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Questions tagged [italics]

Use for questions about italics (In typography, italic type is a cursive typeface based on a stylized form of calligraphic handwriting)

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How do you mark English words originally used by a non-native author in an English translation?

An artist has written memoirs in his native language with some English words and phrases scattered here and there (some might even have spelling / grammar mistakes). His memoirs are translated into ...
Lis's user avatar
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7 votes
2 answers
965 views

What is the accepted style for using a foreign term followed by its translation?

How do you show a foreign term followed by its translation? Is the foreign term placed in quotation marks with its translation italicized or the other way around? Style guides favor but don't always ...
Falls Church's user avatar
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Should sayings within a quote be set apart by single quotes, italics, or in some other way?

In the following quote: “We try not to be overly flashy when taking solos,” band leader Ricardo said. “The principles that come to mind are ‘don't blow all your cookies in the first bar’ and ‘keep it ...
B. Clay Shannon-B. Crow Raven's user avatar
1 vote
0 answers
133 views

The use of italics/citation marks for metalanguage

I've been taught that when words are used metalinguistically, they should be marked either with italics or with double quotation marks. Examples: Dog is a noun. Verlan is the name of a kind of ...
Mooshi's user avatar
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Is [sic] italicized in a quoted sentence that is italicized?

Is [sic] italicized in a quoted sentence that is italicized, and should I use [sic] after the word gonna? "If we let you stay here, we're gonna [sic] get phone calls all night." Or should it ...
Tommy O'Neill's user avatar
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33 views

Quotation marks vs Italics for sourcing articles

I wanted to source an online article (just a regular one, not part of a longer work) and was unsure whether to use quotation marks or italics. I know that it is generally advised to use quotation ...
Tech333's user avatar
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32 views

Capitalization for unique title and quotations trickiness in inner thought

So, I have been writing and wonder whether to capitalize the word "master." No rush here, I know that without name the word like this won't be capitalized. But if it use as a substitute for ...
Gerry Giovan's user avatar
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Capitalization after an internal dialogue prefix tag [duplicate]

Do you capitalize the sentence after an internal dialogue (a.k.a. thought bubble) that uses a prefix tag? That is, in an example like: Will thought, My father must not like me. Or do you do: Will ...
Elliott Slaughter's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
56 views

Should you include the word "the" inside a quoted/emphasized words? [closed]

I'm having a bit of trouble regarding whether to include the word "the" inside a quoted words. For example: None was known when the Great Cataclysm had happened on the other hand. Should I ...
Gerry Giovan's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
394 views

Pro bono as italics?

I am using the words pro bono in a letter addressed to my line manager using MS Word. My query is: does pro bono needs to be typed using italics format?
user3571389's user avatar
4 votes
2 answers
114 views

Should one italicise an italicised phase within a book title?

In UK/Commonwealth styles, is there a generally accepted convention for whether or not one italicises or renders roman an italicised phrase within the title of a book? My specific example, which may ...
italicsaretough22's user avatar
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How to highlight model or category names in scientific text (if they are ordinary words)?

For example, there are two sentences The government is considering that the crisis will follow a soft scenario ... Dr. Jones has calculated soft and hard crisis scenarios. The input data was ... In ...
Serge's user avatar
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1 vote
0 answers
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Italics Usage in Dictionaries

I've only recently realized that the example sentences in many English dictionaries are italicized. And I've yet to find out any other medium that uses italics in examples. What is the history of ...
salix's user avatar
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2 answers
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Do I need to use quotes when referring to something? [closed]

Do I need to use quotes here? You can find those terms under the separate section called “Earthquakes” later in this chapter. If no quotes are needed, must the word Earthquake still start with a ...
upstream's user avatar
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3 answers
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How to use foreign words in English writing

Nonna is a word that means grandmother in Italian. If I italicize in the beginning like this: "Nine years ago, nonna (Italian grandmother), ..." then I don't have to continue italicizing the word ...
user130306's user avatar
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3 answers
146 views

Quotation marks or italics? His last words were "clock" and "good-bye." I could not find a definitive answer here

Quotation marks or italics? His last words were "clock" and "good-bye." Clock and good-bye are used as words and are not quotations, but they are not unusual or in need of emphasis so I don't see the ...
Falls Church's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
373 views

Quotation marks or italics for foreign word...or both in certain context?

When a foreign word is used for the first time in text, it is generally italicized (or put in quotation quotes as an alternative). Is it ever correct to use both italics and quotation marks when the ...
Amy A.'s user avatar
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2 answers
378 views

Italicizing a Title Which Includes a Ship Name

I am writing an essay for school on the book The Wreck of the Whale-ship Essex for school. However, the Essex, as a ship, should also be italicized. Should I write it as "The Wreck of the Whale-ship ...
William Grannis's user avatar
1 vote
0 answers
153 views

What is the correct use of hyphens and capitals in "Big Brother style pop competition"? [duplicate]

Not sure it technically should have any, but a Big Brother style pop competition feels like quite a mouthful as it is so I’m wondering whether hyphens might help. Also want to check the ...
TheNovelFactory's user avatar
2 votes
0 answers
43 views

Use of italics versus quotes for terms [closed]

Something I find a little tricky is whether to use italics or quotes for terms. In most cases, the terms I cite are not used repeatedly, but are one-time mentions. So, for example, we have the ...
Emma Dash's user avatar
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1 vote
1 answer
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Should there be a comma after 'I thought' if this phrase is followed by an italicised thought?

For example, if writing: I thought, she may miss him, but tonight you can't tell. should there be a comma after 'I thought', or any other punctuation for that matter? I know commas are often used ...
Freyja's user avatar
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2 votes
2 answers
117 views

Using words used as words: Why am I confusing myself? [closed]

Humans, naturally, prefer simple over complex. I would think that in the above sentence, both simple and complex are words used as words. (Though, perhaps, not as clear as it is in the preceding ...
blackened's user avatar
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When italicizing a noun to emphasize, italicize the article or not?

When I want to emphasize a noun by italicizing, do I need to italicize the article of the noun or not? For example, is this correct? "Is it an apple?" "No, it is an orange." Or, ...
Chang's user avatar
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1 vote
1 answer
693 views

Quotes, italics, parentheses, and/or regular for translations [closed]

Okay Stack Exchange, here's the big ask: What do you all recommend? My manager wants to know if this is stylistically appropriate. No specific manual we're looking at here. Just what would you guys ...
Katboodle's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
1k views

Are the names of statues italicized in a books? [closed]

Writing a novel. Are the names of statues italicized in a books?
user237736's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
1k views

Use of italics and BrE single quotation marks

I'd like to know when to use italics and when to use single quotation marks should be used. For example: The word he was looking for was ‘abjuration’. vs The word he was looking for was ...
Lordology's user avatar
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1 vote
2 answers
1k views

On a resume, should I italicize the name of a magazine when I'm referring to it *as* an employer? [closed]

In an earlier version of this question, I confused the issue by using the word company instead of employer. Strictly speaking, the magazine is not a company, but I was considered an employee of the ...
Yeltommo's user avatar
2 votes
2 answers
675 views

Do you italicize the contraction attached to a foreign word?

I know you italicize words in other languages when writing. But what if you add a contraction? Is it abuela's or abuela's?
Esme's user avatar
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-1 votes
1 answer
270 views

Mention vs use of a word

In some cases it's not intuitive whether a word is mentioned or used, so it's difficult determining whether to write the word as normal or to use italics / quotation marks. Two examples: When you ...
Angelorf's user avatar
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0 answers
519 views

Sarcasm within thoughts

When I write sarcasm, I put it in italic writing, like; what a beautiful sweater. I also do this when writing third person perspective characters like; he's ugly. But what if the character is thinking ...
A. Kvåle's user avatar
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1 vote
1 answer
110 views

Italicising common 'foreign' words [closed]

If a house style outlines that foreign terms should be italicised, how strictly should this be applied to common terms taken from, say, French that everyone is more than familiar with? Italicising ...
GK95's user avatar
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4 votes
0 answers
86 views

How to stylize specialist domain terminology [closed]

So I'm a software engineer and I was recently writing some documentation about an application. Said application has some functions/classes/etc whose names are overloaded with common English words and ...
Logician's user avatar
0 votes
2 answers
117 views

Italicizing titles of nonexistent or spurious works?

This is for a novel: should the title of a non-existent video game be italicized when it's spoken as a solecism by a character? Example: the mother tells the kids to stop playing Immortal Kombat. The ...
August Canaille's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
426 views

Do I use italics on subsequent occurrences of this word? [closed]

I'm writing a formal essay about the Greek concept of xenia. I know I have to italicize it, but when I use this word in subsequent sentences and paragraphs, do I still italicize it? Or is it fine to ...
Killster's user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
1k views

Editing quotations with square brackets and italics at the same time

I have the following sentence from the Time Magazine, which I use as an example sentence on a flashcard: At its best, Losers is a sluggish, stream-of-concupiscence exposition of what Sartre ...
mondegreen dispenser's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
10k views

When can you choose to italicize part of a quote? If you do so, what words must you add and where must you add them? [closed]

I thought you only italicize a title of a book, music etc.. I'm not honestly sure about If you do so, what words must you add and where must you add them?
Michaela J's user avatar
-1 votes
1 answer
670 views

Quotation marks or italics when quoting the title of a painting ("The plaque read...")

After much research, I'm stumped. Do I use quotes or italics for the last word in the following sentence? There's a painting of a yacht with a gold plate on the lower frame that reads Facets. As ...
TLH's user avatar
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1 vote
2 answers
4k views

In legal citations, why are "see", "see also", etc., in italics?

In legal citations, why do people put "see", "see also", "e.g.", etc., in italics? Please don't just say, "because that's the custom." I'd like to know just ...
aparente001's user avatar
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3 votes
1 answer
8k views

Does the phrase "per se" have to be italicized? [duplicate]

As far as I understand, the phrase "per se" comes from Latin. Yet, it has become to accepted in English and is used so commonly, that I was wondering if the phrase is still considered of foreign ...
Reb Chaim HaQoton's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
1k views

So, are single quotes, double quotes or italics most appropriate here? [closed]

I know, I know - similar questions have been asked before, but after reading so many answers here and elsewhere my intuitions have been scrambled and I have lost confidence in my normal practice... ...
Majdnem's user avatar
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0 votes
1 answer
118 views

How to format a sentence that a character has written down?

I'm trying my hand at editing a friends work. They've written the following: 'Thinks he's the smartest one in the room,' Henry wrote on a piece of paper. (For context, they use double quotation ...
red_kite's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
3k views

Abbreviations in italic? [closed]

I'm writing a report for my master thesis and I'm pretty unsure when to use italics. I have found some guidelines in the internet but I still have some questions. I'm using abbreviations like ROC for ...
machinery's user avatar
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7 votes
1 answer
2k views

In phonetic writing, what does italics mean?

The word government is supposed to be pronounced guhv-ern-muh nt See here http://www.dictionary.com/browse/government?s=t
Gelb's user avatar
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2 votes
1 answer
2k views

Italicize Translated Title in Parentheses?

I'm proofreading a book and came across the title of a poem with the translation in parentheses (name changed for confidentiality): "... in his poem, Les Amours des Dieux (The Loves of the Gods), .....
Matt's user avatar
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0 votes
1 answer
1k views

Scientific Nomenclature: italics or roman in an italic environment

Scientific Nomenclature says that: Italics are used for bacterial and viral taxa at the level of family and below. All bacterial and many viral genes are italicized. Serovars of Salmonella ...
Laurent Duval's user avatar
2 votes
2 answers
6k views

Why are vessel names italicized?

Can anyone tell me the reason vessel names, boats or spaceships for example, always appear in italics?
Daft's user avatar
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1 vote
2 answers
17k views

Should magazine names be written in italics? [duplicate]

should they be in italics like books and newspapers? I know about the latter but what about foreign magazines?
Lana's user avatar
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1 vote
3 answers
893 views

Quotes, Italics, or Nothing? Introducing the concept of a type of list

In the following excerpt, the author is attempting to convey the need for people to create an exhaustive list of their needs and wants. He's calling this a "needs and wants" list. Based on what I've ...
Jonathan LeRoux's user avatar
1 vote
2 answers
2k views

Using italics for words used as words

I'm writing a fiction novel, and I'm not quite sure about the rules on italics. Are the following italicized correctly? John Doe, or Big John as he liked to be called, went to the market. The item ...
fwr's user avatar
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0 votes
1 answer
8k views

using a brand name in MLA style

Should a brand name be italicized when used in a MLA-style paper? For example, tin he following paragraph: Future Shop, which offered technology supplies, was closed and in an statement the CEO ...
Alex's user avatar
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