Q. If a Spanish word is written in all caps, can you forgo the use of accent marks? – from Orlando, Fla. on Wed, May 22, 2013
A. AP doesn't use accent marks.
Q. Hi, here's a British-style question. They specialize in high-street fashion, or High-Street fashion? (Referring, of course, to the generic term for high-class fashion.) – from Tokyo on Tue, May 21, 2013
A. Generally spelled high street fashion.
Q. Is a female superhero called a superheroine, or is superhero the correct term? – from Richland, Wash. on Tue, May 21, 2013
A. I've seen both used. Doubt there's a significance difference.
Q. What's the rationale for not hyphenating 'search and rescue operations'? – from , on Tue, May 21, 2013
Q. Regarding usage of "namesake": The city of Denver was named in honor of General James Denver, while singer John Denver named himself after the city. Is Denver the general's "namesake city," the singer's "namesake city," or are both instances truly correct? – from Denver on Tue, May 21, 2013
A. The original distinction has probably been lost in common usage.
Q. farmable or farm-able – from , Lincoln, Neb. on Mon, May 20, 2013
Q. how do you define a simple series versus a complex series when determining use of the series comma? – from Atlanta on Sat, May 18, 2013
A. See IN A SERIES section of the "comma" entry.
Q. Is it multilingual or multi-lingual? – from New York on Fri, May 17, 2013
A. The first, multilingual.
Q. In the sentence -- Country music superstar Brad Paisley guest-stars as himself -- is the verb hyphenated, as it is written, or not? – from chicago on Fri, May 17, 2013
Q. The entry for Google shows "Googling" uppercase, while in at least one answer to "Ask the Editor," examples were given with the word lowercase. Does AP have a preference? – from Chicago on Fri, May 17, 2013
A. It's capitalized Googling, per the Stylebook entry. The 2007 response was before it was formalized.
Q. For clarification regarding state abbreviations on a resume and cover letter, are all states abbreviated where you list your address and the editor's address on the cover letter? And on a resume, are they abbreviated where you list your address and the mailing addresses of your references? The mailing address is the main question. I don't want to lose a job opportunity by incorrectly interpreting AP style guidelines. – from Nebraska on Fri, May 17, 2013
A. See "state names" for postal code abbreviations of each
state. Use a Zip code in a mailing address. If you're
correspondng by mail, use those forms.
Q. How do you format elementary school grades? For example: K through five school. Kindergarten through fifth grade school. K through 5 school? – from Corvallis, Ore. on Fri, May 17, 2013
A. The elementary school has kindergarten through fifth grade.
Q. What is the correct abbreviation for electronic pedigree - epedigree, ePedigree, e-Pedigree or e-pedigree? – from Atlanta, Ga. on Fri, May 17, 2013
A. It's e-pedigree within text. E-pedigree to start a
sentence.
Q. Is the hyphen use correct in this sentence? "Blacked-out, students tie all knots using only their sense of touch." – from HARRISONBURG, Va. on Fri, May 17, 2013
A. No hyphen in blacked out.
Q. I am editing text that refers to someone who "architected the degree program." What is the AP style for use of "architect" as a verb? (Please say you wouldn't allow it.) – from Rochester, N.Y. on Fri, May 17, 2013
A. Someone designed or planned the degree program. Let's stay away from that verb form you mention.
Q. If you are using color to highlight words in a sentance, does the punctuation following it also get highlighted or does it stay black? – from St. Louis on Fri, May 17, 2013
A. Probably same color for comma, period, semicolon, etc. A dash might be the hue of regular body type.
Q. Please - which is correct - "A rhyming salute to the many ways that people enjoy music." or "A rhyming salute to the many ways people enjoy music."
Thank you. – from Jacksonville, Fla. on Fri, May 17, 2013
A. It's a little clearer with that. See "that (conjunction)" entry for elaboration.
Q. I continue to be flummoxed by some company names. While I try to treat them as proper nouns, odd cases keep cropping up. For instance:
1) What's the rule on a company like comScore? Is it ComScore or Comscore?
Shoud prAna be Prana or PrAna?
2) FYI, I called L.L.Bean and they tell me their perferred style is no spaces. What's AP rule on that one?
3) Finally, (I wish) many online companies include the .com in their name in press releases? Should we hunt down their legal name including form of incorporation for first reference?
Flummoxed Charlie – from Charlotte, N.C. on Fri, May 17, 2013
A. In AP stories, comScore Inc.; PrAna; L.L. Bean. Use ".com" only if it's part of the legal name, as in Amazon.com Inc. See "Internet" entry for details.
Q. Do the name of sports team have quotation marks around them? – from Kailua, Hawaii on Thu, May 16, 2013
A. Team names aren't enclosed in quotes.
Q. Should it be Druse, or Druze, for the religious sect in the Middle East? – from New York on Thu, May 16, 2013
A. AP's preferred spelling is Druse.
Q. What is the proper usage for a 300 year celebration? Bicentennial for 200; is it tricentennial or tri-centennial? – from Natchitoches, La. on Thu, May 16, 2013
A. It's tricentennial (no hyphen).
Q. In the phrase: He's a numbers man -- should any portion be in quotations?
He's a "numbers" man?
He's a "numbers man"? – from Chagrin Falls, Ohio on Thu, May 16, 2013
A. If you define it, or it's clear in context, no need
to enclose the reference.
Q. When writing about miscarriage, is it due to "chromosome" error? or "chromosomal" error? – from Phoenix on Thu, May 16, 2013
A. Use the second, which is the adjective form.
Q. In a booklet, is it acceptable to leave heads and sub-heads in all caps? – from League City, Texas on Thu, May 16, 2013
A. That's your call. Depends on the publication's headline
and subhead style. AP headlines capitalize only the the first word and proper nouns. Subheads may be all-caps.
Q. Should I change "consistent" to "consistently" in this sentence? Technically I think it modifies the verb "conduct," but "consistently" doesn't sound right to me. Thank you!
The goal is to assert Acme's leadership in service to customers who are ambitious, unique, and authentic and who otherwise conduct business consistent with Acme%uFFFDs philosophy. – from Kansas City, Mo. on Thu, May 16, 2013
A. Stick with consistent. No comma after unique in the simple
series.
Q. The acronym STEM commonly is used to refer to the subjects science, technology, engineering and math. Is STEM appropriate to use as an acronym on second reference? If so, should it be capitalized? – from Warner Robins, Ga. on Thu, May 16, 2013
A. The acronym doesn't seem to be widely used in AP stories. If
so it would be all-caps.
Q. I came across an AP article and it has, then CIA-Director Petraeus. Should it not be then-Director of the CIA David Petraeus? Why would a reporter hyphenate CIA and director? – from Orysia, Burlington, Ontario Canada on Thu, May 16, 2013
A. Normally, then-CIA Director David Petraeus.
Q. Does AP have a policy for the names of internet navigation buttons, as in "She hit Save before moving to the next screen"? – from Indianapolis on Thu, May 16, 2013
A. She hit save before moving to the next screen. Then she hit enter.
Q. Is this bulleted item punctuated correctly? %uFFFD Bar memberships: California; Nevada; Washington, D.C. Also, should we list the names of the applicable state bar associations instead of saying "bar memberships"? Please advise. Thank you much. – from Kansas City, Mo. on Thu, May 16, 2013
A. -Bar association memberships: California, Nevada, Washington, D.C.
Q. What is the guidance for comma usage in a stand-alone series of items that does not have a coordinating conjunction? For example... %uFFFDGrocery list: meat, apples, and carrots.%uFFFD In this case, is a comma after each item in the list appropriate to improve clarity? If not, what is the proper punctuation? – from Philadelphia on Thu, May 16, 2013
A. It's a simple series, so no comma needed after apples.
Q. Should the following sentence end in "sleep" or "sleeps"?
The city - and our team - never sleep(s).
Thank you so much! – from Merrick, N.Y. on Thu, May 16, 2013
A. Use sleep in agreement with the dual subjects.
Q. There are double and single quotes in this sentence. Where would the period lie?
"We're worried dogs are gaining influence around the term 'LOL.'" – from Ardmore , Pa. on Thu, May 16, 2013
A. The period is correctly placed inside the single and double quotes.
Q. In a sentence such as "The project was completed in two and a half years." would two and a half be spelled out or written in numerals (2.5)? – from Camp Hill, Pa. on Thu, May 16, 2013
A. The number wouldn't be wrong written out, but we generally use figures for mixed numbers: "The project was completed in 2 1/2 years." See "quotations in the news" for elaboration.
