Q. Apparently, the 17th edition of the Chicago Manual is opting for email over e-mail.

I take it,
then, that the 17th edition will also recommend Xray, Tshirt, Hbomb, Tbone steak. Dont be
ridiculous. Consistency requires the hyphen: e-mail.
A. Every good style manual contains exceptions that could be seen as inconsistencies but that are
actually thoughtful adjustments for sense, readability, and usage. For instance, CMOS 7.85 (16th
ed.) lists antihero but anti-inflammatory, coworker but co-op, midthirties but mid-
July, promarket but pro-life. You will find that authoritative dictionaries like Merriam-
Webster and American Heritage, as well as many fine newspapers, now also acknowledge or even
prefer email.
Q. A colleague wants to use a hyphen in the phrase Friday-afternoon lecture. But isnt this an
overly rigid application of the phrasal adjective hyphenation rule in a case where it doesnt apply?
Friday afternoon is not a true phrasal adjective, but a temporal phrase. Join me for Sunday
morning brunch is the same as saying, Join me for brunch (on) Sunday morning. Interested in
your view on which is correct, and why.
A. Noun + noun phrases like Friday morning, where the first noun modifies the second noun,
do qualify as phrasal adjectives. A hyphen increases readability, since Friday followed by a noun
is not always part of a phrasal adjective: a Friday golf outing; a Friday birthday party. See section
2 of CMOS 16, 7.85 (noun + noun, single function).
Q. In CMOS (16th ed.), fig. 1.1, the ISBN is followed by a format designator in parenthesesthe
example given is (cloth). What are Chicagos other standard format labels for other types of
binding?
A. We use cloth, paper, and e-book.
Q. I am editing a work that refers many times to music recordings (albums). When using notes
and bibliography style, I assume that the full citation to the album should be put in the first
footnote, and in subsequent footnotes a short form is called for. What components are needed for
a shortened citation for a record album?
A. CMOS is silent, so choose the elements that make the most sense to you. Performer and title,
orchestra and title, composer and title, conductor and titleit neednt be the same choice for
every citation. Note that the first element in a short citation should be the element its listed under
in your bibliography.
Q. In 14.181 (16th ed.) you only have No volume number or date only, but what about no issue
number but volume only? What is the correct way of reference? Ecological Economics 82, 23-32
or Ecological Economics 82: 23-32?
A. A colon is more clear. In some cases the numbers in the citation would be confusing with a
comma.
Ambiguous:
Journal Title 18, 2332.
Journal Title 18, 6, 12.
Clear:
Journal Title 18:2332.
Journal Title 18:6, 12.
Q. If I am writing out foreign book titles followed by the English title in parentheses, should the
English titles appear in italics or quotations?
A. Chicago style writes the translation in plain text, no italics or quotes, no headline caps. Please
see CMOS 16, 14.108:
Koniec sojuszu trzech cesarzy [The end of the Three Emperors League]
If the book was published under an English title, however, then put the English title in italics as
you would any other published book (CMOS 16, 14.109):
Furet, Franois. Le pass dune illusion. Paris: ditions Robert Laffont, 1995. Translated
by Deborah Furet as The Passing of an Illusion (Chicago: University of Chicago Press,
1999).
Q. Im writing a book with hundreds of direct quotations. One guy keeps saying 24/7. Looks
strange to write it twenty-four/seven, but that would be the standard CMOS rule, would it not?
A. Another CMOS rule is if it looks odd, dont do it.
Q. Some compound adjectives are always hyphenated, even after the verb. Is worry-
free hyphenated after the verb, as in this sentence: Audit trails and compliance tools make the
process worry-free?
A. A compound formed with free as the second element is hyphenated both before and after
the noun it refers to. (Whether such a phrase follows a verb is irrelevant.) Please see CMOS 16,
7.85, section 3, under the word free:
toll-free number
accident-free driver
the number is toll-free
the driver is accident-free
Q. We published a book in 2014 and did not think it would need a second printing. The book has
since sold out, and now we plan to issue a second printing in 2017. Is it overkill to include an
impression line on the copyright page? We do not plan a third printing, but, of course, we were
wrong the first time. We would have something like
17 2

in the second. Is it ever appropriate to indicate the second printing in a narrative form?

A. There are probably many editors who have found themselves in this position. Its never
inappropriate to add helpful information. Second printing or 2nd printing would be crystal
clear, but if you prefer to have an impression line, 17 2 would baffle most readers. To make a
traditional second-impression line for a book published in 2017, write something like
21 20 19 18 17 2 3 4

Q. In Chicago style after how many words do you use a block quote?
A. Please see CMOS 16, 13.10 (Choosing between Run-In and Block Quotations): In deciding
whether to run in or set off a quotation, length is usually the deciding factor. In general, a short
quotation, especially one that is not a full sentence, should be run in. A hundred words or more (at
least six to eight lines of text in a typical manuscript) can generally be set off as a block
quotation.