Basics of AP style

Sep 1st, 2008 | By John Roach | Category: Style

Here is a brief overview of some of the guiding principles of AP style, which is widely used in journalism and public relations. It is not intended to be exhaustive: the stylebook is over 400 pages long and contains many exceptions. At the end of the article are links to sites with more information, but if you are involved with newspapers in any way, you should definitely pick up a copy of the AP stylebook and memorize it front to back.

Punctuation

The AP’s philosophy is that punctuation is meant to ease understanding: consequently, their style uses fewer punctuation marks that other styles might.

  • AP does not use the Oxford comma except in situations in which it would be unavoidable.
  • Hyphens are not used with prefixes unless
    1. The prefix ends with a vowel and the base word begins with the same vowel
    2. The base is a proper noun
    3. Omitting a prefix would double or triple a consonant in an ugly fashion (shelllike)
  • Use hyphens to join compound adjectives (pickled-fish seller.)
  • Don’t use a hyphen to join an adverb ending in -ly to an adjective (The widely read book.)
  • AP makes great use of the em dash.
  • AP omits the en dash.
  • When forming plurals
    • for a plural noun ending in “s,” add just an apostrophe.
    • For singular nouns ending in an “s,” add “’s” (Apostrophe + s).
    • For singular proper nouns ending in ’s’, add just an apostrophe.

Abbreviations and Acronyms

  • As much as possible, avoid acronyms.
  • Even if the acronym is well understood, such as FBI, you may need to spell it out the first time it appears
  • Don’t give the acronym immediately after the first reference. Wait until the second time it is used.
  • Generally, omit periods in acronyms, unless the acronym would spell an unintended word.
  • Use periods in most two-letter acronyms.
  • If the acronym is longer than six letters, only capitalize the first letter.
  • Generally speaking, use abbreviations before someone’s name, and spell them out after.
  • B.C., A.D., a.m., p.m., and No. cannot be used as abbreviations without a numeral.
  • States do not use postal abbreviations — AP has their own set of abbreviations for them. In fact, eight states aren’t abbreviated at all.
  • St., Ave, and Blvd are abbreviated when used with a numbered address.

Numbers

  • Spell out numbers nine and below, except in ages and dimensions.
  • Don’t begin a sentence with a numeral. You can spell it out, though.
  • Don’t use full numbers above six digits, unless the exact number is central to the point. (Ex. 10,000, $10M)

Of course, there is much more to know to be fully proficient in AP style. To learn more, consult the links below and read the stylebook. If you think you’re already well versed in the style, take some AP tests at Newsroom101.com

For more information

This article was written by John Roach http://prowritingtips.com

John is a writer and copy editor. You can follow him on twitter at @johnwroachiii. To see more posts click here

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