Ian Brunskill - The Times Style Guide - A guide to English usage

budgetlower case; the budget, Philip Hammond’s budget, budget day; also note pre-budget report and autumn statement (lower case)

buffaloplural buffaloes

Buggins’s turnawkward, perhaps, but consistent with Times style of such possessives

buglers, trumpeterscavalry regiments have trumpeters, infantry regiments have buglers. They are not interchangeable

builder’s merchant(s)as in shepherd’s pies , the apostrophe does not move in the plural

bulletproofadjective or verb, one word

bullionis gold or silver in unminted form

bull-mastiff, bull-terrier

bullring, bullfight(er)

bullseye

bumfprefer to bumph

bunga-bungalower case, hyphen, eg in the context of sexually charged déshabillé partying linked to Silvio Berlusconi, the former Italian prime minister. The derivation is uncertain and theories abound, including genuine African origins, a Fascist colonialist-racist construct or a word given to Mr Berlusconi via Colonel Muammar Gaddafi, the deceased Libyan leader

bungee jumpingno hyphen

bureauplural bureaux or bureaus depending on context; eg bureaux de change, Citizens Advice Bureaux; but prefer bureaus for writing desks and distant newspaper offices

burkaprefer to burqa for the long, enveloping garment worn by Muslim women in public. The niqab is the piece of cloth that they use to cover the face. The hijab is a covering for the hair and neck

Burmanot Myanmar (except in direct quotes); the inhabitants are Burmese , while Burmans are a Burmese people

Burns Night(caps, no apostrophe) falls on January 25

burntnot burned

Burton upon Trentno hyphens; and note the colloquial gone for a burton (lower case)

bus, busesnoun; but in verbal use, busses, bussed, bussing

Bush, George Wdo not use Jr. Refer to him subsequently as Mr Bush or the former president. Refer to his father as the first President Bush or George Bush Sr

“businesses that depend on water”beware this and similar phrases. All businesses depend on water to some extent; some businesses, eg farms, are especially dependent on water

Butthere is no grammatical rule to prevent it starting a sentence; even Fowler describes this as a superstition. Be aware, however, that there are readers (and editors) who dislike it, and that it is easily overdone. Be sure, in any case, that “but” is the word you want; it often seems to be used to add a note of spurious drama where all that is meant is “and”

buyoutand buyback one word as nouns; but prefer buy-in, take-off, shake-out, shake-up, sell-off, sell-out etc with hyphens, wherever the composite noun looks hideous

buzzwordone word

by-election

bylaw

bypassnoun or verb

by-product

bystander

byte(abbreviate as B) is a computer term for a small collection of bits (binary digits), roughly equivalent to one character. Do not confuse with bite (as with teeth). But note soundbite

Byzantinecap in historical context (art, architecture, empire); lower case in general use (complexities etc)

Cc

cabbie(not cabby) as colloquialism for taxi driver

cabinetlower case in both British and foreign use, whether used as a noun or adjectivally, except (rarely) if a cap seems absolutely necessary to avoid confusion. Note Cabinet Office , but cabinet secretary (or secretary of the cabinet ), war cabinet . All cabinet committees should be lower case, eg the cabinet committee on science and technology

Caernarfon(town and parliamentary constituency, no longer Caernarvon), but Lord Carnarvon

caesarean sectionlower case. Babies are delivered , not born, by this surgery

caféwith accent

caffeineprefer to caffein

cagoulebut kaftan

call centrenoun, two words; hyphen as adjective, eg call-centre manager

call-up(noun), but to call up

camaraderienot cameraderie

Cambridge, University ofcolleges and halls are: Christ’s College; Churchill College; Clare College; Clare Hall; Corpus Christi College; Darwin College; Downing College; Emmanuel College; Fitzwilliam College; Girton College; Gonville and Caius College; Homerton College; Hughes Hall; Jesus College; King’s College; Lucy Cavendish College; Magdalene College; Murray Edwards College (formerly known as New Hall); Newnham College; Pembroke College; Peterhouse; Queens’ College; Robinson College; St Catharine’s College; St Edmund’s College; St John’s College; Selwyn College; Sidney Sussex College; Trinity College; Trinity Hall; Wolfson College

came asor comes as overused device that links, or tries to link, two loosely related bits of news within a single story (“The announcement of the rise in interest rates came as demonstrators took to the streets”); often smacks of desperation

camellianot camelia

camomileprefer to chamomile

Canadanationally there is a prime minister; in the provinces there are premiers

Canadiansare rightly annoyed when they are designated as Americans. Beware. Among prominent Canadians are Paul Anka, kd lang, Joni Mitchell, Donald Sutherland, Neil Young etc etc

canal boatsdo not use the term “barge” indiscriminately; barges are towed, unpowered boats for transporting cargo. Use the term narrow boats for the boats on the narrow 7ft-wide canals, or canal boats for wider vessels on wider canals. If in doubt, use canal boat (never canal barge)

canapéaccent

cancertake care not to describe cancer as “the biggest killer” in the UK. Heart disease is. Beware of writing about cancer in terms of battles, fights, brave struggles etc: such language can imply a lack of strength or effort or will on the part of others who succumb to the disease; this rightly upsets and offends

cannon(military) same form for singular and plural; but canons (ecclesiastical, both churchmen and church laws), and canon as a collection/list of an author

Canuteprefer the traditional spelling to the more historically authentic Cnut, if only to mitigate the consequences of careless typing. Remember that his intention on the seashore was to demonstrate the worthlessness of temporal power; he knew he was going to get wet

canvas(as in painting); plural is canvases ; canvasses with central ss is of the verb “to canvass” (ie polling)

CAPall caps for clarity; when spelt out is lower case common agricultural policy ; similarly, common fisheries policy (CFP)

cap and tradenoun; adjectivally hyphenate, eg a cap-and-trade system for carbon emissions

capitalisationtoo many capital letters are ugly and distracting. Capitals are often unnecessary. Try to avoid them unless to do so causes confusion or looks absurd. There will always be room for discretion and common sense, and clarity is more important than consistency, but if in doubt use lower case. Do not use capitals to indicate importance or (with some rare, specified exceptions) as a mark of respect. Avoid especially what the 1959 edition of this guide called the “local interest” capital: “the Canteen of the works journal, the Umpire of the laws of cricket, the Directors of the company prospectus, the Village Hall of the parish magazine”.