Do abbreviate states when they follow towns or cities in datelines the line at the top of a news story that shows the date and place of writing, or when they show political party affiliation dmass. The ap style as its known in the trade is quite different from the new york times style or chicago manual of style. The associated press stylebook, first published in 1977, clarified the news organizations rules on grammar, spelling, punctuation and usage. But even for many of us who have used the stylebook for. When documenting sources using mla style, the months with four or fewer letters, e.
Referring to the ap style guide again, were told to use figures except for noon and midnight. Spell out the name of a month when it is used without a specific date. When a month is used with a specific date, you may abbreviate jan. The ap therefore strives to keep its writing style easy to read, concise and free of bias. See appendix d for a list of abbreviations, initialisms, and acronyms common to mla publications. But before getting into that, lets get it out of the way first to note that if your usage of the country name is a noun, spell it out rather than abbreviating it. When a phrase lists only a month and a year, do not separate the year with commas. Five letters or fewer spell out all months when used alone or with only a year do not abbreviate days of the week except in a tabular format. Generally ap style omits periods in acronyms, unless doing so would spell an unrelated word. What follows are summaries of some of the most common style rules. Do not put the abbreviation in parentheses after the name, do not abbreviate an organization on second and future reference unless the ap style book says so and if the organization if not wellknown and cant be abbreviated on subsequent references, use alternate wordings or common nouns such as, the organization or the group rather than repeating the full name. May 07, 2009 the associated press was founded more than 150 years ago and now has thousands of employees working in more than a hundred countries for a readership that numbers in the millions. Ap style summary chapter 2 workbook flashcards quizlet.
Follow these associated press guidelines for the u. The best ap style cheat sheet every writer needs free. Days of the week days of the week should be capitalized and not abbreviated. Jun 15, 2009 note that if youre only going to use an unfamiliar acronym once, its best just to spell out the original term completely and forgo the abbreviated form. This is the style guide that professional media use. Associated press stylebook abbreviations and acronyms.
Abbreviate junior or senior after an individuals name. There are quite a few rules in the ap stylebook for state names and ap style state abbreviations. In other kinds of writing, where a more formal style is appropriate, use abbreviations sparingly. Spell out months when used alone or with either a date or year but abbreviate them to the following. Ap style cheat sheet for wjeas writeoff contests and beyond student journalists should have at least these two sources available to answer basic style questions. Now in its sixth edition, the stylebook is the standard style. Ap style journalism and pr the associated press style provides guidelines for journalistic writing. Formatting dates, days, months, times, and years in ap style dates and times have a number of formatting considerations. In the past we discussed how to correctly use ap style title case, and now were here to tackle the often confused topic of ap style numbers. Ap style is simply a standardized way of writing everything from dates to street addresses to job titles. Spiralbound book, updated each spring 2019 ap stylebook. Always use figures before the measurement 8 inches, 10 feet, 2 ounces, 200 pounds, etc.
Mastering the ap style rules for abbreviations bka content. General ap style abbreviation guidelines before a name. Sep 19, 2012 professional journalists and business communicators in the united states commonly write in associated press ap style. Months datestimes abbreviate months with six or more letters if they are used. Please follow ap styleand its companion websters new world college dictionaryfor any topics and words not addressed by university of hartford editorial style. One of the first things a student in a beginning journalism course learns about is associated press style or ap style for short. Even though the question of how to abbreviate the united states seems straightforward, as it happens, theres more than one preferred way to write it. Spell out months with 5 letters or fewer within regular text. In general, newspaper style guides in the united states in particular, the associated press stylebook ap and the new york times manual of style and usage recommend u. Your style of writing can make or break your career if news release are deleted in journalists email inboxes. The department prefers bullets, but punctuate them per ap style. In some cases, an academic degree may be abbreviated after an individuals name see academic degrees.
Associated press style is to use dashes, not bullets, for lists that follow a colon. It says that in tabular material, use threeletter forms without a period the first three letters of each month. Colon capitalize the first word after a colon only if it is a proper noun or the start of a complete sentence. The associated press stylebook provides an az guide to issues such as capitalization, abbreviation, punctuation, spelling, numerals and many other questions of language usage. The equivalent resource for the older apa 6 style can be found here. How do i write dates, times, numbers, and measurements using. After each bullet, capitalize the first letter and use periods at the end of each item.
To achieve these goals, the associated press stylebook is intentionally compact and direct, giving up comprehensiveness in exchange for brevity. This listing is a just a few highlights for ap style, but you need to make sure you have the most current version for quick reference. The first publicly available edition of ap stylebook was published in 1953 under the title the associated press style book. In ap style, the antecedent and its pronoun must agree. May, june, and july are not abbreviated, the remaining months jan. Note that state abbreviations in ap style are not in allcapital letters, as are postal state abbreviations. This page is about the various possible meanings of the acronym, abbreviation, shorthand or slang term. The american psychological association apa publication manual, which is used for writing academic papers, agrees about using the periods. In this post, we will summarize all of the ap stylebook state abbreviations rules.
Abbreviate company, corporation, incorporated and limited when used after the name of a corporate entity. Never abbreviate the short months march, april, may, june, july. If a states name is standing alone or in conjunction with a city or town in your text, spell out the entire states name. The associated press stylebook and briefing on media law official style guide of the associated press, a notforprofit news agency thats been around since 1846. When a phrase uses only a month and a year, do not separate the year with commas. Always use arabic figures, without st, nd, rd or th. Here are a few answers to common style issues, based on the ap stylebook.
Do not abbreviate months or days of the week within regular text. See our full page on abbreviations and acronyms for a more in depth discussion on their differences. Ap style is designed to address the challenges of the organizations large size and readership. Abbreviate months with six or more letters if they are used with a specific date such as sept. Send contributions to relief fund, box 185, pasadena, ca 91030. Consider the following examples of ap style numbers, the chicago white sox finished second.
Its often used by news organizations, magazines, and web publications, but brands often use it to form the basis of their own style guides, too. Datelines datelines on stories should contain a city name, entirely in capital letters, followed. Writing center quick reference associate press style guide. When documenting sources using apa style, no abbreviations are used, all months should be spelled out in full. You should abbreviate titles when they are used before a full name. Associated press style essentials this ap short guide is modeled on one made available in the past by. The ap stylebook is available as a book, website or smartphone app. Ap itself along with gi and eu are exceptions to this rule. Never abbreviate march, april, may, june or july tip. Ap is not done rocking the journalism world with style changes. Spell out names of months when not used to indicate a specific date.
Use a hyphen for the adjectival forms before nouns. Ap style state abbreviations for press release dateline follow these associated press guidelines for the u. It had to be easy for reporters and editors to use and also produce stories that are clear and concise. For days of the month, use only numerals, not nd, rd or th.
An articles established era style should not be changed without reasons specific to its content. A recent ap stylebook says, when a month is used with a specific date, abbreviate only jan. To make navigating these specialty chapters even easier, the stylebook includes a comprehensive index. Sp 17 ap style guide university of texas at austin. Abbreviating months and days editing and writing services. Use first and last name and titles when appropriate on the first reference. According to the ap style book, dates should be formatted as such dates always use numerical figures, without st, nd, rd, or th. Always spell out measurements inches, feet, yards gallons, ounces, pounds etc. Do not abbreviate months of the year when they appear by themselves or with a year december 2012. The local style guide is up to you and your staff to create. You can find the list of preferred abbreviations under months in the ap stylebook. Spell out one through nine, then go to figures for 10 and up.
Mar 14, 2015 ap style for states abbreviations march 14, 2015 a. If you dont see it on this poster, consult the ap stylebook. Do not use periods in abbreviations that are in headlines. Jun 25, 2018 when writing about money in apa style, clarity and precision are key. March, april, may, june and july are never abbreviated in text, but the remaining months are when they are followed by a date jan.
Use last name without titles on the second and any other references unless requested by the subject. Abbreviations for months and days in regular, running text. Effective may 1, the ap will spell out state names in the body of. Postal service abbreviations for states unless you are providing a full address including zip code. Jul, 2019 one of the first things a student in a beginning journalism course learns about is associated press style or ap style for short.
Spell out the names of the 50 states when they stand alone in. Dates writing style guide western michigan university. The ap stylebook will help you master the aps rules on grammar, spelling, punctuation, capitalization, abbreviation, word and numeral usage, and when to use more than instead of over. Ap style holds that a few universally recognized abbreviations are required in some instances and some other abbreviations are acceptable depending on the context, but in general, as a writer, you should avoid having your writing appear as if its alphabet soup. Abbreviations abbreviate junior or senior after a name, but dont use a comma. Ap stylebook rules for height, feet, inches gatehouse newsroom. If youd like a more visually appealing way to reference ap style state name abbreviations, save this map weve created with all the names you need. Ap style also calls specifically for lowercase abbreviations for a. In general you should spell out numbers one through nine in ap style.
May 21, 2009 for words not in this book use the firstlisted abbreviation in websters new world college dictionary. The website of appalachian state university, for example, conforms to ap style. Generally, omit periods in acronyms unless the result would spell an unrelated word. Ap style is the standard for writing news release and other content for media in the united states. Ap style also aims to avoid stereotypes and unintentionally offensive language. As ap has added entries over the years, the stylebook has grown more useful and comprehensive but also more daunting.
The associated press, the ap copy book, and ap writing handbook. You should use figures for 10 or above and whenever preceding a unit of measure or referring to ages of people, animals, events or things. When a phrase refers to a month, day and year, set off the year with commas. Jul 06, 2017 when searching for height in the ap stylebook, it refers readers to the dimensions entry. This module aims to meet most of these requirements. Abbreviate the words street, avenue, boulevard only when there is a street address number. If used as part of a political affiliation, see ap stylebook for correct abbreviations. When used with a date, abbreviate only the following months. Some abbreviations of trade names, organizations, or innovations function as initialisms or acronyms e. Ap style was developed and is maintained by the associated press, the worlds oldest news service. The office of communications uses the below writing style guide along with the associated press ap stylebook and websters dictionary as the standard for writing web content, employee communications, news releases, broadcast information, articles and other materials. Ap style datelines datelines on stories should contain a city name, entirely in capital letters, followed in most cases by the name. An abbreviation, lets take gb from above, is not an acronym.
In apa, abbreviations should be limited to instances when a the abbreviation is standard and will not interfere with the readers understanding and b if space and repetition can be greatly avoided through abbreviation. Jul 21, 2016 im a huge fan of abbreviations because they make communication easier and spare me from unnecessary typing. Also, all months should be spelled out when they stand alone or are alone with a year. The latest ap stylebook says, when a month is used with a specific date, abbreviate only jan. These resources provide an overview of journalistic writing with explanations of the most important and most often used elements of journalism and the associated press style.
A primer on ap style t he ap stylebook is the second most important book you will use as a journalist, after a dictionary. The ap stylebook, published primarily for journalists, also says to capitalize the days of the week, and to not abbreviate them except when needed to facilitate tabular composition. If youre new to news writing or switching from one to another, youll want to keep this ap cheat sheet handy and refer to it when in doubt. Abbreviate months with six or more letters if they are used with a specific date.
The ap stylebook is widely used as a writing and editing reference tool in newsrooms, classrooms, and offices worldwide. All states are spelled out in the body of the text. The associated press, a guide for foreign correspondents. Ap style recommends spelling out state names in the body of stories effective may 1, 2014 and using abbreviations in datelines. Abbreviations of months of the year, days of the week, and. In ap style you should capitalize the names of months in all of their uses. Month abbreviations ap style when a month is used with a specific date, abbreviate only jan. In ap style, the antecedent and its pronoun must agree in gender and number. These are the rules wed like you to follow for the contests. For slide presentations of ap style basics, go here. Associated press style quick reference guide to subscribe to the associated press stylebook online, or to find out about purchasing hard copies of the book, start here.
Associated press style basics journalists resource. The 2019 edition of the associated press stylebook and briefing on media law includes more than 200 new or revised entries, with chapters covering data journalism, business, fashion, food, religion and sports terms, as well as media law, news values, punctuation, social media, polls and surveys and a new chapter on health and science. This resource, revised according to the associated press stylebook 2012, offers examples for the general format of ap style. Always spell out the month when it is used without a specific date.
Many newspapers, magazines, websites, and public relations offices across the united states use ap style. All other months should always be completely spelled out. When a month is used with a specific date, abbreviate only jan. The following guidance went out on the ap wire wednesday.