who do not read the AP Stylebook, should not criticize their editors If the “who do not read the AP Stylebook” phrase was deleted, the meaning of the sentence would be changed substantially) n Reporters, who do not read the AP Stylebook , should not criticize their editors. (The writer is say- ing that all reporters should not criticize their editors If the “who do not read the AP Stylebook” phrase were deleted, this meaning would not be changed ) Introductory Clauses and Phrases A comma is used to separate an introductory clause or phrase from the main clause.
Use colons for time elapsed, time of day, and biblical and legal citations.
1:31:07.2
8:31 p.m.
n
n
2 Kings 2:14
Missouri Code 3:245-260
n
n
Datelines The City uses colons in its datelines rather than a dash.
IRVINE, CA (March 9, 2021):
n
Dialogue Use colons to clarify dialogue. See Quotation Marks , Page 12.
n Bailey: What were you doing on Saturday?
Mason: I refuse to answer that.
n
Q: What is your favorite color?
n
A: Blue
n
n When he tired of New York, he moved to California.
Commas
n On the street below, the curious gathered.
Conjunctions Use with and , but , or for if these conjunctions link two clauses that could stand alone. n She was glad she looked, for a man was approaching the house. n We are visiting Washington, and we also plan a side trip to Williamsburg. Introducing Direct Quotes Use a comma to introduce a complete one-sentence quotation within a paragraph.
Simple Series Using an Oxford comma before the conjunction in a simple series is mandatory, not optional.
The flag is red, white, and blue.
n
Complex Series and Series of Phrases Use a comma before the concluding conjunction in a series if an integral element of the series requires a conjunction. n I had orange juice, toast, and ham and eggs for breakfast. n The main points to consider are whether the athletes are skillful enough to compete, whether they have the stamina to endure the training, and whether they have the proper mental attitude.
n Wallace said, “She came back from Spain with an accent.”
Placement with Quotes Periods and commas always go inside quotation marks.
8
GRAMMAR AND PUNCTUATION
n Wallace said, “She came back from Spain with an accent.” n “She came back from Spain with an accent,” said Wallace.
n Attend the next Sizzlin’ Summer Concert July 29 at Mike Ward Community Park — Woodbridge at 5 p.m.
Contractions
Hometowns and Ages
The City of Irvine discourages the use of contractions. Contractions reflect informal speech and writing.
Mary Richards, of Buffalo, New York
n
Correct Usage
Mary Richards, 48, of Buffalo, New York
n
Are not
It is
n
n
Use younger than and older than rather than under and over when referring to ages.
Do not
1971
n
n
Incorrect Usage
Correct Usage
Aren’t
It’s
n
n
n Children 12 and younger are welcome; children older than 12 are welcome. Incorrect Usage
Don’t
’71
n
n
Dashes
n Children under 12 are welcome; children 12 and under are welcome.
Use short dashes (–) for ranges or for the meaning to , and do not include spaces before or after. Use long dashes (—) to separate information or mark a break in a sentence, and include a space before and after. Use a hyphen (-) for compound words. See Hyphenation , Page 10; Time , Page 18.
Full Dates
February 14, 1987
n
See Dates , Page 15. For more information about com- mas, see the AP Stylebook.
Correct Usages for Long Dash
Dates, Time, and Location
Abrupt Change
Place commas both before and after dates and years when a date is written in month-day-year order, or when days are involved. Unless a comma is needed for clarity, avoid using it between short, closely related clauses, such as with the location and time, or when the date is listed on its own without a day of the week or year. n Attend the next Sizzlin’ Summer Concert Saturday, July 29, at Mike Ward Community Park — Wood- bridge at 5 p.m. n Attend the next Sizzlin’ Summer Concert 5 p.m. Saturday, July 29, at Mike Ward Community Park — Woodbridge.
We will fly to Paris — if I get a raise.
n
n Smith offered a plan — it was unprecedented — to raise revenues.
Series within a Phrase When a phrase that otherwise would be set off by commas contains a series of words that must be separated by commas, use long dashes to set off the full phrase. n He listed the qualities — intelligence, humor conservatism, independence — that he likes in an executive.
9
GRAMMAR AND PUNCTUATION
Attribution Use a long dash before an author’s or composer’s name at the end of a quotation.
in condensing quotes, text, and documents. Be especially careful to avoid deletions that would distort the meaning. n “Good evening … In all the decisions I have made in my public life, I have always tried to do what was best for the nation …” Incomplete Thought Use an ellipsis to indicate a thought that the speaker or writer does not complete.
n “Who steals my purse steals trash.” —Shakespeare
Lists Long dashes may be used similar to bullet points. Use periods, not semicolons, at the end of each section, whether it is a full sentence or a phrase.
Correct Usage
I no longer have the political base …
n
She liked the following: —Flowers on Valentine’s Day. —Chocolates on her birthday.
n
For more information, see the AP Stylebook .
Note: The City does not follow the AP Stylebook’s specific ellipses punctuation guidelines
Incorrect Usage
She liked the following: —Flowers on Valentine’s Day; —Chocolates on her birthday; —Cake on her anniversary
n
Exclamation Points
The City discourages the use of exclamation points in professional documents such as staff memos or letters to constituents. Rare exceptions may be made for marketing materials, social media, and in publication headlines.
Correct Usages for Short Dash
Time Spans
For more information, see the AP Stylebook .
10–11 a.m.
n
Hyphenation
Monday–Thursday
n
Hyphens are joiners. Use them to avoid ambiguity or to form a single idea from two or more words. Only use hyphens if not using them would cause confusion.
Helpful Tip
In a Word document, create a short dash by typing a word, hit the space bar, type two hyphens (--), hit the space bar, type a word, and then hit the space bar. Create a long dash by typing a word, two hyphens (--), a word, and then hit the space bar.
Avoid Ambiguity
n Small business owner vs. Small-business owner
Ellipses ( … )
n He recovered his health. vs. He re-covered the leaky roof. Compound Modifiers When a compound modifier — two or more words that express a single concept — precedes a noun, use hyphens to link all the words in the compound except
Treat an ellipsis as a three-letter word, constructed with three periods and two spaces.
Indicate Deletions Use to indicate the deletion of one or more words
10
GRAMMAR AND PUNCTUATION
n The Community Services Commission (CSC) meets Tuesdays. Commission members are recruited an- nually.
the adverb very and all adverbs that end in –ly .
When to Use a Hyphen
For more information, see the AP Stylebook .
A well-known man
n
A bluish-green dress
n
Periods
When Not to Use a Hyphen
End a Sentence
A very good time
n
The stylebook is finished.
n
An easily remembered rule
n
For more information on additional uses of periods, see the AP Stylebook .
Two-Thought Compound
Socio-economic
n
Possessives See Apostrophes on Page 4, or see the AP Stylebook .
Compound Proper Nouns and Adjectives
Prefixes and Suffixes
Italian-American
n
Prefixes Generally do not hyphenate when using a prefix with a word starting with a consonant. When in doubt, follow the spelling of the Merriam-Webster diction- ary.
Mexican-American
n
Large Numbers When large numbers must be spelled out, use a hyphen to connect a word ending in -y to another word.
Correct Usage
Twenty-one
n
Undo
n
Fifty-five
n
Antisocial
n
Suspensive Hyphenation
Incorrect Usage
Un-do
He received a 10- to 20-year sentence
n
n
Anti-social
n
Parentheses
Except for cooperate and coordinate, use a hyphen if the prefix ends in a vowel and the word before it begins with the same vowel.
Parentheses should be used sparingly. Parentheses can be used for abbreviations, but only if the abbre- viation is used in a second reference.
Pre-existing
n
Correct Usage
Use a hyphen if the word that follows is capitalized.
n The Community Services Commission (CSC) meets Tuesdays. CSC members are recruited annually.
Trans-Atlantic
n
Incorrect Usage
11
GRAMMAR AND PUNCTUATION
Dialogue or Conversation
Use a hyphen to join doubled prefixes.
Sub-subparagraph
“Will you go?” “Yes.”
n
n
Suffixes See the AP Stylebook .
“When?” “Thursday.”
n
Composition Titles Use italics, not quotation marks, for composition titles. See Composition Titles , Page 7; Composition Titles , Page 21. Nicknames Use quotes when a nickname is inserted into the identification of an individual or how an individual is referred to.
Question Marks
End a Question
How long will it take?
n
Placement with Quotation Marks Question marks should go inside quotation marks.
He asked, “How long will it take?”
n
Sen. Henry M. “Scoop” Jackson
n
Miscellaneous The question mark supersedes the comma that is nor- mally used when supplying attribution for a quotation.
Jackson is known as “Scoop.”
n
Quotes within Quotes Alternate between double quotation marks and single quotation marks.
“Who is there?” she asked.
n
Quotation Marks
She said, “He told me, ‘I love you.’”
n
Direct Quotations Surround the exact words of a speaker or writer when reported in a story. See Dialogue , Page 8.
Placement with Other Punctuation The period and the comma always go within the quo- tation marks. The dash, the semicolon, the colon, the question mark and the exclamation point go within the quotation marks when they apply to the quoted matter only. They go outside when they apply to the whole sentence.. n Wallace said, “She came back from Spain with an accent.” n “She came back from Spain with an accent,” said Wallace. n He described the experiment as a “definitive step forward”; other scientists disagreed.
n “I have no intention of staying,” he replied.
Running Quotations If a full paragraph of quoted material is followed by a paragraph that continues the quotation, do not put close-quote marks at the end of the first paragraph. Do, however, put open-quote marks at the beginning of the second paragraph and continue in the same manner, using the close-quote marks at the end of the quoted material.
n He said, “I am shocked and horrified by the incident.
“I am so horrified, in fact, that I will ask for the maximum sentence.”
12
GRAMMAR AND PUNCUATION
Semicolons
Traditionally, do not add a space before or after either side of the slash.
Use the semicolon to indicate a greater separation of thought and information than a comma can convey but less than the separation a period implies. Clarify a Series Use semicolons to separate elements of a series when the items are long or when individual segments con- tain material that must also be set off by commas. n He is survived by a son, John, of Chicago; two daughters, Jane, of Wichita, and Debbie, of Boston; and a sister, Martha, of Omaha.
n The child is going to the park and/or the zoo.
When breaking up lines of verse; use a space.
n Row, row, row your boat / Gently down the stream / Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily / Life is but a dream.
The semicolon is used before the final and in such a series.
Link Independent Clauses Use a semicolon when a coordinating conjunction such as and , but , or for is not present.
n The package was due last week; it arrived today.
If a coordinating conjunction is present, use a semi- colon before it only if extensive punctuation also is required in one or more of the individual clauses. n They pulled their boats from the water, sand- bagged the retaining walls and boarded up the windows; but even with these precautions, the island was hard hit by the hurricane.
Single Space Between Sentences
Use a single space between sentences.
Slashes
Using a slash is acceptable in descriptive phrases such as 24/7 or 9/11 but otherwise confine its use to special situations, as with fractions or denoting the ends of a line in quoted poetry. Do not use a slash at the end of URLs.
13
U S A G E
Abbreviations and Acronyms Abbreviations If abbreviations are needed, use them sparingly alongside the full name in the first reference, with the initials in parentheses. Avoid using abbreviations in external publications.
Time Periods
C.E. (Common Era) Also known as A.D.
n
n B.C.E. (Before Common Era) Also known as B.C.
Do not abbreviate days or months, with the exception of in tables or charts.
Correct Usage
Correct Usage
n First Use: Visitors from all over the region came to visit Great Park (GP).
February
Monday
n
n
Incorrect Usage
n Second Use: Visitors from all over came to visit GP.
Feb.
Mon.
n
n
The City style is to rarely use abbreviations and acro- nyms in all other cases. Below are some examples of acceptable use:
Acronyms Spell out the acronym prior to its first use. Common acronyms such as FBI, CIA and ICTV do not need to be spelled out. Do not use an acronym if it will not be used in subsequent text. See City Department, Com- mission, and Committee Names , Page 20.
Before a Name
Dr. Sears
n
Mrs. Smith
n
Correct Usage
Mr. Smith
n
Staff will meet with Irvine Ranch Conservancy (IRC) be- fore heading to John Wayne Airport (JWA) The meeting with IRC will then take place at JWA
After a Name
Martin Luther King Jr.
n
John Adams Sr.
n
Incorrect Usage
Time and Time Zones
Staff will meet with IRC before heading to JWA
The below abbreviations for time zones are accept- able upon first reference. See Time, Page 18.
When referring to a center, program, organization, group, or plan, unless it is primarily known by its acronym (e.g., ICTV), avoid creating an acronym. Shorten the name, if it makes sense or will not change the meaning and do not capitalize the noun (“the center ,“ “the commission”) on second reference. Be sure that you maintain consistency throughout the document.
10 a.m. or 10 p.m.
n
EST (Eastern Standard Time)
n
EDT (Eastern Daylight Time)
n
PST (Pacific Standard Time)
n
PDT (Pacific Daylight Time)
n
Correct Usage
GMT (Greenwich Mean Time)
n
n First Use: Dog and Cat Foundation of Orange County
14
U S A G E
n Subsequent Use: Dog and Cat Foundation or Subsequent Use: the foundation
video conferencing Two words, no hyphen.
First Use: Irvine Fine Arts Center
n
Dates
Subsequent Use: Fine Arts Center or Subsequent Use: the center
n
Common usage is to reflect dates numerically. However, dates may also be spelled out. Spell out all months. Do not abbreviate dates with dashes or slashes. (Exceptions include email subject lines and file names). Do not use the word on when referencing a date in a sentence. In tables and charts where there are space limitations, date abbreviations may be used.
Incorrect Usage
n Dog and Cat Foundation of Orange County (DCFOC)
City Departments, Committees, and Commissions See City Department, Commission, and Committee Names , Page 20.
Correct Usage
Monday, November 19, 2021
n
COVID-19
Monday, the Nineteenth of November Two Thousand Twenty One
n
See additional guidelines in the AP Stylebook .
The meeting will be held March 28.
n
coronavirus Coronavirus is one word. It is a common type of virus that caused COVID-19 and should not be used inter- changably with the term COVID-19 . COVID-19 COVID should be in all caps in all instances when iden- tifiying the disease. Covid Clinic Lowercase the subsequent letters in Covid when refer- ring to the organization that partners with the City to offer testing. pandemic vs. endemic A pandemic refers to a widespread, rapid spread of a disease, with exponentionally rising cases over a large area. An endemic is a constantly present virus with a predictable spread. COVID-19, as experienced from the end of 2019 is a pandemic.
Incorrect Usage
11/19/12
n
The meeting will be held on 11-19-12
n
There is no need to use the year if the date you’re referring to is in the current year, unless it is needed contractually. If the reference is to a past or future year, include the year and set it off with commas.
February 14, 2035, is the target date.
n
Arabic Figures Use Arabic figures, without st , nd , rd, or th . The exception is when format requires such use (e g , resolutions: on the 27th day of March 2012) . See Numerals , Page 17.
Correct Usage
The meeting is March 3.
n
telecommute, teleconference, telework One word.
Incorrect Usage
The meeting is March 3rd.
n
15
U S A G E
Years Do not use years within copy when referring to events that are occuring in the current year. Exceptions for clarity can be made in materials published toward the end of one calendar year that are referring to the following year. The use of years related to deadlines is acceptable when needed for clarity.
Contractions Contractions should not be used for years.
Correct Usage
1970s
n
Incorrect Usage
n ‘70s In rare instances, such as event titles or common expressions like “Summer of ’69,” contractions may be used. Abbreviations Do not abbreviate days or months, unless special permission is given by the Public Information Office for publications such as Inside Irvine .
Correct Usage
n The festival is October 23 at Great Park.
n Commitee applications are due by 5 p.m., Monday, October 23, 2022.
Incorrect Usage
n The upcoming festival is October 23, 2022.
n Next week’s Studio Arts Festival is June 5, 2022.
Correct Usage
February
Monday
n
n
Use an s without an apostrophe to indicate spans of decades or centuries.
Incorrect Usage
Feb.
Mon.
n
n
Correct Usage
1970s
1700s
n
n
Start of a Sentence Years are the lone exception to the general rule in numerals that a figure is not used to start a sentence. However, reword a sentence to avoid starting with a year whenever possible.
Incorrect Usage
1970’s
1700’s
n
n
Fiscal Year
1976 was a very good year.
n
Correct Usage
For historical periods, see the AP Stylebook .
First Use: Fiscal Year 2012–13
n
Hashtags
Subsequent Use: FY 2012–13
n
Incorrect Usage
Capitalize the first letter of every word in a hashtag.
Fiscal Year2012–13
n
Correct Usage n #IrvineCares
FY2012–13
n
n #Irvine50thPhotos
FY12–13
n
Incorrect Usage
In tables and charts where there are space limitations, FY 12–13 may be used.
n #irvinecares
n #Irvine50thphotos
16
U S A G E
Numerals
Incorrect Usage
The event is on March 23rd.
n
When a number is used in a sentence and is not part of the date or time, spell out one through nine. Also spell out any number that begins a sentence, except for years. Use Arabic numerals for everything equal to or greater than 10. Use numeral figures when preced- ing a unit of measurement; decimals; percentages; and fractions with numbers larger than one.
He was 4th in line.
n
n She was the 2nd runner to cross the finish line.
Percentages Use the percent symbol when paired with a number, with no space.
Correct Usage
Correct Usage
n Hundreds of people attended the event.
n The survey says 45% of residents have two cars.
They owned two buses and 10 cars.
n
For amounts less than 1%, preceed the decimal with a zero.
Incorrect Usage
100s of people attended the event.
n
Correct Usage
They owned 10 cars and 2 buses.
n
The cost of living rose 0.6%
n
Ages Use numerals for all ages. Hyphenate ages when used as an adjective. Use younger and older than , not over and under , when referring to age.
For a range 12% to 15%, 12%-15% and between 12% and 15% are all acceptable.
Use percentage rather than percent , when not paired with a number.
Correct Usage
Correct Usage
He is 5 years old.
n
Incorrect Usage
n The percentage of people agreeing is small.
n He is five years old. For more information on Ages, see the AP Stylebook . Ordinal Numbers Ordinal numbers designate place (e g , first, second or third) and should only be used when they represent a sequence or a location. Numbers at the beginning of a sentence should be spelled out or the sentence should be rewritten to avoid.
Using Numbers in Charts and Tables Always line the numbers up by the decimal point.
Correct Usage
2,140 .35 180.30
n
Incorrect Usage
2,140.35 180.30
n
Correct Usage
n The City celebrated its 40th Anniversary in 2011.
Dates may be abbreviated in tables for space. For more information about Dates , see Page 15.
John received 1st place.
n
For information about Phone Numbers , see Page 21.
It is the first house on the left.
n
17
U S A G E
and date ranges. See Dashes , Page 9; Time Spans , Page 10.
In tables, it is permissible to make edits for stylistic purposes and to forgo periods in “a.m.” and “p.m.” for space. See Time , see Page 18. ZIP Codes Use ZIP codes only when soliciting correspondence. Mail forms to: City of Irvine, 1 Civic Center Plaza, Irvine, CA 92606.
Correct Usage
10–11 a.m.
n
Incorrect Usage
10—11 a.m.
10-11 p.m.
n
n
Times of Day
Seasons
Use a.m. and p.m., lowercased with periods after each letter. Do not uppercase. Add a space between the hour or minutes. If using the words “from,” pair with the word”to” when listing a range of time.
Unless part of a formal title, lowercase all seasons (spring, summer, winter, and fall).
Time
Correct Usage
Figures Use figures except for Noon and Midnight, which should be capitalized. For formal invitations, it is ac- ceptable to spell out the time. n Event begins at seven o’clock (in the morning, afternoon or evening) n At a half past seven o’clock (in the morning, afternoon or evening) n From seven to eight o’clock (in the morning, afternoon or evening) For information about dates and times in formal invita- tions, see the City’s Event Protocol on the intranet. Hours and Minutes Use semicolons to separate the hours from the minutes. Do not use zeros if there are no minutes.
10 a.m.
10:30 p.m.
n
n
The meeting runs from 8 to 11 a.m.
n
Incorrect Usage
10 AM
10:30 P M
n
n
10 A. M .
10:30 P.M.
n
n
The meeting runs from 8-11 a.m.
n
Avoid Redundancies Do not repeat a.m. and p.m.
Correct Usage
10–11 a.m.
10–11 p.m.
n
n
10 a.m.–2 p.m.
10 a.m.–2:30 p.m.
n
n
Incorrect Usage
Correct Usage
10:00 a.m.–11:00 a.m.
10 p.m.–11 p.m.
n
n
7 a.m.
7:30 p.m.
n
n
10:00 a.m.–2:30 p.m.
n
Incorrect Usage
Time Zones Do not use time zones when it is understood you’re referring to the time zone you’re currently in.
7:00 a.m.
n
Dashes Use a short dash (–) with no spaces between time
18
SPECIFIC CITY OF IRVINE STYLE GUIDELINES
Capitalize when using the full, proper name. Capi- talize Department here as well. Do not capitalize department , office , council , committee , or board when using in a second reference.
City of Irvine Name
On first reference, use “City of Irvine” when referring to the government entity.
Correct Usage
n First Use: The Community Development Department is on the first floor of City Hall. n Second Use: The department is housed on the first floor of City Hall. n First Use: The Department of Human Resources & Innovation is on the third floor of City Hall. n Second Use: The department is housed on the third floor of City Hall. n First Use: The Planning Commission meets once a month. n Second Use: The commission just started their meting. Lowercase when writing shortened versions of the department or office name.
Use “Irvine” when referring to location.
On second reference, use “the City” (uppercase).
n First Use: The City of Irvine serves our residents and community. n Second Use: The City is known for its parks, open spaces, and thriving business economy.
Use “Irvine” when other cities are mentioned.
Note that context will dictate clarity of your terms. If referring to more than one city in your text, use “Ir- vine” as the second reference. Do not use City of Irvine as a possessive when referring to a City event or when used primarily in a descriptive sense; treat it as part of the proper noun.
Correct Usage
She works for human resources.
Correct Usage
n
When referring to a specific division within depart- ments, do not capitalize the word “division” or “team.”
The City of Irvine Studio Arts Festival
n
The City of Irvine committee
n
Incorrect Usage
Correct Usage
The City of Irvine’s Studio Arts Festival
n
n The Environmental Programs division is respon- sible for ensuring residents know how to properly recycle hazardous waste. City Always capitalize City when referring to the City of Irvine. Lowercase when referring to other cities. citywide Citywide should be one word, not hyphenated, and not capitalized unless at the beginning of a sentence.
The City of Irvine’s committee
n
Capitalization
See Grammar and Puncuation use of Capitalization , Page 6.
Names of Departments, Offices, and Other Entities
19
Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34Made with FlippingBook interactive PDF creator