View source for Help:Introduction to the Manual of Style/5

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The MoS contains extensive guidelines on all manner of stylistic points. Below are a sample of the sorts of things you can search for advice on.

===Language===
{{Shortcut-style further links|MOS:ENGVAR|MOS:PERSON|MOS:YOU|MOS:NOTE}}
The English Wikipedia prefers no major national variety of the language over any other. These varieties (e.g. [[US English]], [[British English]]) differ in vocabulary (''soccer'' vs. ''football''), spelling (''center'' vs. ''centre''), and occasionally grammar. For consistency, only one variety should be used in a given article.

Avoid words like ''I'', ''we'', and ''you'', except in quotations and names of works.

Avoid phrases like {{!xt|note that}} and {{!xt|remember that}} (which assume "you" for the reader); and avoid such expressions as {{!xt|of course}}, {{!xt|in fact}}, and {{!xt|obviously}}.

=== Dates and numbers ===
{{Shortcut-style further links|MOS:RECENTLY|MOS:NUMBERSIGN|MOS:DIGITS|MOS:DATEFORMAT|MOS:ERA|MOS:NUMERAL}}
Avoid phrases that will go out of date with time (e.g. {{!xt|recently}}).

Do not write {{!xt|#1}}; {{xt|number&nbsp;one}} works instead. Comic books are an exception.

Write {{xt|12,000}} for twelve thousand, not {{!xt|12.000}}; conversely, decimal points are thus: {{xt|3.14}}, not {{!xt|3,14}}.

Both {{xt|10&nbsp;June 1921}} and {{xt|June&nbsp;10, 1921,}} are correct, but should be consistent within an article. A comma is not used if only the month is given, such as {{xt|June 1921}}. Avoid inserting "the year" before a year, and avoid "of" in items such as "April of 2008".

{{xt|400&nbsp;AD}} and {{xt|400&nbsp;BC}} are correct, but so are {{xt|400&nbsp;CE}} and {{xt|400&nbsp;BCE}}. Use one style consistently in an article.

Use {{xt|one, two, three,&nbsp;..., eight, nine}} in normal article text, not {{!xt|1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9}} (although there are many exceptional circumstances; some other numbers may also be written as words).

===Capital letters===
{{Shortcut-style further links|WP:MOS#Capital letters}}
Seasons (e.g. {{xt|winter}}) and plant/animal names (e.g. {{xt|bald eagle}}) are not capitalized. Exceptions include scientific names ({{xt|''Felis catus''}}) and [[proper noun]]s occurring as part of a name.

Names of scriptures are capitalized (e.g. {{xt|Bible}} and {{xt|Qur'an}}, but not {{xt|biblical}}). Always capitalize {{xt|God}} when it refers to a primary or only deity, but not pronouns that refer to deities: {{xt|he}}, not {{!xt|He}}.

===Abbreviations===
{{Shortcut-style further links|MOS:CIRCA|MOS:NOTUSA|MOS:&}}
To indicate ''approximately'' for dates, the non-italicized abbreviation {{xt|c.}} (followed by a space) is preferred over {{!xt|circa}}, {{!xt|ca.}}, or  {{!xt|approx.}}

Write {{xt|US}} or {{xt|U.S.}}, but not {{!xt|USA}}.

Use "and" instead of the "&" sign, except in tables, infoboxes, and official names like {{xt|AT&T}}.

===Punctuation===
{{Shortcut-style further links|MOS:QUOTEMARKS|WP:MOS#Titles|MOS:LQUOTE|MOS:SERIAL|MOS:COMMASPLICE|MOS:DASH}}
Use straight quote marks {{key press|"}} and apostrophes {{key press|'}} as available from the keyboard, and not alternatives such as {{!xt|“&nbsp;”}} and {{!xt|‘&nbsp;’}}.

Italicize names of books, films, TV series, music albums, paintings, and ships—but not short works like songs or poems, which should be in quotation marks.

Place a [[full stop]] (a period) or a comma [[Quotation Mark#punctuation|<em>before</em>]] a closing quotation mark if it belongs as part of the quoted material ({{xt|She said, "I'm feeling carefree<span style{{=}}"background:#bfb">.</span>"}}); otherwise, put it after ({{xt|The word ''carefree'' means "happy"<span style{{=}}"background:#bfb">.</span>}}). Please do so irrespective of any rules associated with the variety of English in use.

The [[serial comma]] (for example the comma before ''and'' in "ham, chips, and eggs") is optional; be sensitive to possible ambiguity arising from thoughtless use or thoughtless avoidance, and be consistent within a given article.

Avoid [[comma splice]]s.

Picture captions should not end in a full stop (a period) unless they are complete sentences.

Avoid using a hyphen after a standard -ly adverb ({{xt|a newly available home}}).

A hyphen is not a [[dash]]. Hyphens are used within words or to join words, but not in punctuating the parts of a sentence. Use an en dash (–) with <code>&amp;nbsp;</code> before, and a space after – or use an em dash (—) without spaces (see [[Wikipedia:How to make dashes]]). Avoid using two hyphens {{nowrap|(--)}} to make a dash, and avoid using a hyphen as a minus sign.

Use an en dash, not a hyphen, between numbers: {{xt|pp.&nbsp;14–21}}; {{xt|1953–2008}}. An en dash is also used to connect parallel terms: {{xt|red–green colorblind}}; {{xt|a New York–London flight}}.  Use spaces around the en dash only if the connected terms are multi-unit dates: {{xt|January 1999{{spaced ndash}}December 2000}}.

===Non-breaking spaces===
Line breaks between words can be prevented by inserting a ''non-breaking space'' instead of an ordinary space by using the code <code>&amp;nbsp;</code> or {{tlx|nbsp}}. This avoids lines breaking in the middle of expressions such as {{xt|17&nbsp;kg}}, {{xt|AD&nbsp;565}}, {{xt|£11&nbsp;billion}}, {{xt|{{CURRENTMONTHNAME}}&nbsp;{{CURRENTYEAR}}}}, {{xt|5°&nbsp;24′&nbsp;21.12″&nbsp;N}}, {{xt|Boeing&nbsp;747}}, and {{xt|World War&nbsp;II}}.

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