Spelling, Uses, and Forms

Legend

§ One of our official guides has clearly ruled on the issue, yet we see the point overlooked from time to time during the editorial process. We include the rule here as a courtesy reminder.

† Neither CMOS nor MW has taken a clear position. We have established a house preference.

‡ This symbol marks cases in which New Harbinger house style diverges from either CMOS or MW. Use the NHP decision in all cases.

Numerals and Symbols

• 24/7

• 3 by 5 index card

A

• acceptance and commitment therapy

• acknowledgments

• AD (caps, not small caps; use “CE” unless author strongly objects)

• ADHD

• afterward (not “afterwards”)

• aha

• Alcoholics Anonymous (the book. Use this and not "Big Book" in reference lists.)

• all right (even in dialogue)

• a.m. (lowercase with points; not small caps)

• and/or: rephrase in trade books, use sparingly in professional books

• anti- (closed construction unless trumped by MW11)

• attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder

• autism spectrum disorder (ASD) 

• autistic (identity-first language; avoid "person with autism")

• Axis I, Axis II (regarding disorders)

B

• babysit, babysitter

• backward (not backwards)

• BC (caps, not small caps; use BCE unless author strongly objects)

• BCE (caps, not small caps)

• behavioral therapy or behavior therapy

• benefited

• bestseller

• best-selling (hyphen vs. "bestseller" per MW)

  • Note: One exception to this rule is "bestselling" in reference to a New York Times–bestselling author, typically in marketing copy. There, "bestselling" should be styled with no hyphen.

• Bible (capped, the religious text; lowercased when referring generally to a guide or authoritative reference)

• big pharma (lowercase)

• bilateral stimulation (note: not "bilateral tapping") 

• binge-eating disorder

• bingeing

• § black-and-white (when used as an adj., preceding a noun)

• bony

• ‡ breastfeed(ing) 

• bull’s-eye

• byproduct

C

• caregiver

• catalog

• CE (caps, not small caps)

• cell phone

• checkup (n.)

• § chi (except in MSs that also include the word “qigong”; see word list entry “qi”)

• childcare (n., adj.)

• co- (closed construction unless trumped by MW11)

• coauthor

• cofounder

• cognitive behavioral (adj.)

• cognitive behavioral therapy

• compassion-focused therapy

• complex post-traumatic stress disorder (CPTSD)

• co-occurring

• cooldown (n.)

• cooldown period (redundant, should be replaced by “cooldown” only)

• cool down (v.)

• co-parenting; Co-parenting (when capped)

• counter- (closed construction unless trumped by MW11)

• couples counseling, couples therapy

• couples therapist

• coworker

• cross-training

D

• de- (closed construction unless trumped by MW11)

• decision making (n.)

• decision-making (adj.)

• defusion (an ACT neologism)

• dharma (lowercase when it is used to mean "phenomena," as in "All dharmas are impermanent, have no inherent self nature, and express suffering and the release of suffering.")

• Dharma (capitalized when it refers to the essence of what is, universal "law," or the totality of the Buddha's teachings)

• Dharma transmission

• dialectical behavior therapy

• diplomate

• disk (vs. “disc”: follow distinctions in MW11—“disc” is preferred when referring to optical media like CDs and DVDs)

• DSM-5 (not "DSM-V")

• dysfunctional

• dysregulated

 E

• e-book

• email

• e-newsletter

• emotionally focused therapy (EFT) (Note: This is distinct from emotion-focused therapy, which is a different model. If you're editing a text in which the precise model being alluded to is unclear, please have authors verify which they are using.)

• emotion regulation skills (no hyphen)

• emotion regulation treatment (no hyphen)

• ensure (use instead of “insure” in all cases except when referring to insurance)

• ePub

• ERP (an acronym for "exposure and response (or ritual) prevention)

• ‡ etc. (avoid; replace with “and so forth” or some other English equivalent)  

• even-tempered (hyphenated before or after noun)

• evidence-based (adj.)

F

• FAQs

• fight-or-flight (adj.)

• foreword

• forward (not forwards)

G

• † gaslit (v.) 

• gender expansive 

• gender-expansive (adj., as in "gender-expansive youth")

• gender-fluid (per MW)

• genderqueer (per MW)

• gender nonconforming

• gender-nonconforming (adj., as in "gender-nonconforming people")

• generalized anxiety disorder

• Gestalt therapy

• goal setting

• goal-setting (adj.)

• good-bye

H

• hand in hand (adv.)

• health care (adj., n.)

• heartbeat

• here and now (n.)

• here-and-now (adj., as in "here-and-now habit")

• higher power (lc)

• hmm

• huh

• hyper- (closed construction unless trumped by MW11)

I

• I-messages (italics on first use)

• Imago Relationship Therapy (IRT) (except in marketing copy, where lowercase is OK)

• imposter

• in-breath

• inpatient

• insure (only in reference to insurance; use “ensure” in all other cases)

• Internal Family Systems (IFS) 

• internet (lowercase)

• interpersonal neurobiology (IPNB) 

• in vivo (adj.)

 J

• jump-start

 K

• Kabat-Zinn, Jon

• Kübler-Ross, Elisabeth

L

• life-and-death (adj.)

• § lightbulb

• light-headed(ness)

• lighthearted

• long-term (adj.)

• long term (n.)

• § lovable

• loving-kindness

M

• mental health (adj.)

• mid- (closed construction unless trumped by MW11)

• mind–body (en dash, not mind/body)

• mindset

• mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) 

• mindiness (the condition of being mind-y--and ACT neologism)

• mind-y (an ACT neologism)

• mis- (closed construction unless trumped by MW11)

• monounsaturated

• multi- (closed construction unless trumped by MW11)

N

• neuro-affirming (or neurodiversity-affirming) (adj.)

• neurodivergence (n.) 

• neurodivergent (adj.) (the fact or state of being non-neurotypical)

• neurodiverse (adj.) (the diversity of human minds; the variation of neurocognitive function within our species)

• new age (lowercase as an adjective or to refer to a genre of music; capped as noun referring to the countercultural movement)

• Nhat Hanh, Thich

• non- (closed construction unless trumped by MW11 or house style)

• nonbinary 

• non-duality (hyphenated)

• nonjudgmental

O

• obsessive-compulsive disorder

• offense

• okay

• omega-3 fatty acid (lowercase “o”)

• one-on-one (adj., adv.)

• online (adj., adv.)

• out-breath

• out-of-control (adj.)

• outpatient

• over- (closed construction unless trumped by MW11)

• § overwhelm: Use allowed as a verb, adverb, or adjective ONLY. May NOT be used as a noun in any case.

• owner's manual

P

• † people (In trade books, "people," not "persons," in all cases. In professional books, either apply the trade book rule or use “people” for general references—e.g., “thousands of people lined the parade route”—and “persons” for specific references: e.g., “we can identify four persons who made significant contributions to the field.”)

• perspective taking (when used as a noun phrase)

• ping-pong

• post- (closed construction unless trumped by MW11; note that this is one prefix that MW11 does often trump; when in doubt, check)

• post-exercise

• post-traumatic stress disorder

• pre- (closed construction unless trumped by MW11)

• present moment (when used as a noun phrase)

• present-moment (hyphenate when used as an adjective, as in "present-moment processes")

• preexisting

• problem solving (n.)

• problem-solving (adj.)

Q

• ‡ qi (in MSs that also include the word “qigong”; otherwise, use MW11’s preferred spelling, “chi”)

• qigong

R

• randomized controlled trial 

• randomized controlled clinical trial (no comma after "randomized" in either variation)

• re- (closed construction unless trumped by MW11)

• reason-giving

• § résumé (note accents)

• road map

• role model (n.)

• role-play (vt., vi., n.)

S

• § Saint-John’s-wort

• self- (hyphenated construction unless trumped by MW11)

• self-as-content (used often in ACT parlance)

• self-as-context (used often in ACT parlance)

• self-as-perspective (used often in ACT parlance)

• service member (two words)

• short-term (adj.)

• should-statements (italics on first use)

• should-thoughts (italics on first use)

• sit bones (not sitz bones)

• skills training group (not hyphenated)

• smartphone 

• soul-searching (n.)

• spacey

• subjective units of distress levels (lowercase when spelled out; then may be abbreviated SUDS)

• substance-abuse recovery

• suicidality

• survivor guilt

T

• tao (not dao; as for capitalization, see Merriam-Webster's)

• tendinitis (not tendonitis)

• that (when referring to things only, not in reference to people)

• time-out (n.)

• toolbox 

• toolkit

• Tourette syndrome (note the lack of possessive on Tourette)

• toward (not towards)

• tweet (noun, verb)

• 12-step program

• 12 steps (n.; numeral is OK)

• Twitter

• type A/type B

• type 2 diabetes

U

• US or United States (noun)

• US or United States (adj.) 

• user's guide

V

• vipassana, Vipassana (lower case when describing a kind of Buddhist meditation (generally contrasted with samatha meditation), but upper case when referring to the greater tradition in Buddhism of insight meditation or to the vipassana movement)

• VLQ-2

• vs. (abbreviate when used in a-, b-, and c-heads, but not in d-heads or in running text)

W

• Warrior 2 (yoga pose)

• warm-up (n.)

• warm up (v.)

• World Wide Web, the web

• website

• web page

• weight loss solution, weight loss surgery, weight loss success (open even as compound modifier)

• well-being

• who (use when referring to people, rather than “that”)

• workout (n.)

• worksheet

X

• X-ray (all forms)

Y

• you-messages (italics on first use)

• yourself vs. your self: maintain a difference between the reflexive pronoun and the possessive pronoun followed by a noun. Use the former for idiomatic smoothness as a synonym of "you." The latter should be used when referring to the "self" as a discrete entity, the union of traits that comprise an individual's identity.