TUV AP Style

Taliban

Extremist Islamic movement in Afghanistan

team

Use singular verb and pronoun "it" when referring to the team as a collective unit. However, the team name takes a plural verb: The Orlando Magic are close to setting a franchise record.

tea party

Movement in the United States that opposed the Washington political establishment and espoused conservative and libertarian philosophy

telephone numbers

Use hyphens, not periods. No parentheses.

The form for toll-free numbers: 800-111-1000.

If extension numbers are needed, use a comma to separate the main number from the extension: 212-621-1500, Ext. 2.

television program titles

In text or listing, treat programs named after the star in any of the following ways: "The Mary Tyler Moore Show," "Mary Tyler Moore" or the Mary Tyler Moore show. But be consistent in a story or set of listings.

Use quotation marks also for the title of an episode: "The Clean Room Infiltration," an episode of "The Big Bang Theory." Also: "NBC Nightly News," the "Today" show, "The Tonight Show."

television stations

The call letters alone are frequently adequate, but when this phrase is needed, use lowercase: television station WTEV.

temperatures

In recipes: 450 F or 232 C.

Use figures for all except zero. Use a word, not a minus sign, to indicate temperatures below zero.

Right: The day's low was minus 10.

Right: The day's low was 10 below zero.

Wrong: The day's low was -10.

Right: The temperature rose to zero by noon.

Right: The day's high was expected to be 9 or 10.

terrorism

Instead of labeling an attack or attacker as terrorism or terrorist, AP describes the specific atrocity, massacre, bombing, or assassination, and so on. We do not use the terms terrorism or terrorist for specific actions or groups, other than when attributed to authorities or others.

Thanksgiving, Thanksgiving Day

The fourth Thursday in November.

than, then

Than is a conjunction used to compare things; then is an adverb used to place events in time or things in order. He wrote a volume that was longer than the AP Stylebook, and then published it.

that, which

Use that and which in referring to inanimate objects and to animals without a name. Use that for essential clauses, important to the meaning of a sentence, and without commas: I remember the day that we met. Use which for nonessential clauses, where the clause is less necessary, and use commas: The team, which finished last a year ago, is in first place.

theater

Use this spelling unless the proper name is Theatre: Shubert Theatre.

their, there, they’re

Their is a plural possessive pronoun that, in general, should agree in number with the antecedent

There is an adverb indicating direction: We went there for dinner.

There also is used with the force of a pronoun for impersonal constructions in which the real subject follows the verb: There is no food on the table.

They're is a contraction for they are.

Third World

Avoid use of this term. Developing nations is more appropriate when referring to the economically developing nations of Africa, Asia and Latin America.

time element

Use the days of the week, not today or tonight, in news stories.

Use Monday, Tuesday, etc., for days of the week within seven days before or after the current date.

Avoid such redundancies as last Tuesday or next Tuesday. The past, present or future tense used for the verb usually provides adequate indication of which Tuesday is meant: He said he finished the job Tuesday. She will return Tuesday.

times

Use figures except for noon and midnight. Use a colon to separate hours from minutes: 11 a.m., 1 p.m., 3:30 p.m.,

Avoid such redundancies as 10 a.m. this morning, 10 p.m. tonight or 10 p.m. Monday night. Use 10 a.m. or 10 p.m. Monday, etc., as required by the norms in time element.

The construction 4 o'clock is acceptable, but time listings with a.m. or p.m. are preferred.

titles

In general, confine capitalization to formal titles used directly before an individual's name

today, tonight

Use the day of the week, not today or tonight, in news stories. In news stories, use today or tonight only in direct quotations, and in phrases that do not refer to a specific day

tomorrow

Use only in direct quotations and in phrases that do not refer to a specific day: The world of tomorrow will need additional energy resources.

Use the day of the week in other cases.

toward

not towards

trademark

A trademark is a brand, symbol, word, etc., used by a manufacturer or dealer and protected by law to prevent a competitor from using it: AstroTurf, for a type of artificial grass, for example.

In general, use a generic equivalent unless the trademark name is essential to the story.

treasurer

Capitalize when used as a formal title immediately before a name.

The secretary of the U.S. Department of the Treasury is not the same person as the U.S. treasurer.

trustee

A person to whom another's property or the management of another's property is entrusted.

Do not capitalize if used before a name.

TSA PreCheck

Transportation Security Administration. TSA is acceptable on first reference in this usage, but spell out the agency's full name later. In other uses, TSA should be used only on second reference.

T-shirt

Acceptable to use tee on subsequent references.

24/7

24/7

UFOs, UAPs

The U.S. government uses the term UAPs, short for unidentified anomalous phenomena, for what have long been called UFOs, short for unidentified flying objects.

Until the term UAP is more widely known, use UFO or UFOs on first reference. Explain later in the story that the U.S. government calls them UAPs, or unidentified anomalous phenomena (including the spelled-out version in the explanation). Either UFOs or UAPs is acceptable in references after that explanation.

U.N.

short for United Nations. Use periods in U.N., for consistency with U.S. within texts. In headlines, it's UN (no periods)

underway

one word not two words

unemployment rate

The unemployment rate is expressed as a percentage figure. The essential calculation involves dividing the total workforce into the number of people looking for jobs, followed by adjustments to reflect variable factors such as seasonal trends.

unique

The word can mean one of a kind, unparalleled, having no equal, etc.; or highly unusual, extraordinary, rare, etc. If used in the sense of one of a kind, don’t use modifiers such as very, rather, etc.

United Nations

Abbrev: U.N. (no space). Use periods in U.N., for consistency with U.S. within texts

United States

Use periods in the abbreviation, U.S. within texts. In headlines, it's US (no periods).

U.S.

The abbreviation is acceptable as a noun or adjective for United States. Either U.S. or United States is acceptable

USA

No periods in the abbreviated form for United States of America.

U.S. Court of Appeals

A phrase such as a federal appeals court is acceptable on first reference.

On first reference to the full name, use U.S. Court of Appeals or a full name: 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals or the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit.

In shortened and subsequent references: the Court of Appeals, the 2nd Circuit, the appeals court, the appellate court(s), the circuit court(s), the court.

Do not create nonexistent entities such as the San Francisco Court of Appeals. Make it the U.S. Court of Appeals in San Francisco.

U.S. Postal Service

Use U.S. Postal Service or the Postal Service on first reference. Retain capitalization of Postal Service in subsequent references to the agency.

Lowercase the service when it stands alone. Lowercase post office in generic references to the agency and to an individual office: I went to the post office.

U.S. Marshals Service

No apostrophe - U.S. Marshals Service

USS

For United States Ship, Steamer or Steamship, preceding the name of a vessel: the USS Iowa.

In datelines:

ABOARD USS IOWA (AP) –

vaccine, vaccination

Don’t refer to a vaccine as a drug, medicine or serum.

Do not say anti-COVID-19 vaccine or anti-coronavirus vaccine. Instead: COVID-19 vaccine (or vaccination) or coronavirus vaccine (or vaccination). The terms COVID-19 and coronavirus are both acceptable as a modifier for the vaccine or vaccination.

Valentine’s Day

Feb. 14. Honors the saint martyred in third-century Rome. Sweethearts mark it by exchanging valentines.

valley

Capitalize as part of a full name: the Mississippi Valley.

Lowercase in plural uses: the Missouri and Mississippi valleys.

vaping

Inhaling vapor from an electronic cigarette or other vaping device (not vape device)

Velcro

A trademark for a brand of fabric fastening products that can be pressed together or pulled apart. Use a generic term such as fabric fastener.

versus

Spell it out in ordinary speech and writing: The proposal to revamp Medicare versus proposals to reform Medicare and Medicaid at the same time ... In short expressions, however, the abbreviation vs. is permitted: The issue of guns vs. butter has long been with us.

For court cases, use v.: Marbury v. Madison.

Veterans Day

Formerly Armistice Day, Nov. 11, the anniversary of the armistice that ended World War I in 1918.

The federal legal holiday, observed on the fourth Monday in October during the mid-1970s, reverted to Nov. 11 in 1978.

veto, vetoes

(n.) The verb forms: vetoed, vetoing.

vice

Use two words: vice admiral, vice chairman, vice chancellor, vice consul, vice president, vice principal, vice regent, vice secretary.

Vietnam War

Vietnam War

vote tabulations

Always use figures for the totals.

Spell out below 10 in other phrases related to voting: by a five-vote majority, with three abstentions, four votes short of the necessary two-thirds majority.