The presentation of numbers in a document can sometimes leave a proofreader at sixes and sevens. Even if you are not following a specific house style in your work, it can be invaluable to lay down a few rules in…
Managed proofreading and copy-editing services based in the UK
Blog Archives
Rules for Presenting Numbers
Tagged with: compound numbers, consistency, digits, figures, numbers, proofread, rules, units
Posted in Numbers, Proofreading/copy-editing, Punctuation, Style
Posted in Numbers, Proofreading/copy-editing, Punctuation, Style
Serial Comma
The serial comma, also known as the Oxford comma due to it being common in Oxford publications, is the comma that comes before ‘and’ or ‘or’ in a list of three or more items: I ordered stuffed vine leaves, olives,…
Punctuation III: Hyphens in Compound Words
I have already talked about the hyphen versus the en dash and now I will look at the hyphen in more detail, concentrating on the use of the hyphen in compound words. Hyphens in compound words Compound words may consist…
Punctuation II : Hyphen v En Dash
Now let’s take a look at the distinction between a hyphen and an en dash. Hyphens (-) and en dashes (–) cannot be used interchangeably. The Hyphen (-) 1. The hyphen is used for linking compound words (e.g. avoid the…
Punctuation I: The Semicolon
Let’s take a break from homophones and consider the semicolon (;). Semicolons are frequently misused – I generally find that they are either overused (replacing colons and commas) or not used at all. There are three rules to remember when…