AP Style NOP

NAACP

Acceptable in all references for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. Define as the nation's oldest civil rights organization. Headquarters is in Baltimore.

Naloxone

Use the generic term naloxone for the opioid-overdose antidote often carried by first responders and caregivers for people with heroin addiction, with explanation if necessary. Not synonymous with Narcan

names

In general, use only last names on second reference. When it is necessary to distinguish between two people who use the same last name, generally use the first and last name on subsequent references. Generally use the name a person prefers: Thomas or Tom, In general, call children 15 or younger by their first name on second reference.

Nasdaq Stock Market

The world's first all-electronic stock market and a direct competitor to the New York Stock Exchange. Parent company is Nasdaq Inc.

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

NASA is acceptable in all references.

National FFA Organization

Formerly the Future Farmers of America. FFA is acceptable on second reference.

National Gaurd

Capitalize when referring to U.S. or state-level forces, or foreign forces when that is the formal name: the National Guard, the Guard, When referring to an individual in a National Guard unit, use National Guard member or guard member.

nationalist

Lowercase when referring to a partisan of a country. Capitalize only when referring to alignment with a political party for which this is the proper name.

National Weather Service

Use National Weather Service on first reference and weather service on subsequent references.

Nativity scence

Only the first word is capitalized.

Nationwide

Nationwide

naval, navel

Use naval in copy pertaining to a navy.

A navel is a bellybutton.

A navel orange is a seedless orange, so named because it has a small depression, like a navel.

navy

Capitalize when referring to U.S. forces: the U.S. Navy, the Navy, Navy policy. Do not use the abbreviation USN.

New England

Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont.

newspaper names

Capitalize the in a newspaper's name if that is the way the publication prefers to be known. Do not place name in quotation marks.

New Year’s Day, New Years’s Eve, Happy New Year

Capitalize for the days of Dec. 31 and Jan. 1 and in exclamations. For resolutions made on or around Jan. 1, the phrase is New Year's resolutions

New York Stock Exchange

NYSE is acceptable on second reference.

9/11

For the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, 9/11 is acceptable in all references. (Note comma to set off the year when the phrase refers to a month, date and year.)

911

Acceptable in all references for the U.S. emergency call number: He called 911 to report a crash

No.

Use as the abbreviation for number in conjunction with a figure to indicate position or rank: No. 1 man,

nobility

References to members of the nobility in nations that have a system of rank present special problems because nobles frequently are known by their titles rather than their given or family names.

nonprofit

Nongovernmental organization. Usually refers to a nonprofit, humanitarian organization. Use NGO sparingly and only on second reference

noon

Do not put a 12 in front of it.

North Atlantic Treaty Organization

NATO is acceptable in all references.

Northeast region

Use Northeast for the nine-state region as defined by the U.S. Census Bureau that is broken into two divisions. Capitalize Northeastern as an adjective describing the region.

The six New England states are Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont.

The three Middle Atlantic states are New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania. Also acceptable is mid-Atlantic.

numerals

In general, follow numerals entry in main section, spelling out one through nine in most uses and using figures for 10 or above.

N-word

Do not use this term or the racial slur it refers to, except in extremely rare circumstances — when it is crucial to the story or the understanding of a news event

obscenities, profanities, vulgarities

Do not use them in stories unless they are part of direct quotations and there is a compelling reason for them.

occupational titles

They are always lowercase.

occur, occurred, occurring

occurrence

ocean

The five, from the largest to the smallest: Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, Antarctic Ocean, Arctic Ocean.

Lowercase ocean standing alone or in plural uses: the ocean, the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.

office

Capitalize office when it is part of an agency's formal name: Office of Management and Budget. Lowercase all other

OK, OK’d, OK’ing, OKs

Do not use okay.

on

Do not use on before a date or day of the week when its absence would not lead to confusion, except at the beginning of a sentence: The meeting will be held Monday. He will be inaugurated Jan. 20. On Sept. 3, the committee will meet to discuss the issue.

opiate, opiod

Opiate refers to drugs derived directly from the poppy plant, such as morphine and codeine.

Opioids are synthetic or partially synthetic manufactured drugs that mimic the properties of opiates

organizations and institutions

Capitalize the full names of organizations and institutions: the American Medical Association; First Presbyterian Church; General Motors Co.;

Oval Office

The White House office of the president.

over

Acceptable in all uses to indicate greater numerical value. The crop was valued at over $5 billion

owner

Not a formal title. Always lowercase: Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones.

page numbers

Use figures and capitalize page when used with a figure. When a letter is appended to the figure, capitalize it but do not use a hyphen: Page 1, Page 10, Page 20A

palate, palette, pallet

A palate refers to the roof of the mouth and the sense of taste (to have a sophisticated palate); palette is the term for an artist's paint board.

Parent Teacher Association

Acceptable in all references for Parent Teacher Association.

Parkinson’s disease

After James Parkinson, the English physician who described this degenerative disease of later life.

parliament, Parliament

Uppercase when referring to the legislative body in Great Britain or other countries.

party affiliation

A political figure's party affiliation is often relevant, but not always.

Party affiliation can be used on first reference when it is the most important element to connect with the subject: Republican Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina said ...

– On second reference to add context between the party affiliation and the rest of the story: Rep. Frank Lucas of Oklahoma, the senior Republican on the House Agriculture Committee, said he supports the amendment.

PC

Acceptable on all references for personal computer.

pedal, peddle

When riding a bicycle or similar vehicle, you pedal it. When selling something, you may peddle it.

peninsula

Capitalize as part of a proper name: the Florida Peninsula, the Upper Peninsula of Michigan

people’s

---

Use this possessive form when the word occurs in the formal name of a nation: the People's Republic of China.

Use this form also in such phrases as the people's desire for freedom.

percent

Use the % sign when paired with a number, with no space, in most cases (a change in 2019): Average hourly pay rose 3.1% from a year ago

spell out zero percent

At the start of a sentence: Try to avoid this construction. If it’s necessary to start a sentence with a percentage, spell out both: Eighty-nine percent of sentences don’t have to begin with a number.

Persian Gulf

Use this long-established name for the body of water off the southern coast of Iran.

Some Arab nations call it the Arabian Gulf. Use Arabian Gulf only in direct quotations and explain in the text that the body of water is more commonly known as the Persian Gulf.

personifications

Capitalize them: Grim Reaper, Father Time, Mother Nature, Old Man Winter, Sol, etc.

Ph.D., Ph.D.s

The preferred form is to say a person holds a doctorate and name the individual's area of specialty.

planets

Capitalize the proper names of planets. In order from the sun, they are Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune.

planning

Avoid the redundant future planning.

plants

In general, lowercase the names of plants, but capitalize proper nouns or adjectives that occur in a name.

Some examples: tree, fir, white fir, Douglas fir; Scotch pine; clover, white clover, white Dutch clover.

plead, pleaded, pleading

plead, pleaded, pleading

Plexiglas

Note the single s. A trademark for plastic glass.

p.m., a.m.

Lowercase, with periods. Avoid the redundant 10 p.m. tonight.

police department

In communities where this is the formal name, capitalize police department with or without the name of the community: the Los Angeles Police Department, the Police Department.

political divisons

Use Arabic figures and capitalize the accompanying word when used with the figures: 1st Ward, 10th Ward

political parties and philosophies

Capitalize both the name of the party and the word party if it is customarily used as part of the organization's proper name: the Democratic Party, the Republican Party.

Include the political affiliation of any elected officeholder.

pope

Capitalize when used as a formal title before a name; lowercase in all other uses: Pope Francis spoke to the crowd.

populism

Political philosophy or ideas that promote the rights and power of ordinary people as opposed to political and intellectual elites. Avoid labeling politicians or political parties as populist, other than in a quote or paraphrase: He calls himself a populist. Using the term in a general context is acceptable: The panelists discussed the rise of populism in Europe. She appealed to populist fervor.

pore, pour

The verb pore means to gaze intently or steadily: She pored over her books.

The verb pour means to flow in a continuous stream: It poured rain. He poured the coffee.

possessives

Follow these guidelines: PLURAL NOUNS NOT ENDING IN S: Add 's: the alumni's contributions, women's rights.

Post-it

A trademark for small pieces of paper with an adhesive strip on the back that can be attached to documents.

post office

It may be used but it is no longer capitalized because the agency is now the U.S. Postal Service.

post-traumatic stress disorder

The shorthand PTSD is acceptable on first reference, but spell out on second reference. Describe a person as having PTSD only if relevant to the story, and if a medical diagnosis has been made or the person uses the term

premiere

A first performance.

premier, prime minister

These two titles often are used interchangeably in translating to English the title of an individual who is the first minister in a national government that has a council of ministers.

Prime minister is the correct title throughout the Commonwealth,

president

Capitalize president only as a formal title before one or more names: President Joe Biden, former Presidents Donald Trump and Barack Obama.

Lowercase in all other uses: The president said Monday he will look into the matter

priest

A vocational description, not a formal title. Do not capitalize.

primary

Do not capitalize: the New Hampshire primary, the Democratic primary, the primary.

principal, principle

Principal is a noun and adjective meaning someone or something first in rank, authority, importance or degree: She is the school principal

Principle is a noun that means a fundamental truth, law, doctrine or motivating force: They fought for the principle of self-determination.

professor

Never abbreviate. Lowercase before a name, but capitalize Professor Emeritus

prostate gland

A gland that surrounds the urethra at the base of the bladder in males. PSA blood test is acceptable on all references.

public schools

Use figures and capitalize public school when used with a figure: Public School 3, Public School 10.

If a school has a commemorative name, capitalize the name: Benjamin Franklin School.