Hong Kong University Press
Style Manual
(January 2013)
CONTENTS
1.
GUIDELINES FOR MANUSCRIPT PREPARATION

General Instructions

Illustrations

Headings

Punctuation

Vocabulary

Italics

Abbreviations

References

Romanization for Chinese

Index Style
2.
CAPITALIZATION
3.
NUMBERS AND UNITS
4.
COMPOUND WORDS
1
1. GUIDELINES FOR MANUSCRIPT PREPRATION
Please supply the final manuscript and illustrations, in both softcopy and hardcopy, in a
form that the Press can work with. After you have sent the final draft of the manuscript to us
for copyediting, do not send additional corrections. Necessary minor corrections can be
made later when you review the copyedited manuscript. If major corrections are required,
please consult your acquiring editor.
Authors are responsible for securing written permissions from the original sources to use
illustration(s) as the book cover, and if necessary, for those images used inside the book as
well. Permissions are also required if parts of the current text have been previously
published. Seeking permissions sometimes takes weeks and months, so start requesting as
soon as possible. Please contact your acquiring editor for details.
After completion of page layout by the Press, the author should compile the index, or
engage the service of a professional indexer.
GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS
1.1
One complete hardcopy of the manuscript is to be submitted with an electronic file
formatted in Microsoft Word for Window or Macintosh. Do not use a page layout
software. The hardcopy should be printed on one side of the paper, double-spaced.
The printout and the softcopy submitted must be identical.
1.2
Use one Word file for each chapter. Do not group chapters together as one big Word
file. Name the Word files as follows: 00 Front matter, 01 Chapter 1, 02 Chapter 2, 03
Chapter 3, 04 Endnotes, 05 Bibliography, etc. Start each new chapter as page 1.
1.3
If a chapter title is very long, indicate (at the chapter opening) how the title may be
shortened so that it can be accommodated in the running head of that chapter when
the Press performs page layout.
1.4
Indent each paragraph.
1.5
Insert a word space after a full stop at the end of a sentence.
1.6
Insert notes into the text with superscript numbers, which should always be placed
after punctuation marks. (The notes are usually placed in the back matter, before the
bibliography.)
ILLUSTRATIONS
1.7
Tables and figures, which should be included only if they make an essential
contribution to the discussion, must be supplied in separate files and not embedded
in the main text. Refer to each table and figure in numerical order in the text, e.g.
Figure 1.1, 1.2, etc.
2
1.8
Keep figures, photos and tables in their original format and provide both softcopy
and hardcopy. Do not embed illustrations into a Word file; otherwise the illustrations
cannot be modified.
1.9
All digital photographs and scanned materials must be supplied at a minimum
resolution of 300 dpi. Digital files must be no smaller than 1 inch (25.4 mm) on the
shortest side. For legibility, maps and charts that contain text should be supplied at a
minimum resolution of 600 dpi. Charts may also be supplied in Microsoft Excel or
PowerPoint format. Accepted file extensions for illustrations are: jpg, tif, pdf, eps,
psd, xls, or ppt.
1.10
If original prints or colour transparencies are to be supplied, do not write directly on
the back of the print and do not use paper clips; always use a sticker. Photographs
taken from a printed page are not usually suitable for reproduction.
1.11
The approximate eventual placement of tables, figures, photos and maps should be
indicated clearly in the manuscript by using callouts (e.g. <insert Table 5.1 around
here>). Enclose the callouts in brackets or other delimiter and place them on a
separate line close to the location preferred.
1.12
Provide a caption for each illustration. Keep labelling to a minimum and make sure
the labels correspond in style (e.g. symbols and abbreviations) to the text and
captions.
1.13
If a list of illustrations in the front matter of the book is desirable, please prepare the
list and make sure that the descriptions correspond in style to the captions provided.
The author is responsible for locating the source of photos and for obtaining
permission to reproduce them.
HEADINGS
1.14
Consider carefully the structure of the book—its division into parts, chapters,
sections and subsections. Within chapters, the relative importance of sections and
subsections should be clear.
1.15
Use capital and lowercase letters for headings. Do not use all capitals.
1.16
Format all headings and subheadings in the manuscript by using style (Heading 1,
Heading 2, Heading 3, etc.) from the style menu; for example:
Heading 1
Arial 14 pt bold
Heading 2
Arial 12 pt bold
Heading 3
Arial 12 pt italic
This will remove any confusion as to the intended hierarchy of headings.
If a further “Heading 4” is felt to be necessary, consider using numbered paragraphs
3
instead.
1.17
Do not use numbered section headings (3.1, 3.1.1) unless the book is a technical
manual, or the numbering system has special usage.
PUNCTUATION
1.18
For a book written in British English:
 use single quotation marks
 for a quote within a quote, use double quotation marks
 put commas and full stops outside quotation marks unless whole sentences are
quoted
 do not use the “serial comma” unless the complexity of the sentence demands it
1.19
For a book written in American English:
 use double quotation marks
 for a quote within a quote, use single quotation marks
 insert commas and full stops inside quotation marks
 use a comma to separate items in a series of three or more
1.20
Do not use quotation marks around block quotations. Add reference source in
parentheses after the final full stop.
1.21
When ellipses are used to indicate omissions within quoted material, insert three
spaced points. Terminal punctuation should be retained before points of ellipses.
Ellipses at the beginning or end of a quotation should be deleted if the first or final
sentence is syntactically complete. Do not enclose ellipses in brackets or
parentheses.
1.22
The abbreviations e.g. and i.e. should not be followed by a comma.
1.23
Avoid using the exclamation mark as much as possible. The force of the exclamation
mark is lost if it is overused.
1.24
Distinguish hyphens and dashes:
 hyphen (for use between letters, and between letter and number, e.g. pre-1997)
 en dash (for connecting numbers, e.g. 1–99)
 em dash (long—no word space on either side)
VOCABULARY
1.25
Be consistent with spelling, hyphenation and word division. Only hyphenated
compound words should have hyphens.
1.26
If the text is in British English, follow the style in the latest edition of:
4
The Concise Oxford Dictionary
The Oxford Spelling Dictionary
For American English, follow the style in:
Webster’s Third New International Dictionary, unabridged
1.27
When both endings -ize and -ise are acceptable, use -ize, which is the preferred
spelling in Oxford, and is also standard American spelling (e.g. organize, not
organise).
Some common words that nonetheless end in -ise are:
advertise
supervise
1.28
enterprise
merchandise
improvise
televise
Another preference is to insert a hyphen between repeating vowels:
co-operate
re-examine
anti-inflammatory
1.29
Avoid using old spellings such as whilst and amongst.
1.30
Unless quoting from a source, avoid linguistic bias, particularly the generic use of
male nouns and pronouns when referring to both genders. Either change to plural or
use he or she.
1.31
Compound nouns containing man or men could be revised as follows:
CHANGE
manpower
salesmen
mankind
businessmen
TO
capacity, employment, work force
sales representatives
human beings, the human race
business executives
ITALICS
1.32
Use italics for:
names of books
(BUT: the Bible or the Koran)
 names of newspapers, journals and periodicals
(BUT: “White Paper on Education”)
 names of plays, movies and TV programmes
 names of ships, aircraft, spacecraft and satellites
 works of art
 biological naming of plant and animal species
 letters that stand for variables in mathematical text, such as a, b, c, x, y, z
 letters that stand for quantity symbols in the metric system, such as m for mass,
and R for electrical resistance
 words or phrases in a foreign language that are likely to be unfamiliar to readers

5
1.33
The punctuation mark immediately following a word in italics should also be in
italics.
1.34
Italics should not be used for foreign words now in common use:
ibid., et al., passim, de facto, fait accompli
ABBREVIATIONS
1.35
Abbreviations spelt with capital letters are set with no full stop or space between
letters.
e.g.
1.36
NATO, UN, CEO
the US government
Most other abbreviations end with full stops, e.g.
Titles: Mr., Mrs., Dr., Rev., St. (Saint)
Academic degrees: B.A., M.Sc., Ph.D.
Note that metric units are considered symbols—not abbreviations—and therefore
have no full stops.
1.37
Personal initials are spaced, e.g. A. W. Smith.
1.38
“Et al.” is the abbreviated form of et alii. Since “al.” is an abbreviation, a full stop is
required. “Ibid.” is the abbreviation of ibidem and is followed by a full stop.
REFERENCES
1.39
Authors are encouraged to follow the standards of referencing and bibliographic
style specified in the latest edition of The Chicago Manual of Style. However, any
alternative and reasonable system of referencing can be followed so long as it is
clear and consistent.
1.40
In running text or at the end of a block quotation: references should be indicated by
giving the author’s surname (without initials) and the year of publication in
parentheses:
e.g.
(Collins 2003)
(Brown and Cosby 1991) (do not use an ampersand)
(C. Hall 2000) (initials are included if reference list includes two or more
works by different authors with the same last name)
(J. Yung et al. 2006) (if more than three authors; note “et al.” is in roman)
A specific page, section, figure, or other division of the cited work follows the date
and is preceded by a comma:
6
e.g.
(Foley 1999, 60–63)
(McArthur 2003, 24 n. 5)
When reference to both volume and page number is required, use a colon to
distinguish between them:
e.g.
(Cheung 1999, 5: 111)
If several books/papers by the same author and from the same year are cited, a, b, c,
etc. should be put after the year of publication:
e.g.
1.41
(Rogers 1998a)
Full bibliographic information is given in the bibliography. The entries should be
listed in alphabetical order. Here are some examples:
For books:
Author. Title. Publication City: Publisher, Publication Year.
e.g.
Almond, Gabriel A., and Sidney Verba. The Civic Culture. Princeton, NJ: Princeton
University Press, 1963.
Frye, Northrope. The Bush Garden. Toronto: Anansi, 1971.
For articles in books:
Author. “Title of Article.” In Title of Book, edited by Name of Editor, page numbers.
Place: Publisher, Year.
e.g.
Biggs, John. “The Assessment Scene in Hong Kong.” In Curriculum and Assessment
for Hong Kong: Two Components, One Style, edited by Peter Stimpson and Paul
Morris, 133–68. Hong Kong: The Open University of Hong Kong Press, 1998.
For articles in periodicals:
Author. “Title of Article.” Publication Title, volume number (publication date):
xx–xx.
e.g.
Scott, Dorothea. “The Hankow Collection: Its History and Contents.” Journal of
Oriental Studies, 2 (1955): 133–43.
Titles of journals should not be abbreviated.
For web resources:
Author. “Title of Article/Webpage.” Accessed date. URL.
7
e.g.
Hong Kong University Press. “Style Manual.” Accessed 12 January 2013.
http://www.hkupress.org/Common/Reader/News/ShowNews.jsp?Nid=41&Pid=
5&Version=0&Cid=3&Charset=iso-8859-1.
Kuo, Kaiser. “Korean Wave Hits China.” The Wall Street Journal. 21 October 2005.
Accessed 21 August 2009.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB112985906837075272.html.
1.42
Authors using notes should follow the method of shortened references for repeated
citations, and thereby avoid using ibid. and op. cit.
1.43
For successive entries by the same author(s) in a bibliography, use a 3-em dash
(followed by a full stop or comma) to replace the name(s) after the first appearance.
The dash can stand for the same two or three authors as in the previous entry,
provided they are listed in the same order.
ROMANIZATION FOR CHINESE
1.44
The Hanyu pinyin system is preferred. Exceptions are quotations and names which
are better known in other systems of romanization. When the subject matter is
Chinese history before the 1950s, the Wade-Giles system can be retained (perhaps
with the equivalent pinyin and/or Chinese characters added at first appearance as
long as they are consistent and clear in the context).
It is desirable to follow the “Basic Rules of Chinese Phonetic Alphabet
Orthography” (2012) and spell pinyin in words instead of characters, e.g. daxue
chubanshe (not da xue chu ban she), wenhua (not wen hua).
1.45
1.46
For names of individuals,
 well-known names are retained, for example:
Sun Yat-sen, Chow Yun-fat

in pinyin, the given names are grouped together, as in:
Deng Xiaoping

for Hong Kong Chinese, our preferred style is:
Peter Tai-man Chan or Peter T. M. Chan
(If personal preferences are known, they should be retained.)
Italicize pinyin words in the text except for proper nouns (as is the style for foreign
words). Do not enclose with quotation marks.
Italicize the titles of Chinese-language books or journals in pinyin. If it is thought to
be necessary, the pinyin title can be followed by its English translation in brackets. It
is capitalized sentence style regardless of the bibliographic style followed. For
example:
8
Zhongguo shuiwu [Chinese taxation]
INDEX STYLE
Compile index using a Word document; do not use a 2-column layout, use regular
one-column layout instead. The Chicago style is preferred.
1.47
Arrange entries in alphabetical order. The letter-by-letter system (where word spaces
and hyphens are ignored) is preferred to the word-by-word system. For example:
Newcomer
New Orleans
Newsletter
News-room
New Zealand
1.48
The first word of each entry starts with a lower-case letter, unless it is a proper
noun/appears capitalized in the text. The word (or words) are followed by a comma
and then page numbers.
Do not use any punctuation at the end of the entries.
When an entry occupies more than one line, indent the second and subsequent lines.
1.49
Subentries should also be in alphabetical order under a main entry. Avoid using more
than one level of subentries.
1.50
When listing page numbers in a sequence, use as few numerals as possible. Avoid
using the abbreviation ff.
1.51
Italicize foreign terms, and the words see and see also.
1.52
Ideally each entry should have no more than five page numbers. If necessary, break
up the head word(s) into sub-entries, again each with no more than five page
numbers.
9
2.
CAPITALIZATION
PROPER NOUNS
2.1
Capitalize names that designate certain persons, things or places.
Down Under (Australia)
the Big Apple (New York City)
the Golden Triangle
2.2
Bloody Mary
the Iron Lady
the Eternal City
Some terms that originate from proper nouns are now considered common nouns and
should not be capitalized.
roman numerals
arabic numbers
2.3
manila envelope
french fries
Capitalize political bodies and government divisions.
National People’s Congress
Labour Party
Roman Empire
Guangdong Province
COMMON NOUNS
2.4
Capitalize a common noun when it is part of a proper noun; do not capitalize when it
is used alone in place of the full name.
Harvard University
Victoria Park
Hang Seng Bank
but:
the university
the park
the bank
Note government and administration are lower case as in:
Hong Kong government
Bush administration
EXCEPTION:
2.5
Central People’s Government
Do not capitalize movements or concepts except for the proper names present.
the theory of relativity
democracy movement
the periodic table
2.6
the government
the administration
Newton’s first law of motion
Euclidean geometry
Down’s syndrome
Capitalize formal titles of acts, laws and treaties, but do not capitalize their short
forms.
10
Criminal Law Act
Companies Ordinance
Treaty of Nanjing
but:
the act
the ordinance
the treaty
TITLES
2.7
General rule: Civil, military, religious and professional titles are capitalized when
they precede personal names and are used as part of the name.
Professor Wang
Dr. Smith
2.8
but:
the professor
the doctor
Use lower case for senior company officials, high-ranking officials and dignitaries,
unless the titles precede personal names.
the president (of the United States)
but: President Bush
the secretary general (of the UN)
the pope
the chief executive
the queen
the marketing director
the senator
the attorney general
2.9
Do not capitalize former, ex-, or -elect when used with titles.
President-elect Bush
the late Emperor Hirohito
ex-Prime Minister Wilson
NAMES OF ORGANIZATIONS
2.10
Capitalize the names of international and national organizations and their short
forms.
the Catholic Church
the House of Commons
the British Commonwealth
the Foreign Ministry
2.11
SHORT: the Church
the House
the Commonwealth
the Ministry
Capitalize the names of local organizations but not their short forms.
the Legislative Council
Labour Department (in Hong Kong)
but:
the council
the department
NAMES OF PLACES
2.12
Capitalize the names of places but not their short forms.
Pacific Ocean
Heathrow Airport
but:
11
the ocean
the airport
2.13
Some short forms are capitalized because they are clearly associated with specific
places.
the Continent (Europe)
the Mainland (China)
the Hill (Capitol Hill)
the West Bank
Note that the word “mainland” is lower case when used as an adjective, for example,
mainland companies, mainland officials.
2.14
Capitalize north, south, east, west and derivative words when they designate definite
places, or when they form part of a proper name.
the South Pole
the Far East
Northern Ireland
Do not capitalize these words when they merely indicate direction or general
location.
the west coast of Canada
2.15
Capitalize northern, southern, eastern and western when these words pertain to the
cultural and social activities of people. Do not capitalize when they refer to the
location, geography or climate of the region.
Western civilization
Southern hospitality
2.16
in the south of France
but:
westerly winds
southern China
Capitalize the names of celestial bodies (Venus, Mars, Polaris, the Milky Way).
However, do not capitalize sun, moon and earth unless they are used in connection
with the names of other planets or stars.
TIME
2.17
Capitalize special days and holidays.
Mother’s Day
New Year’s Eve
Good Friday
2.18
Do not capitalize seasons, decades (the seventies, or the preferred form the 1970s,
not 1970’s) or centuries.
2.19
Capitalize the names of cultural periods.
the Enlightenment
the Age of Reason
the Stone Age
the Renaissance
the Christian Era
the Dark Ages
However, contemporary references are not usually capitalized.
the space age
the atomic age
the computer age
Other time periods, including geological and political ones, are not capitalized
12
except for proper nouns.
the Victorian era
Mesozoic era
romantic period
Upper Jurassic period
Qing dynasty
HEADINGS
2.20
Capitalize the first letter of all major words in a title. Conjunctions, articles and
prepositions are not capitalized unless they begin the heading.
2.21
Capitalize the first word following a colon or dash in a heading.
2.22
In a heading, capitalize all the elements of a hyphenated word except articles,
prepositions and conjunctions.
Self-Confidence
Mid-Autumn
Up-to-Date
NOUNS WITH NUMBERS
2.23
Capitalize a noun followed by a number.
Appendix 1
Chart 2.3
Exhibit 3
Model C123
Section 6
Article 2
Class 6
Figure 3.1
Part Four
Table 8.9
Book III
Diagram 7
Illustration 9
Plate IX
Unit 20
Chapter 4
Exercise 8
Lesson 20
Room 23
Volume I
EXCEPTION: Do not capitalize the nouns line, note, page, paragraph, size and
verse. (Also, when referring to the parts of a book, preface, foreword and conclusion
are in lower case.)
13
3. NUMBERS AND UNITS
BASIC RULES
3.1 For scientific and technical work:

Spell out all numbers from 1 to 10; use figures for numbers above 10. This applies
to both exact and approximate numbers.

Express percentages with the % symbol: 38% (no space between number and
symbol).

Use commas in numbers of four digits or more (except page numbers and years),
e.g. 1,500 rather than 1500.
3.2 For non-technical work of a more literary nature:

Spell out all numbers from 1 to 100, and all round numbers above 100 that require
no more than two words (such as “fifty-one thousand”, which are two words).

For percentages, spell out: six percent, 6.5 percent, 25 percent (“percent” one
word).

Use commas in numbers of four digits or more (except page numbers and years),
e.g. 1,500 rather than 1500.
3.3 For quick comprehension, express numbers in the millions or higher as:
23 million (instead of 23,000,000)
3.2 billion
Avoid using metric style abbreviations which are not widely known.
14 k
4.8 M
(use 14,000 instead)
(use 4.8 million instead)
3.4 Express related numbers the same way.
The three students read 9 newspapers, 12 books and 6 magazines in five days.
3.5
Do not begin a sentence with a number.
One hundred and twenty-three passengers were injured in the accident.
(not: 123 passengers were . . .)
The year 2005 was a profitable one for our company.
(not: 2005 was a profitable year . . .)
3.6
For decimal numbers less than one, add a zero before the decimal point:
0.62
not: .62.
BUT: For probability values, where the quantity never equals 1.00, no zero is used.
For example:
p < .06
14
3.7
Ordinal numbers and fractions are usually spelt out unless use of numerals makes the
information easier to understand.
fifth
8 ½- by 12-inch
101st birthday
3.8
sixteenth
one-third of the population
the twentieth century
When a fraction is spelt out, connect the numerator and the denominator with a
hyphen.
three-eighths
3.9
three-quarters
When time and measurements are used in possessive expressions, add the
apostrophe.
five years’ imprisonment
a dollar’s worth
a six months’ leave (OR: a six-month leave)
3.10
When a number is included in a compound adjective, use a hyphen.
twentieth-century literature
a thirty-minute drive
twenty-four-year-old man (OR: 24-year-old man)
NUMBERS IN A SEQUENCE
3.11
When listing page numbers (or section numbers) in a continuous sequence, connect
them with an en rule, not hyphen.
71–72
3.12
1496–1504
When listing years, keep the last two digits.
2007–12
3.13
101–8
1997–2006
Link two numbers by using to; avoid using the en rule or hyphen.
There are 30 to 40 people present.
(not: 30–40)
The en rule or hyphen must not be used when the sequence is introduced by the word
from or between.
from 25 to 40 years of age
3.14
(not: from 25–40)
If a symbol (such as %) is used in a range of numbers, the symbol should be repeated
with each number. If the full word is used, it is given only with the last number.
25%–40%
$10–$15
but: twenty-five to forty percent
ten to fifteen dollars
15
3mx4m
discounts of 5%, 10% or 15%
three by four metres
discounts of five, ten or fifteen percent
TIME
3.15
For date, if the text is in British English, the preferred style is 1 July 1997.
For American English, the style is July 1, 1997.
3.16
Use only figures with a.m. or p.m. The abbreviations a.m. and p.m. are lower case
with no word space. Separate hour and minute with a colon.
6 a.m.
3.17
9:20 p.m.
Centuries should be spelt out.
the twenty-first century (not: 21st century)
3.18
Decades are expressed in various ways.
the 1980s
the mid-1980s
3.19
the nineteen-eighties
the mid-eighties
the eighties
The decision to adopt the AD (Anno Domini)/BC (Before Christ) notation or the CE
(Common Era)/BCE (Before Common Era) notation is up to individual authors.
Note that the abbreviation “AD” is place before the year: AD 313.
The other three abbreviations are placed after the year: 313 CE, 221 BCE, 221 BC.
METRIC UNITS
3.20
Only those unit symbols which are named after scientists are capitalized.
N (newton)
Pa (pascal)
W (watt)
3.21
Unit symbols not named after scientists are in lower case. The only exception is the
capital “L” for litre, which is accepted in many countries.
Do not confuse units with the prefixes that are capitalized—M (mega), G (giga),
etc.—as in MW (megawatt).
3.22
Symbols are written without dots and remain unaltered in the plural.
km (for kilometre and kilometres)
not:
km. or kms
3.23
Unit names are spelt out in lower-case letters, e.g. metre, newton, joule, hertz. The
only exception is the temperature unit: degree Celsius or degree Fahrenheit.
3.24
In technical writing, physical quantities are shown by means of a number and a unit
symbol.
16
7 cm
not:
7 centimetres or seven cm
However, if it is expected that the symbol may be unknown to the reader, the name
of the unit may be included in parentheses.
25 TBq (terabecquerels)
In non-technical work, spell out the number and unit if the combination is not more
than two words.
Twenty-five metres (two words here)
(but: 125 metres, not: one hundred twenty-five metres)
3.25
Give a space between the number and the unit symbol, except that there is no space
in front of °C and %.
100°C
3.26
75%
100 °C
not:
75 %
Quantity symbols are always printed in italics.
m (mass)
F (force)
t (time)
p (pressure)
l (length)
T (torque)
Unit symbol must not be italicized, even if they occur in a paragraph that is
italicized.
3.27
No more than one unit should be used to designate a measurement.
6.345 m
3.28
not: 6 m 34 cm 5 mm
When names of compound units are spelt out, multiplication is indicated simply by a
space (not a hyphen), and division is shown by the word per (not the / sign).
N.m newton metre
m/s metre per second
3.29
not:
Newton-metre
metre/second
Link a numeral and a unit with a hyphen to form a compound adjective.
100-mm nail
200-mL flask
twelve-volt battery
sixty-minute timer
The hyphen must be used if its absence would cause ambiguity.
two 1-L flasks
not:
17
two 1 L flask, or 2 1 L flask
4.
COMPOUND WORDS
COMPOUND NOUNS
4.1
Compound nouns follow no regular pattern: some solid, some spaced, and some
hyphenated. Always check the dictionary if uncertain.
airmail
trademark
lighthouse
air-conditioner
trade name
light bulb
air time
trade-off
light-year
Solid or hyphenated nouns should be distinguished from verb phrases, which are
usually separate.
NOUN
a breakdown
a get-together
a follow-up
make-up
4.2
VERB PHRASE
to break down
to get together
to follow up
to make up
Hyphenate a compound noun that lacks a noun as one of its elements.
know-how
look-alike
4.3
make-believe
give-and-take
go-ahead
merry-go-round
Compound nouns formed from a noun and a gerund, from two nouns, or from a noun
and an adjective are spelt as two words.
data processing
master builder
decision making
attorney general
problem solving
Compound nouns should be distinguished from adjectives, which are usually
hyphenated.
problem-solving skills
4.4
decision-making process
Compound nouns that start with a single letter are usually hyphenated.
U-turn
X-ray
H-bomb
T-shirt
COMPOUND VERBS
4.5
Compound verbs can be hyphenated or solid. Consult a dictionary if there is
inconsistency. Here are some examples:
to baby-sit
to downgrade
to dry-clean
to sidetrack
18
to rubber-stamp
to highlight
Do not hyphenate verb-adverb combinations such as slow down, tie in.
4.6
A compound verb ending in -ing and followed by an object may be hyphenated, but
the gerund (noun ending in -ing) derived from the hyphenated compound verb does
not require a hyphen.
She only has time for spot checking. [gerund]
but: In spot-checking the data, she found some errors.
COMPOUND ADJECTIVES
4.7
A compound adjective consists of two or more words that function as a unit, and is
derived from an adjective phrase or clause.
ADJ PHRASE/CLAUSE
an actor who is well known
a building ten storeys high
a boy who speaks quietly
a meeting held at a high level
COMPOUND ADJ
a well-known actor
a ten-storey building
a quiet-spoken boy
a high-level meeting
Compound adjectives are generally hyphenated if they precede the noun.
4.8
An adjective + noun combination is usually hyphenated if it precedes the noun.
red-carpet treatment
a closed-door discussion
the finest-quality paper
a full-time job
a long-term plan
a low-risk investment
However, some combinations in this category are now well-established as solid (e.g.,
a freshwater pond), or separate.
4.9
A number of adjective + noun combinations, often referring to well-known concepts
or institutions (unlike “general” ideas like short-term), are commonly accepted as
separate words.
real estate agent
nuclear energy generator
4.10
public relations exercise
civil service exam
Hyphenate a compound with number or letter if it precedes the noun.
a one-way street
my number-one priority
twenty-odd years ago
a 50-dollar fee
a 3-to-1 ratio
forty-plus years old
a 5-cm-thick panel
a first-rate job
A hyphenated compound adjective should be distinguished from an unhyphenated
possessive.
a two-week leave
OR
19
a two weeks’ leave
(not: a two-weeks’ leave)
4.11
Hyphenate a noun-noun combination if it involves two words of equal rank.
the price-earnings ratio
input-output procedures
an air-sea search
labour-management relations
However, some noun-noun combinations are unhyphenated.
mass production method
money market funds
4.12
life insurance policy
income tax evasion
Do not hyphenate the elements in a proper name used as an adjective.
a Supreme Court ruling
a Nathan Road location
However, when two or more distinct proper names are combined to form a
one-thought modifier, insert a hyphen.
the London-Paris flight
4.13
a Malay-Singapore restaurant
Noun + adjective combinations are usually hyphenated before or after the noun.
ice-cold
paper-thin
top-down
sky-high
colour-blind
duty-free
year-round
cost-effective
user-friendly
However, the following words are now commonly spelt solid.
-proof
-worthy
-wide
-sick
4.14
waterproof, foolproof
newsworthy, trustworthy
worldwide, nationwide
homesick, seasick
Noun + participle combinations are usually hyphenated before or after the noun.
eye-catching
square-shaped
4.15
hair-raising
custom-made
Adjective + participle combinations are usually hyphenated before or after the noun.
high-ranking
soft-spoken
BUT:
4.16
law-abiding
market-tested
strange-looking
friendly-looking
half-baked
easygoing
Adjective + noun + ed combinations are usually hyphenated before the noun.
quick-tempered
good-natured
middle-aged
short-sighted
20
highest-priced
old-fashioned
4.17
Do not hyphenate a compound adjective containing an “-ly” adverb.
a newly created position
a privately owned company
NOTE: friendly-looking (friendly is an adjective)
4.18
The following adverb + participle compounds are usually hyphenated.
much-needed
clear-cut
BUT:
4.19
well-behaved
fastest-moving
ongoing, widespread
Do not hyphenate adverb + adjective combinations.
a rather annoying experience
a not too interesting book
4.20
feeling extremely tired
the most exciting news
Hyphenate participle + adverb combinations preceding the noun but not when they
occur elsewhere in the sentence.
BEFORE NOUN
filled-in forms
worn-out equipment
unheard-of bargains
4.21
ever-changing
above-mentioned
ELSEWHERE IN SENTENCE
The forms should be filled in.
The equipment was worn out.
The bargains were unheard of.
Do not hyphenate independent adjectives preceding the noun.
a long hot summer
a bluish green dress
However, in some cases two adjectives (which may be connected by and) are
hyphenated because they function as one-thought modifiers.
a hard-and-fast rule
a true-false test
4.22
Hyphenate phrasal compounds if they precede the noun but not when they occur
elsewhere in the sentence.
BEFORE NOUN
up-to-date figures
on-the-job training
an in-depth analysis
a life-and-death matter
4.23
an up-and-coming politician
a red-hot oven
ELSEWHERE IN SENTENCE
These figures are up to date.
I got my training on the job.
He analysed the topic in depth.
It is a matter of life and death.
When a series of hyphenated adjectives has a common basic element, insert a
“suspending” hyphen after each of the incomplete adjectives.
21
long- and short-term plans
a 10- to 12-hour trip
PREFIXES AND SUFFIXES
4.24
In general, do not hyphenate a prefix or suffix. Check the dictionary if there is
inconsistency.
decentralize
changeable
retroactive
handsome
biweekly
uppermost
When self or quasi is used as a prefix, insert a hyphen.
quasi-public
4.25
Use a hyphen when a prefix ending in a, e, i or o is linked to a base word beginning
with the same letter.
ultra-active
semi-independent
4.26
self-evident
self-study
(In selfish or selfless, self is a base word.)
anti-inflationary
de-emphasize
re-elect
co-operate
Some words with the prefix re (meaning “again”) are hyphenated to avoid confusion
with other words of the same spelling but a different meaning.
to re-collect the papers
to re-cover a sofa
to re-form the class
to recollect the past
to recover from shock
to reform a sinner
22