English Style Guide A handbook for authors and translators in the European Commission

European Commission Directorate-General for Translation English Style Guide A handbook for authors and translators in the European Commission Seventh edition: August 2011 Last updated: April 2013 Latest PDF version: http://ec.europa.eu/translation/english/guidelines/documents/styleguide_english_dgt_en.pdf HTML version: http://www.fjfhs.eu/esg/index.htm Companion Volume — Country Compendium: http://ec.europa.eu/translation/english/guidelines/documents/styleguide_english_dgt_count ry_compendium_en.pdf What’s new: http://ec.europa.eu/translation/english/guidelines/documents/whats_new_style_guide_en.pdf English Style Guide CONTENTS Introduction................................................................................ 1 Part I Writing English.................................................................... 3 1 GENERAL.........................................................................................................4 2 SPELLING.........................................................................................................4 CONVENTIONS ..............................................................................................4 INTERFERENCE EFFECTS............................................................................6 CAPITAL LETTERS........................................................................................7 GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES.............................................................................9 HYPHENS AND COMPOUND WORDS .....................................................12 3 PUNCTUATION .............................................................................................14 FULL STOP....................................................................................................15 COLON...........................................................................................................15 SEMICOLON .................................................................................................15 COMMA.........................................................................................................16 DASHES.........................................................................................................18 BRACKETS....................................................................................................19 QUESTION MARK........................................................................................19 EXCLAMATION MARK ..............................................................................19 QUOTATION MARKS..................................................................................20 APOSTROPHE...............................................................................................21 4 NUMBERS.......................................................................................................22 WRITING OUT NUMBERS..........................................................................23 FRACTIONS...................................................................................................23 RANGES.........................................................................................................24 DATES AND TIMES.....................................................................................24 5 ABBREVIATIONS AND SYMBOLS................................................................25 ABBREVIATIONS.........................................................................................25 MATHEMATICAL SYMBOLS ....................................................................29 SCIENTIFIC SYMBOLS AND UNITS OF MEASUREMENT ...................30 6 FOREIGN IMPORTS......................................................................................31 FOREIGN WORDS AND PHRASES IN ENGLISH TEXT.........................31 ROMANISATION SYSTEMS.......................................................................32 7 PARTS OF SPEECH.......................................................................................33 ADJECTIVES AND ADVERBS....................................................................33 SINGULAR OR PLURAL .............................................................................33 PRESENT PERFECT/SIMPLE PAST...........................................................34 TENSES IN MINUTES..................................................................................34 2 May 2013 i English Style Guide VERBS IN LEGISLATION ...........................................................................35 SPLIT INFINITIVE........................................................................................37 THE GERUND AND THE POSSESSIVE.....................................................37 8 LISTS...............................................................................................................38 9 SCIENCE GUIDE...........................................................................................39 10 FOOTNOTES, CITATIONS AND REFERENCES..........................................41 11 CORRESPONDENCE.....................................................................................43 12 NAMES AND TITLES .....................................................................................44 PERSONAL NAMES AND TITLES.............................................................44 NAMES OF BODIES.....................................................................................45 13 GENDER-NEUTRAL LANGUAGE ................................................................47 Part II About the European Union ...................................................49 14 THE EUROPEAN UNION..............................................................................50 15 PRIMARY LEGISLATION ..............................................................................51 THE TREATIES — AN OVERVIEW...........................................................51 THE TREATIES IN DETAIL ........................................................................52 TREATY CITATIONS...................................................................................54 16 SECONDARY LEGISLATION ........................................................................55 LEGISLATIVE PROCEDURES....................................................................56 TITLES AND NUMBERING ........................................................................56 STRUCTURE OF ACTS................................................................................59 REFERRING TO SUBDIVISIONS OF ACTS..............................................60 17 THE EU INSTITUTIONS................................................................................61 COMMISSION...............................................................................................61 COUNCIL.......................................................................................................62 EUROPEAN COUNCIL.................................................................................63 EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT.........................................................................63 COURT OF JUSTICE OF THE EUROPEAN UNION .................................64 COURT OF AUDITORS................................................................................66 EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE...........................66 COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS................................................................66 EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK....................................................................66 OTHER FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS ........................................................67 AGENCIES.....................................................................................................67 18 REFERENCES TO OFFICIAL PUBLICATIONS...........................................67 THE OFFICIAL JOURNAL...........................................................................67 BULLETIN AND GENERAL REPORT .......................................................68 19 EU FINANCES................................................................................................69 BUDGET ........................................................................................................69 ii 2 May 2013 English Style Guide FUNDS FINANCED FROM THE BUDGET................................................70 OTHER FUNDS .............................................................................................71 20 MEMBER STATES..........................................................................................71 PERMANENT REPRESENTATIONS/REPRESENTATIVES ....................71 NATIONAL PARLIAMENTS.......................................................................72 NATIONAL JUDICIAL BODIES..................................................................72 NATIONAL LEGISLATION.........................................................................72 21 OFFICIAL LANGUAGES AND CURRENCIES.............................................74 OFFICIAL LANGUAGES .............................................................................74 CURRENCIES................................................................................................74 22 EXTERNAL RELATIONS................................................................................75 Annexes....................................................................................77 Annex 1 TRANSLITERATION TABLE FOR GREEK...............................................79 Annex 2 TRANSLITERATION TABLE FOR CYRILLIC...........................................83 Annex 3 FORMS OF ADDRESS...............................................................................85 Companion volume: Country Compendium 2 May 2013 iii ... - tailieumienphi.vn