Q. How do I punctuate the end of a specimen sentence, quoted from a style guide, contained within a sentence in which it is followed by an independent clause? For example:
Chicago illustrates the use of the period (6.12) with the sentence “Wait here.” but that doesn’t answer all my questions.
I feel I need to keep the period before the close quote to retain the integrity and purpose of the quoted sentence, but CMOS calls for a comma between independent clauses, and my ear calls for one as well. The period also violates the common practice of replacing a period by a comma to end a quote that doesn’t end a sentence. However, I can’t imagine where you would put a comma. How would you handle this?
A. You are right that it’s awkward to have a period in the middle of a sentence. You simply mustn’t do it! Rewrite the sentence so as to avoid the issue:
Chicago illustrates the use of the period (6.12) with the sentence “Wait here.” But that doesn’t answer all my questions.
Another option is to set off the example typographically so it doesn’t become part of the syntax of your sentence:
Chicago illustrates the use of the period (6.12) with the example {Wait here.}, but that doesn’t answer all my questions.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. Grüezi. How do I handle cf. in combination with e.g. in a citation? Combining the usual rules yields (cf., e.g., XYZ 2014). However, that looks very clumsy to me. Therefore I have two distinct propositions which I’d be very grateful to be verified: (A) The CMoS seems to support eg., so: “(cf. eg. XYZ 2014)”? (B) From unofficial sources, I find cfeg., therefore “(cfeg. XYZ 2014)”?
A. You got it right the first time: (cf., e.g., XYZ 2014). Clear and correct.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. Is it OK to greet someone with “Morning!” or is it “’Morning!”? I’d think that it’s common understanding that you’re saying “Good morning” and not just shouting the time of day at someone.
A. An apostrophe means that letters are missing from a word, not that a word is missing from a phrase. Since “Good morning” is a two-word phrase, there is no reason to use an apostrophe in front of “Morning.” I agree that the phrase is easy to understand in its short form. In a context where it could be confused with shouting the time of day at someone (I like your way of putting it), it would be better to include “Good.”
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. When you write about a GIF in a text, can you just refer to it as GIF on first reference or do you have to write “graphic interchange format (GIF)”? I don’t think the long version is actually helpful; more people know it as GIF. And I’d be using it as a noun.
A. You never have to do anything that isn’t helpful. If a style guide says you do, you need a better guide.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. What is the proper way of writing in full the initialism OIC (which stands for Officer-In-Charge)?
A. Chicago style often lowercases where other style guides would use caps, so we would write it as officer in charge (OIC).
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. I’m copyediting some storyboards for kiosk displays in a state park and in the description of a historical site, there’s reference to “2,500 BP.” I know what that means (now that I’ve looked it up), but why not just say “ago”? Should I assume the audience for these displays will know “BP,” or may I suggest simply saying “ago”? (I thought, “British Petroleum,” for Pete’s sake.)
A. It’s a good idea to change it, since visitors to state parks include many people who would have no idea what BP means. But don’t get your hopes up: it’s likely that the state has a style guide and that all its signs conform to that style.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. I am writing a Q&A document with 75 questions and answers. Can I abbreviate common phrases (e.g., mental health [MH]) throughout the document, or should each Q&A be treated as independent with no abbreviations in the document?
A. You are in the best position to decide this. Think about whether readers will read all the Q&As straight through or merely browse. Think about whether they are likely to know what an abbreviation means if they click on a question that doesn’t explain it. Make your decision based on how much help most of your readers are likely to need. If it’s feasible for a list of abbreviations to accompany the document, that’s sometimes a good solution.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. Dear CMOS, I’ve often encountered “business process outsourcing” abbreviated to BPO whether it’s used as a noun or as an adjective. To my ear, the abbreviation is fine as an adjective but sounds awkward when used and read as a noun, in which case I use the full form. For example, “The company provides IT support and BPO services”—fine. “The company provides services in IT support and business process outsourcing”—fine. “The company provides services in IT support and BPO”—awkward. Is it just me, or does this preference have a sound grammatical basis?
A. It’s just you. Outsourcing is a noun, so there’s nothing wrong with using the initialism as a noun. If your readers are used to the abbreviation, then by spelling it out you are probably just slowing them down.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. This is a question of some debate in my organization: which way should the following document (and other similar documents) be abbreviated? Federal Information Security Management Act of 2002 (FISMA) or Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA) of 2002?
A. If FISMA refers only to the act of 2002, and no other FISM acts were created in other years, then the first version is correct, although somewhat ambiguous. Otherwise, the second version is correct.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. CMOS recommends spelling out terms on first mention in each chapter. I’m considering spelling out my commission’s name on first mention in each section and subsection. Do you think that’s overkill? I’m thinking about spelling it out in sections that stand out, such as text boxes or highlighted bullets, because I think the reader would be better served to see the whole name in such isolated cases. We have about a hundred mentions of this long name, so I do want to abbreviate as much as possible.
A. You are smart to consider whether this might be overkill. The Chicago guideline is to spell out a name at the first mention in each chapter because most scholarly books have long chapters, and such a name might appear only once or twice in a book, with a lot of pages in between. Readers will appreciate being reminded. However, if your sections are short, the long name appears a hundred times, and you demand that the name appear in full at every first mention—even if it was spelled out in the section just before—I doubt that readers will find it helpful. In fact, they might wonder if the writer thinks they’re witless. The idea is to provide the full name whenever you think readers need a reminder. If you think some readers will skim through just looking at bullet points and text boxes, spell it out there as well, if there is room.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]