Some dos and don'ts An should be used before a word beginning with a vowel sound (an egg, an umbrella,

an MP) or an h if, and only if, the h is silent (an honorary degree). But a European, a university, a U-turn, a hospital, a hotel. Historical is an exception: it is preceded by an, the h remaining silent. As o (April 5th or April): prefer on (or a ter, or since) April 5th, in April. As to! there is usually a more appropriate preposition. "ale! in boats and in the hayfield, yes, otherwise bail, bail out. "iannual can mean t#ice a year or once every t#o years. Avoid. means once every t#o years, that is best avoided too. "icentennial! prefer bicentenary (as a noun). "lac$! in the blac$ means in pro it in Britain, but ma$ing losses in some places. !se in pro it. %ase! "#here is perhaps no single word so freely resorted to as a trouble$saver,% says &owers, "and conse'uently responsible for so much flabby writing.% (ften you can do without it. &here are many cases o it being unnecessary is better as 't is o ten unnecessary. ' it is the case that simply means ' . 't is not the case means 't is not so. %ome up #ith: try suggest, originate or produce. %ommit: do not commit to, but by all means commit yoursel to something. -ee! employees, evacuees, detainees, re erees, re ugees but, please, no attendees (those attending), dra tees (conscripts), escapees (escapers), retirees (the retired), or standees. A divorcee may be male or female. Environment! often unavoidable, but not a pretty word. Avoid the business environment, the school environment, the #or$ environment, etc. #ry to rephrase the sentence)conditions or business, at school, at #or$, etc. Surroundings can sometimes do the *ob. (act! &he act that can often be boiled down to &hat. (ormer! avoid wherever possible use of the ormer and the latter. +t usually causes confusion. )entlemen's agreement, not gentleman's. ince biennial also

'mportant! if something is important, say why and to whom. !se sparingly. *ast! the last issue of The Economist implies its extinction, prefer last #ee$'s or the latest issue. *ast year, in -../, means -..5, if you mean the -0 months up to the time of writing, write the past year. #he same goes for the past month, past wee1, past (not last) ten years. *ast #ee$ is best avoided, anyone reading it several days after publication may be confused. &his #ee$ is permissible. *i estyle! prefer #ay o li e. *ocate, in all its forms, can usually be replaced by something less ugly. &he missing scientist #as located means he was ound. &he diplomats #ill meet at a secret location means either that they will meet in a secret place or that they will meet secretly. A company located in &e+as is simply a company in &e+as. Millionaires! the time has gone when girls in the Bois de Boulogne would thin1 that the term millionaire ade'uately described the man who bro1e the Ban1 at 2onte 3arlo. +f you wish to use it, ma1e it plain that millionaire refers to income (in dollars or pounds), not to capital. (therwise try plutocrat or rich man. Move! do not use if you mean decision, bid, deal or something more precise. But move rather than relocate. ,ne! try to avoid one as a personal pronoun. -ou will often do instead. Phone! permissible, especially when preceded by mobile. But use sparingly, and generally prefer telephone. Photo! not permissible, so use photograph. Premier, as a noun, should be confined to the first ministers of 3anadian provinces, &erman Lnder and other sub$national states. 4o not use it as a synonym for the prime minister of a country. Proactive. 5ot a pretty word: try active or energetic. Problem! the problem with problem is it is overused, so much so that it is becoming a problem word. Proper nouns! if they have ad*ectives, use them. #hus a %ali ornian (not %ali ornia) .udge, the Pa$istani (not Pa$istan) government, the &e+an (not &e+as) press. Pry! use prise, unless you mean peer. /elationship is a long word often better replaced by relations. &he t#o countries hope

or a better relationship means &he t#o countries hope or better relations. /elative! fine as an ad*ective, but as a noun prefer relation. /oc$eted, not s$yroc$eted. /un. +n countries with a presidential system you may run for office. +n those with a parliamentary one, stand. Same! often superfluous. +f your sentence contains on the same day that, try on the day that. Sector! try industry instead or, for example, ban$s instead of ban$ing sector. Simplistic! prefer simple-minded, naive. -style! avoid )erman-style supervisory boards, an EU-style rotating presidency , etc. 6xplain what you mean. &able! avoid it as a transitive verb. +n Britain to table means to bring something forward for action. +n America it means exactly the opposite. &here is, there are! often unnecessary. &here are three issues acing the prime minister is better as &hree issues ace the prime minister. &otal! all right as a noun, but as a verb prefer amount to or add up to. 0enues! avoid them. #ry places.