U.S. Government Printing Office Style Manual/Italic

by United States Government Printing Office

11. Italic
(See also Chapter 9 "Abbreviations and Letter Symbols"
and Chapter 16 "Datelines, Addresses, and Signatures")

11.1.

Italic is sometimes used to differentiate or to give greater prominence to words, phrases, etc. However, an excessive amount of italic defeats this purpose and should be restricted.

Emphasis, foreign words, and titles of publications

11.2.

Italic is not used for mere emphasis, foreign words, or the titles of publications.

11.3.

In nonlegal work, ante, post, infra, and supra are italicized only when part of a legal citation. Otherwise these terms, as well as the abbreviations id., ibid., op. cit., et seq., and other foreign words, phrases, and their abbreviations, are printed in roman.

11.4.

When "emphasis in original," "emphasis supplied," "emphasis added," or "emphasis ours" appears in copy, it should not be changed; but "underscore supplied" should be changed to "italic supplied." Therefore, when emphasis in quoted or extracted text is referred to by the foregoing terms, such emphasized text must be reflected and set in italic.

11.5.

When copy is submitted with instructions to set "all roman (no italic)," these instructions will not apply to Ordered, Resolved, Be it enacted, etc.; titles following signatures or addresses; or the parts of datelines which are always set in italic.

Names of aircraft, vessels, and spacecraft

11.6.

The names of aircraft, vessels, and manned spacecraft are italicized unless otherwise indicated. In lists set in columns and in stubs and reading columns of tables consisting entirely of such names they will be set in roman. Missiles and rockets will be set in caps and lowercase and will not be italicized.

SS America; the liner America

the Bermuda Clipper

USS Los Angeles (submarine)

USS Wisconsin

ex-USS Savannah

USCGS (U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey) ship Pathfinder

C.S.N. Virginia

CG cutter Thetus

the U-7

destroyer 31

H.M.S. Hornet

HS (hydrofoil ship) Denison

MS (motorship) Richard

GTS (gas turbine ship) Alexander

NS (nuclear ship) Savannah

MV (motor vessel) Havtroll

Apollo 13, Atlantis (U.S. spaceships)

West Virginia class or type

the Missouri's (roman "s") turret

the U-7's (roman "s") deck

 

but

Air Force One (President's plane)

B-50 (type of plane)

DD-882

LST-1155

MiG; MiG-35

PT-109

F-22 Raptor

F-117 Nighthawk (Stealth fighter)

A-10 Thunderbolt

11.7.

Names of vessels are quoted in matter printed in other than lowercase roman, even if there is italic type available in the series.

Sinking of the "Lusitania"

Sinking of the "Lusitania"

Sinking of the "Lusitania"

SINKING OF THE "LUSITANIA"

Names of legal cases

11.8.

The names of legal cases are italicized, except for the v., which is always set in lowercase. When requested, the names of such cases may be set in roman with an italic v. In matter set in italic, legal cases are set in roman with the v. being set roman.

"The Hornet" and "The Hood," 124 F.2d 45

Smith v. Brown et al.

Smith Bros, case (172 App. Div. 149)

Smith Bros, case, supra

Smith Bros, case

As cited in Smith Bros.

Smith v. Brown et al. (heading)

SMITH v. BROWN ET AL. (heading)

Durham rule

Brown decision

John Doe v. Richard Roe

but John Doe against Richard Roe, the Cement case.

Scientific names

11.9.

The scientific names of genera, subgenera, species, and subspecies (varieties) are italicized, but are set in roman in italic matter; the names of groups of higher rank than genera (phyla, classes, orders, families, tribes, etc.) are printed in roman.

A.s. perpallidus

Dorothid 1 . sp. (roman "?")

Tsuga canadensis

Cypripedium parviflorum var. pubescens

the genera Quercus and Liriodendron

the family Leguminosae; the family Nessiteras rhomhopteryx

Measurements of specimens of Cyanoderma erythroptera neocara

11.10.

Quotation marks should be used in place of italic for scientific names appearing in lines set in caps, caps and small caps, or boldface, even if there is italic type available in the series.

Words and letters

11.11.

The words Resolved, Resolved further, Provided, Provided, however, Provided further, And provided further, and ordered, in bills, acts, resolutions, and formal contracts and agreements are italicized; also the words To be continued, Continued on p. —, Continued from p. —, and See and see also (in indexes and tables of contents only).

Resolved, That (resolution)

Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That

[To be continued] (centered; no period)

[Continued from p. 3] (centered; no period)

see also Mechanical data (index entry)

11.12.

All letters (caps, small caps, lowercase, superiors, and inferiors) used as symbols are italicized. In italic matter roman letters are used. Chemical symbols (even in italic matter) and certain other standardized symbols are set in roman.

nth degree; x dollars

D÷O.025V_m^2.7=0.042/G-1V_m^2.7

5Cu₂S.2(Cu,Fe,Zn)S.2Sb₂S₃O₄

11.13.

Letter designations in mathematical and scientific matter, except chemical symbols, are italicized.

11.14.

Letter symbols used in legends to illustrations, drawings, etc., or in text as references to such material, are set in italic without periods and are capitalized if so shown in copy.

11.15.

Letters (a), (b), (c), etc., and a, b, c, etc., used to indicate sections or paragraphs, are italicized in general work but not in laws and other legal documents.

11.16.

Internet Web sites and email addresses should be set in roman.