A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
Q
R
S
T
U
V
W
X
Y
Z
Special sections
What's
New Armed
Forces Arts
Churches
Courts
Politics
Sport
Titles
Jaafari, Ibrahim Iraqi Prime Minister (not al-Jaafari)
jack-knife use hyphen
Jackson, General Sir Mike (never Michael), the former Chief of the
General Staff . See Armed Forces special section
Jackson, Michael died on June 25, 2009, aged 50. No need to quote his
sobriquet, the King of Pop. Note the Jackson 5 (figure, not spelt out).
Drugs mentioned in connection with his death are Demerol and Valium (cap),
trade names for pethidine and diazepam respectively. See drug names
Jacuzzi is a trade name, so cap; the company objects to use of the name
as a noun, so write Jacuzzi bath only if certain of attribution, whirlpool
bath or spa bath if in doubt
jail, jailer (not gaol, gaoler generally; but note The Ballad of
Reading Gaol): remember that an offender aged 15 cannot be "jailed"; he or
she is sentenced to detention in a young offender institution
jail sentences note that totting up the total number of years to which
a number of defendants have been jailed is meaningless. Give the sentences
of named individuals. If room does not allow, list the sentences of
principal offenders and report that so many other people were jailed or
whatever
Jaish-e-Mohammed a Pakistan-based militant group (JeM)
Jamaat-ud-Dawa note hyphens; at subsequent mentions, JuD may be written
for this Pakistan-based Wahhabi organisation. See Lashkar-e-Taiba
Janjawid not Janjaweed, as per our preference for single -i- rather
than -ee- in Arabic names. See Sudan
jargon like journalese and slang, to be strictly avoided; specialised
areas always need considered explanations for our readers. See
management-speak
Jazz FM do not use the l/c logo version
JD Wetherspoon the pub chain founded by Tim Martin
Jedda see Saudi
Jeep is a trade name, so must be capped; use only if strictly
applicable, otherwide cross-country vehicle, small military truck etc
Jehovah's Witness(es)
Jekyll and Hyde (from The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, by R.
L. Stevenson)
jellaba
jellybean one word
Jerry Springer: The Opera note the colon
Jerusalem l/c for east/west Jerusalem. Jerusalem must not be used as a
metonym or variant for Israel. It is not internationally recognised as the
Israeli capital, and its status is one of the central controversies in the
Middle East. Although the Knesset, the Israeli parliament, sits in
Jerusalem, most embassies are in Tel Aviv. Jerusalem is known in Arabic as
al-Quds
jet lag (two words)
jetliner avoid; say airliner or simply jet
jet ski two words as noun, but to jet-ski (verb, hyphen)
jet stream two words as adjective and noun; but jet-stream (hyphen)
adjectivally
jeune maman in some contexts, best translated as new mother, rather
than young mother. Note also jeunes mariés, meaning newly-weds
jeweller, jewellery
jibe avoid this spelling. See gibe
Jiffy bag (cap, trade name)
jihad, holy war (roman, l/c)
Jobcentre cap. Note that the government agency that runs Jobcentres is
called Jobcentre Plus
jobseeker's allowance
job titles the general rule is that for the most senior high-profile
jobs we should cap at first mention, and thereafter l/c. Thus most church
titles, senior civil servants, diplomatic and political leaders, civic
leaders, Editor (of well-known leading publications), Director-General (of
the BBC, CBI etc), Vice-Chancellor and academic titles, Chief Constable and
police ranks, military titles, President of a small number of high-profile
national institutions (eg, President of the Law Society, the TUC, colleges
etc), all take the cap at first mention if the full version is given and
then - usually - l/c thereafter. Exceptions where the cap is retained are
Prime Minister, President (of a state), Archbishop and Bishop.
However, chairman, director, managing director (of a company), general
secretary (of a union), artistic director (of a theatre) etc are l/c; so are
most presidents and chairmen of societies and institutions. A certain amount
of discretion is needed in this difficult area
jodhpurs
John o' Groats
Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore
Johnston, Alan the BBC journalist who was kidnapped in Gaza
Joint Chiefs of Staff (US)
jokey prefer to joky
Jones, Vinnie (not Vinny), the footballer turned actor
Jonsson, Ulrika
joyrider (no hyphen), but use as little as possible as the term gives
offence to many readers; the last emotion these car thieves bring to their
victims is joy. An alternative could be young car thief
JP (Justice of the Peace) remains, in some contexts, an acceptable
alternative for a magistrate or a district judge in a magistrates' court.
Thus, we no longer write Josephine Bloggs, JP, but rather Josephine Bloggs,
a magistrate; but we could write "The JPs decided ... " as a variant to "The
magistrates decided ... ". See magistrates' courts and Courts special
section
jubilee strictly a fiftieth anniversary, though Queen Victoria had a
golden and a diamond one; so the word can be used as a periodic celebration,
especially of royalty. Note the Queen's Golden Jubilee in 2002, and also
note Jubilee Line (caps) on the London Underground
Judaea (not Judea)
judges' names For all circuit judges and below (ie, those in the Crown
Court, in county courts, and district judges), always include their first
name at first mention. Thus, write Judge Fred Potts at first mention,
subsequently Judge Potts or simply the judge.
First names will not normally be necessary with High Court judges unless there
are two or more with the same surname, where again it will be essential to
differentiate.
The failure to identify a judge correctly can lead to complaints, corrections
and even the payment of substantial damages.
In the High Court, Mr Justice X should be referred to this way throughout a
story (or simply the judge) - never as Judge X. Be careful not to confuse a
judge in the Court of Appeal (a Lord Justice of Appeal) with a law lord of
the House of Lords, the most senior judges, who are Lords of Appeal in
Ordinary (such as Lord Nolan and Lord Hoffmann).
Note the designation of Lady Justice Butler-Sloss when she was a judge, and
likewise other women judges.
See Courts special section
judging by one of the most frequently misused unrelated (or
disconnected) participle constructions. Remember, the phrase must have a
related subject to follow (I, we, she etc). A convenient alternative is “to
judge from ...” (eg, “Judging by this film, the country is in a mess” is
wrong; “To judge from this film, the country is in a mess” is correct; so is
“Judging by this film, we conclude that the country is in a mess”). See
participles
judgment (not judgement)
jukebox (no hyphen)
jump-jet (hyphen), but jumbo jet (no hyphen)
junior abbreviate to Jr (not Jnr) in the American context, eg, John
Eisendorf Jr. See senior
junta by definition, a military government, so do not write tautologies
such as "ruling military junta"
Juppé, Alain French politician
just deserts things that are deserved. Not to be confused with just
desserts, when only puddings are on the menu
Justices' Clerks' Society (two apostrophes)
juvenile courts were renamed youth courts. See Courts special
section
Last edited: July 9, 2009
