Telegraph style book: Aa
a/an: If the H is pronounced, use a: a hotel, a historian; if not, use an: an hour, an heir
Aborigine: Note the cap A. Aboriginal should also be capped when referring to native Australian people
abdicate, abnegate and abrogate: All have different meanings. Abdicate = renounce high responsibilities; abnegate = deny oneself or others something; abrogate = abolish by official proclamation
accents: Use on foreign proper names and words in regular English usage (café, pâté). Avoid in headlines and on capital letters
Achilles heel, Achilles tendon: No apostrophe
acronym: If pronounced as a word (e.g. Nasa), cap first letter only. If said as letters (e.g. NHS, CPS), use upper case
Act (law): Takes a capital letter at every mention
actress: The preferred term for a female actor
AD: Comes before the year (AD 1066) and after centuries (fourth century AD). Do not use CE
Addenbrooke's hospital
adrenalin: No 'e' on the end
advertisement: Should be shortened to advert, not ad
adviser but advisory
Afrikaner: The people and culture
Afrikaans: The language
ageing/ageist: Not aging/agist
AI: No full points; no need to spell it out as AI (artificial intelligence)
Aids: Initial cap only. Since it is a condition rather than a disease, write 'died of an Aids-related condition', not 'died of Aids'
air strike, air base: Not one word
A-level: Lower case 'l'
alibi: Is not an excuse; it means proof of being elsewhere
allelulia: Hallelujah is preferred
al-Qaeda
alright: Is not correct; use all right
alsatian/Alsatian: Lower case for dogs; capital for people
alternate: As an adjective means 'every other'; e.g. 'he had maths on alternate days'
alternatives: There can only ever be two
alternative reality: Not alternate reality
among: Used when there is more than person 'The money was shared among the team' see between
ancestor: An earlier generation of a family descendant: The opposite of ancestor
and/or: Avoid, rewrite instead 'You may bring your passport, your driving licence or both'
St Andrews University
annex: Verb annexe: Noun
anti-Semitism
any more/anymore: We do not want any more errors... we will not put up with this anymore
apostrophe: Used to indicate the omission of letters and in plural forms of lowercase letters (e.g. dotting the i's)
apparatchik
apps: No need to describe as 'mobile phone apps'. 'Applications' is too formal
archaeology
Argentina: Argentine for the citizen and adjective, not Argentinian
Argyle: Knitwear
Argyll: The county
Armed Forces: Use upper case if referring to British forces
artefact: Not artifact
Ascot: The town and racecourse Royal Ascot: The racing event attended by the Royal family
Asperger's syndrome
assume/presume: Assume = to take for granted; presume = to suppose based on probability
assure/insure: Assure for lives, insure for property
at a glance: No hyphens
Atacms: Acronym of Army Tactical Missile System (initial cap only)
ATM: Banned American term. Use cash machine
Attorney General: No hyphen
Auschwitz: Nazi death camp within modern-day Poland. Do not call it 'a Polish death camp'
Australian Labor Party: No 'u' in Labor
autarchy: Absolute sovereignty
autarky: Self-sufficiency
author: A noun. Avoid use as a verb
Ayatollah Khomenei (dead), Ayatollah Khamenei (living)
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