parallelism

Parallelism is the principle that parts of a sentence that are parallel in meaning should be parallel in structure. Items of a series also should be parallel in form.

• Seeing is believing.
• To see is to believe.
• Seeing is to believe.

part-time/part time

Hyphenate only as a modifier before a noun.

Joe attends school part time. Joe is a part-time student.

percent

Use a percent sign (%) in all instances in context with a numeral. Spell out the number and use percent if a percentage is used at the beginning of a sentence . (AP change as of April 2019.)

person-first language

Person-first language is used when referring to people with disabilities. In this language, the person is emphasized first, the disability second.

• person with a disability
• person who is disabled
• person who is unable to speak

Use blind only when referring to someone with complete loss of sight. In other cases use woman who is visually impaired or woman who has low vision.

Avoid phrases like confined, bound, restricted or dependent; choose phrases like person who uses a wheelchair, person who walks with crutches.

Avoid labeling or categorizations that begin with the: the disabled, the deaf or the blind.

Handicap can be used when citing laws and situations, but should not be used to describe a person with a disability.

Ph.D, Ph.D.'s

See abbreviations, plurals and titles.

phone numbers

Should be written in copy using hyphens.

Please call 210-458-8000.

plurals

Generally, the only nouns that commonly take ’s for the plural form are single letters:

x’s and y’s
A’s and B’s

Apostrophes are never used to form the plural of any proper noun. Plural names of people and other proper nouns are created by adding s or es. Most names ending in es, s, or z, use es to form the plural.

The Taylors will attend.

The Edwardses and Charleses can be added to the list.

The Gonzalezes were invited.

If the plural rule results in an awkward construction, rewrite the sentence.

• The art show collection included seven paintings by Velasquez
• seven Velasquezes

policymaking

Always one word.

possessives

Make singular nouns possessive by adding ’s; make regular plural nouns ending in s possessive by adding only an apostrophe; plurals lacking an s are treated like singular nouns:

a student’s right, students’ duties, women’s lounge

Certain uninflected singular nouns that look like plurals, such as species and series, are treated like plurals to form the possessive:

The lecture series’ costs will be covered by the department.

Do not add ’s to a word ending in s when it is describing a place, entity, event, etc.

Veterans Day, Visitors Bureau, a teachers college

When a proper name ends in s, add only an apostrophe for the possessive:

Dickens’ novels

Plural proper nouns add an apostrophe (no s) to indicate possession:

The reception will be at the Taylors’ home. The Joneses’ tuition payment has been filed.

When a word ends with the s sound, but doesn’t end in s, use ’s.

Gonzalez’s briefcase.

post, base

Post refers to an Army installation. An Army post, but an Air Force base. See base, post.

post-

In general, don’t hyphenate words with a post-prefix:

postgraduate, postsecondary
BUT post-Freudian, post-Darwinian

pre-

Don’t hyphenate words with a pre- prefix.

premed, preprofessional

prior to

Use before instead.

professor

See titles .

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