As the title says. I am wondering what is grammatically correct .
"non linearized" vs "nonlinearized" (or maybe "non-linearized")
Same for
"non linear" vs "nonlinear" (or maybe "non-linear")
3 Answers
Neither the one nor the other.
Usually, in the words beginning with "non", this one is connected with an hyphen to the main word.
However it is ... non-essential in a mathematical book, just better in a non-technical text.
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1-1 I don't even understand this answer - it's not in standard English. I can work out what the first part of the second sentence means, but it should be "Usually, in words [no "the"] beginning with non, ..."; but I don't understand the second clause: what does "this one" refer to? Do you mean "'non' is followed by a hyphen."? Your third sentence then begins "But ...", suggesting you are about to give some exceptions, but you in fact illustrate the use of hyphens. What is the "But" meant to mean.– TrevorDCommented Oct 10, 2013 at 23:06
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@TrevorD You are right, I was writing to hastily ; the text is corrected now. Commented Oct 11, 2013 at 8:59
According to a couple of dictionaries, "non" is not an English word but only a prefix. The OED does have it as a word, but not with the meaning apparently intended in the question.
When in doubt, consult sources/peers in the field in which you are working. The OED lists the main term in question as "non-linear," but if your (reliable) peers disregard the hyphen ("nonlinear"), you should follow their example. I'm sure that the Journal of Nonlinear Science would agree.
In the future, if you need a quick and dirty answer to solve an alternate spelling dispute, you can use the Google Ngram Viewer.
