The Street City Church
9 Hania Street
PO Box 6218, Marion Square,
Wellington
Tel +64 4 385 7315
Fax +64 4 385 7309
Email office@thestreet.org.nz
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Spelling
Herein lies a growing list of words with troublesome spellings. Please refer to this guide whenever you’re not sure. When all else fails, follow the Collins Dictionary.
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
A
affect (v.; also n., psychology term. Also see effect)
alumnae rarely used (See ALUMNI section.)
alumni most commonly used (See ALUMNI section.)
alumna
alumnus
analyze not analyse
anoint
appendix, appendices
Anglican bishops are consecrated, Roman Catholic bishops ordained.
artefact
audiocassette
audiotape
audiovisual
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B
bachelor’s degree not capitalised
bachelor’s degrees not “bachelors’ degrees”, and not capitalized
Bible is always cap and roman, but biblical is l/c. Books of the Bible also caps and roman, eg, Book of Job, as is the Koran, the Talmud.
biased
board or board of governors in subsequent references (See CAPITALISATION section.)
braille (for the blind)
brainstorming
brainstorm
BSc
buoy
C
carry forward when used as a verb, as in “I will carry forward this item to the next
meeting.”
carryforward when used as a noun, as in “Place this carryforward in column three.”
chair a verb, as in “she will chair the meeting”
Chair a noun, when referring to a title (See CAPITALISATION section.)
chalkboard
checklist
child care (n.)
childcare centre (adj.)
childcare worker (n.)
child-centred
churchgoer (one word).
cirrhosis
cocurricular
college in subsequent references or general use (See CAPITALISATION section.)
colour
coloration
compatible
confectionery
connoisseur
consensus
convener
cooperate
coordinate
counsellor
curricula (n., pl.)
curricular (adj.)
curriculum
D
Dean of Arts John Bourstin in first reference
dean in subsequent references (See CAPITALISATION section.)
decision making (n.)
decision-making process
deductible
defence not defense
delicatessen
deterrent
dilemma
disappoint
DLitt Doctor of Letters
doctoral degree not capitalized
doctorate not capitalized
E
effect (n. & v.t.) change caused by an action or cause, a result (Should not be confused with affect which is a verb, has more meansings and is more common, but which does not exist as a noun. Effected the cure means ‘brought about the cure; cured’, but affected the cure means ‘had an effect on a cure’ )
e.g. meaning “for example”. Use a comma before the abbreviation but not after.
emeritus (masc.) (See EMERITUS section.)
English upper case (See ACADEMIC SUBJECTS section.)
enrol
enrole (drama term)
enroled (adopted a role in drama)
enrolled
enrolling
enrolment
ensure not insure (except when referring to insurance)
etc. meaning “and so on” Do not use a comma before the abbreviation.
evangelical(s) keep l/c in general church contexts except when part of an official title such as the Evangelical Alliance
extracurricular (adj.)
F
faculty as in a group of professors, the professoriate
Faculty as in an academic division, the Faculty of Pure and Applied Science (See CAPITALISATION section.)
favour
Fellow When referring to an academic Fellow, a Fellow of the Royal Society etc. (See CAPITALISATION section.)
first aid
first aider
first-aid kit
first-hand (adj. & adv.)
focused
focusing
fulfil
fulfilled
full time as an adverb, e.g. She works here full time. (modifies a verb or sentence)
full-time as an adjective, e.g. He is a full-time student. (modifies a noun)
fundraiser
fundraising
G
Governor General no hyphen, upper case only when it precedes name
governor general lower case in subsequent references and in general use without a name
H
haemorrhage means heavy and potentially dangerous bleeding, not simply bleeding. Beware of misuse in metaphor
half-time in a football match etc; the half time in business context (but half-time results)
halfway (no hyphen), but half-hearted
homepage
honoris causa put in italics, indicating Latin words (See ITALICS section.)
hygiene
hypocrisy
I
i.e. meaning “that is to say”
Do not use a comma after the abbreviation.
in regard to not ‘in regards to’
Inuit plural noun and adjective
Inuk singular noun and adjective
J
Judgement Day, Day or Judgement, Last Judgement (when God will judge all mankind)
K
khaki
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L
lead noun as in “a pencil lead”
lead verb, present tense of “to lead”
led verb, past tense of “to lead”
library in general terms, or in subsequent reference
Library as in the Scott Library, capitalize on first reference with full name
licence noun (as in driver’s licence, fishing licence)
license verb (to grant a permit to, to authorize the use of, as in, he is licensed as a chiropractor, the restaurant is licensed to serve alcohol)
Lieutenant-Governor with hyphen, upper case only when it precedes a name
literature not a synonym for English (there are many different types of literature)
M
master’s degree not capitalised
master’s degrees not “masters’ degrees”, and not capitalized
mathematics (subject; not maths)
media (usage could be construed as singular or plural)
Ms no period — It is not an abbreviation for anything.
N
numbers write one through nine as words, depict 10 and up as figures (See NUMBERS section.)
O
organisation (not -ization)
overrule
overuse
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P
part time as an adverb, e.g. She works here part time. (modifies a verb or sentence) part-timeas an adjective, e.g. He is a part-time student. (modifies a noun)
PhD no periods, stands for doctor of philosophy
principal noun or adjective, meaning first in rank or importance, as in the principal of Wellington College, the principal investigator in the research project or the principal objective of the union
Principal upper case only when followed by a name, as in Wellington College Principal Joe Brown (See CAPITALISATION section.)
principle noun, meaning fundamental truth or law, as in the moral principle or she has no principles
privilege
programme not program
Q
questionnaire
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R
restaurateur note the absence of an “n”
rewrite
rhythm
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S
T
theatre not theater (unless part of a proper name, esp. in the US)
tonne metric measure
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U
undergraduate
University when referring to a specific University like Massey or Vic
university referring to all others, or to universities in general (See CAPITALIZATION sections.)
up to date (used as predicate)
up-to-date (adj. preceding n.)
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V
vs. use short form only in sports schedules and law cases
Vice-President capitalise only when it precedes a name, as in Vice-President University Advancement Andrew Bourne
vice-president lower case in all subsequent references (See CAPITALISATION section.)
vigorous
vigour
W
well-known (adj.); well known (pred.)
word processing (noun); word processing (adj.)
X
Y
Yom Kippur
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