Use a period after bullet list that completes the opening stem sentence that introduces it. Q: What is AP's style on the military's don't ask, don't tell policy? Use numbered lists when youre working with instructions to be done in sequence, and the numbers suggest ahierarchy. driving, in which people text while in their vehicle (Schroeder & Sims, 2018). 2-5 p.m.) and when to use the word "to"? For example, are newspapers italicized? If necessary, rewrite the list item so that all items begin with capital letters or all items begin with lowercase words. Home Style and Grammar Guidelines Lists Lists Just as heading structure alerts readers to the order of ideas in a paper, lists help readers understand a related set of key points within a sentence or paragraph. See the "legislative titles" entry for rulings. Capitalize the important words in the title, Subordinating conjunctions (when fewer than 5 letters), Coordinating Conjunctions (and, but, for), Capitalize nouns, pronouns, adjectives, verbs (including. (CMS) and the Associated Press Stylebook (AP style) are what writers typically use. One exception: email (no hyphen, which reflects majority of usage). They are also written without terminal punctuation (i.e., they dont end in a period, comma, colon, or semicolon).9. Each of these capitalization styles has slightly different rules for which words are capitalized and each of these styles can be written using title case capitalization or sentence case capitalization. That's . A: Lowercase for post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, hepatitis C, etc. We have three punctuation issues to consider: Should the ending punctuation at the end of each bullet list be a period, a semicolon, or no punctuation? Modern Language Association (MLA) Handbook, 9th Edition Capitalization Rules, Best Book Writing Software and Book Writing Apps, Cursive Text Generator , Buscador de palabras y descifrador de palabras, Select your title capitalization style above by clicking on a tab. The first option is to use no punctuation after the bulleted items (including the final one), which may be better when the items are shorter and simpler. The listing below reflects a few departures from Associated Press (AP) style typically used in Johns Hopkins' web and print text, as well as other style points that, while they are not departures from AP style, require special attention. Next post: Make blog post content rich with layers, Previous post: Blog Post Format: Chunk It. endstream endobj 29 0 obj <> endobj 30 0 obj <>/Border[0 0 0]/Rect[603 407.25 648 420.75]/Subtype/Link/Type/Annot>><>/Border[0 0 0]/Rect[270.75 387.75 315.75 401.25]/Subtype/Link/Type/Annot>><>/Border[0 0 0]/Rect[281.25 368.25 318.75 381.75]/Subtype/Link/Type/Annot>>]/Contents[34 0 R 35 0 R 36 0 R 37 0 R 38 0 R 39 0 R 41 0 R 42 0 R]/CropBox[0 0 792 612]/MediaBox[0 0 792 612]/Parent 26 0 R/Resources<>/Font<>/ProcSets[/PDF/Text/ImageB/ImageC/ImageI]/XObject<>>>/Rotate 0/Type/Page>> endobj 31 0 obj <>stream The book club members made a list of their favorite genres: Individual list items following a complete sentence that are themselves complete sentences are each punctuated with a period.4. If the bulleted text is a whole sentence, uppercase the initial letter of the first word and use a period to conclude the paragraph (see "Lists, Part 5: Bulleted Lists" in the APA Style Blog . Your email address will not be published. Instead, texts like The Canadian Style (2nd ed., 1997) offer guidelines for styling bulleted lists, some of which strike some writers (this one, for instance) as needlessly complicated. For more AP style tips, watch Grammar Girls Beginning and Intermediate Guide to AP Style any time. A: In this instance, use a plural verb. Capitalize the first word following the dash or bullet. Q: If you have a hyphen in a headline, is the word after the hyphen capitalized? Fax: 205-921-5595 2131 Military Street S Hamilton, AL 35570 View Location Alternatively, you can use our tool to convert text from lowercase to uppercase by clicking the UPPER button. Q: Is clarity essentially the only rule determining when a serial comma should be included? Q: There seem to be differing opinions on whether or not to capitalize the names of grapes used to make wine. The first word after a colon unless it begins an independent clause. Words that should not be capitalized include: AP uses dashes, not bullets, for lists in news stories that follow a colon. AP Style - use dashes, capitals and periods. Good business writing seeks to make information easy to understand. Next, read the lead-in word or phrase again followed by the second item on the list. Your points should be consistent, either all sentences or all fragments. Example: You will need to present the following information: Your driver's license. A: AP uses hyphenated e- for generic terms such as e-commerce and e-strategies. Again, style guides dont agree.]. Dont use a period after bullet lists that are not complete sentences or do not complete the opening stem sentence. The two major capitalization styles for headlines and titles are sentence case and title case. The buttons at the bottom let you choose specific case conversion options for the various styles. Infants often display prosocial behaviorthat is, behavior intended to help otherswhen interacting with their parents, as demonstrated in the following examples (Hammond & Drummond, 2019): If bulleted items are words or phrases (but not complete sentences), begin each item with a lowercase letter (except words such as proper nouns). Numbered lists may appear with or without the period after the number. - Put a space between the dash or bullet and the first word of each item in the list. A list of information can be neatly organised using bullet points. endstream endobj 32 0 obj <>stream Ordered lists can be introduced by a complete or incomplete sentence and are typically prefaced by numbers1 or letters2 followed by a period. The department prefers bullets, but punctuate them per AP style: After each bullet, capitalize the first letter and use periods at the end of each item. People who grew up in the 1980s watched a lot of television, including: If you arent a strict follower of AP style, consider using the general guidelines explained in the sections above instead of those outlined in this alert box. Again, these will depend on the specific style you choose (see Title Capitalization Rules by Style section). Q: How do I deal with a vulgarity from a movie that is integral to the article I'm writing? The most accepted style guide in business writing and web publishing is the AP Stylebook. Try it with these examples and see if the period makes more sense. Capitalize the second word in a hyphenated compound if both words are equal and not suffices or prefixes (e.g., Cost-Benefit), Capitalize the first non-Greek letter after a lowercase Greek letter (e.g., -Bromohexanoic), Lowercase the first non-Greek letter after a capital Greek letter (e.g., -9-tetrahydrocannabinol), Capitalize the genus but not the species epithet. Symbols such as small circles, squares, dashes, and so forth may be used for the bullets. - Capitalize the first word following the dash or bullet. Use periods, not semicolons, at the end of each section or a phrase. This is clear, but AP doesnt fully address when to omit a period at the end of each bullet. in English Literature from Boston College, and a C.A.G.S. Mary founded Instructional Solutions in 1998, and is an internationally recognized business writing trainer and executive writing coach with two decades of experience helping thousands of individuals and businesses master the strategic skill of business writing. In bulleted and numbered lists, do not use a period or other punctuation after titles or phrases that are not complete sentences (also good for accessibility). always refer to the style guide and doublecheck capitalization recommendations. 0 She holds a B.A. Dont use a period at the end of a bullet if the bullet lists are one word or a short phrase that feels like an inventory or shopping list. The top tabs allow you to select which style of capitalization you want to use. Title case is also commonly used for book titles, movies titles, song names, plays, and other works. It makes it easier for your reader. I like apples. Example: The software in this price range offers many excellent features: RULE: When one item contains acomplete sentence, punctuate all bulleted items as though they were complete sentences: capitalize the beginning words and use aperiod at the end of each item. Q: If using "member of Congress" instead of congressman/congresswoman, should "member" be capitalized? This is where the semicolon confusion comes in. 4.24.14 AP style rules on state abbreviations updated. Were often asked whether you need a period at the end of each entry in a list. Ive updated. How to punctuate bullet lists can be tricky because various style guides contradict each other. So long as your capitalization rules remain consistent in your organizations communications, youre golden. Numbers One through nine are spelled out, 10 and above are figures (Arabic numerals). Q: Do music groups take singular verbs, as do collective nouns, or plural verbs, as with sports teams? There are five important things to watch for in numbered and bulleted lists: inconsistent capitalization. %PDF-1.4 % And consistency goes a long way in creating clear, credible content. Numbered and unnumbered lists are more commonly used in scholarly publications. Take the sentence "She has decided: She won't have surgery to hide the scar.". Capitalization is a style choicewith sentence fragments, you can choose to start each with either upper- or lower-case letters. Subscribe to the My Blog Editor blog for the latest TIPS on improving the QUALITY of your business content. Regards, Julia! The rules are fairly standard for title case: Making sure you have the right capitalization for APA headings is crucial for scholarly articles. This is ultimately a matter of stylistic preference. Its visually cluttered, impeding easy scan. Lowercase indefinite and definite articles (a, an, the), coordinating conjunctions, and prepositions. Should the opening stem sentence end with a colon to introduce the bullet lists or use no colon? When writing an argumentative essay, you would typically research a topic and adopt a certain How to Punctuate and Capitalize Bullet Points. In the example above, the first two list items end with a semicolon because the second list item has internal commas. r%Q! The bullets indicate that I like apples, bananas, and oranges equally. Over 1.5 million copies sold! . First, it is important to note that there are four main title capitalization styles: Chicago style, APA style, MLA style, and AP style.