Author Archives: Team Stylebot

💌 Please respond … please?
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You can use the acronym "RSVP" (no periods) for all references to the commonly used reply request: "The wedding invites asked guests to RSVP by January 30." Though you don't need to include it in your copy, if you care to know, "RSVP" is short for the French phrase répondez s'il vous plaît.
"Precede" and "proceed" have different meanings. "Precede" means to come before: "A stunned moment of silence preceded the thunderous applause." "Proceed" means to begin or continue an action: "They wanted to double-check the instructions before proceeding with the setup."

Shall we proceed?
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"Flesh out" and "flush out" have different meanings. "Flesh out" means to provide more detail: "They spent the evening fleshing out a plan to address the problem." "Flush out" means to bring something to light or to force it out of hiding: "The sting operation was designed to flush out money launderers."

Let’s flesh it out
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Terms such as "cyberspace," "cyberattack" and "cybersecurity" are not hyphenated. Sometimes "cyber" is a separate modifier, such as with "cyber shopping." Use "Cyber Monday" to refer to the Monday after Thanksgiving.

😬 What we really mean when we say “cyber”
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Use two words for "scuba diving" and "scuba diver": "After years of being afraid of the water, they finally conquered the fear by going scuba diving." Fun fact: "Scuba" is an acronym for "self-contained underwater breathing apparatus."

S.C.U.B.A. S.N.A.F.U.
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Do not capitalize "daylight saving time": "She forgot that clocks would 'spring forward' for daylight saving time." Note that it's "saving," not "savings."

Where to put the “S”
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"Spook" can mean "ghost" or "spy," but it's also been used as a racist slur for Black people. Consider context and alternatives before using it. For example, you can use "eerie" or "scary" instead of "spooky."

Should you use “spooky” this season?
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To know which version of a pronoun to use in a sentence ("I" vs. "me," for example), you need to determine whether the noun it is replacing is the subject of the sentence or an object in it. Subjects carry out the verb of a sentence, while objects receive the action of the verb. Subject pronouns are I, she, he, they, we and who; object pronouns are me, her, him, them, us and whom. "You" is both an object and subject pronoun. In the sentence, "Vivian gave Grayson the toy," Vivian is the subject, while Grayson is the object of "gave." In a sentence such as, "Kat and I are going," using "I" is correct. But it's not correct in a construction such as, "That works for Kat and I," because "that" is the subject and "Kat and I" are objects. If you're still unsure, try this trick when dealing with multiple objects: Take out the other objects and use only the pronoun; for example, you wouldn't say, "That works for I." So the correct sentence would be: "That works for Kat and me."

Grammar basics: Putting me first
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The terms "Hispanic" and "Latino/Latina/Latinx/Latine" are not always interchangeable. "Hispanic" refers to people who come from or whose ancestors come from a Spanish-speaking country, while "Latino" refers to people from Latin America. "Latino/Latina/Latinx/Latine" is often the preferred term, but ask for a person's preference. It's OK to use "Latinx" or "Latine" without further explanation to refer to a mixed-gender group or if someone identifies that way. "Latine" can be more suitable for Spanish pronunciation.

Another reminder about labels
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Capitalize "Indigenous" when referring to people: "She advocated for the rights of Indigenous peoples in her speech." Avoid references to Indigenous peoples that imply they belong to a state or country, so use a phrase such as "Indigenous people of" instead of a possessive. However, always opt for specifying a tribe when possible: "Members of the Chumash tribe spoke in favor of the measure."

Indigenous Peoples’ Day
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