A a, an... Use "a" before consonant sounds, including the aspirated "h": a historic moment, a 1-year term, a united stand, a KGB agent. Use "an" before vowel sounds or a silent "h": an energy crisis, an honorable man, an 800·pound gorilla, an NSA regulation. abbreviations... See Appendix 1 for a complete discussion of abbreviations and acronyms. abeam ... Means "at right angles to an axis or path." aboard... A single word, often referring to a vehicle that carries passengers, such as a train. See the entry for on board. -P . L. abound... Usually followed by "in" or "with." about, approximately... About is preferred in general and informal contexts. Approximately is common in technical and reference works. Do not use either term (or estimated or nearly) if precise figures are given. POOR: During the attack, about 304 were killed. GOOD: During the attack, 304 were killed. If you are not sure of the number, round it off: During the attack, about 300 were killed. absolute adjectives... According to purists, a few adjectives have no comparative or superlative modifiers. These include eternal, fatal, incessant, maximum, minimum, optimum, complete, perfect, and unique. In tact, most adjectives cannot be compared because their meaning is too technical or specific, or they name a quality that cannot exist in degrees. Examples are diocesan, antinomian, aquatic, graven, and electromagnetic. Adjectives expressing qualities are never compared when used in their strict sense. When used in a modified or figurative sense, however, they have been and can be compared. Actually, respectable writers have used qualifiers through the centuries for many of the so-called absolutes. The U.S. Constitution, for example, includes the phrase "to form a more perfect union." Here "more" is used to mean "more nearly." Therefore, if you are using these adjectives in a figurative or modified sense, go ahead and modify: Sandy has a more complete understanding of Hegelian philosophy than anyone else I know. If you are using them in a literal sense, do not modify: There are no perfect humans. See the entry for unique. absolute phrases... An absolute phrase--often used to provide details--is one that is independent of the main clause of a sentence. EXAMPLE: Their ship having sailed, we went home. The absolute phrase generally contains either a present or past participle. The subject of the absolute phrase and the subject of the sentence are always different. The absolute phrase sometimes consists of a prepositional phrase without the preposition: He ran to her, [with] a bouquet of flowers in his hand, and asked her to marry him. Be careful to distinguish between the absolute phrase, which is standard English, and the dangling modifier, which is not acceptable. See the entry for dangling modifjer. abstract noun... Abstract nouns refer to actions, concepts, events, qualities, or states. Examples include hour, love, and joke. See the entry for ~o_ncrete _noui]_S. accent marks... Since most of our word-processing systems cannot make accent marks, type the word without the mark(ei/REL): emigre, attache. accept... Accept means "receive with consent" or "approve of": He accepted the nomination. He could not accept the situation. It should never be confused with the verb "except". acronyms... See 8pp_endix 1 for a complete discussion of abbreviations and acronyms. act, action... An act is the deed accomplished by an action. Example: John Hinkley committed an act of murder by the action of shooting singer John Lennon. acting president... Capitalize both words when used as part of the title of a national-level figure: Acting President John Doe. Use lowercase letters in all other instances: Jane Doe, the acting president of the Garden Club, left for Brazil today. active voice... While the active voice tends to be shorter and more direct, there are good reasons to use the passive voice. Do not use a hard-and-fast rule ("Avoid the passive voice") but consider each case carefully before deciding which to use. See the entry for passive voice. activity ... Do not use phrases such as exercise activity or weather activity. Say exercise or weather. See the entries for conoition and s.ituati_on. adjectives... Use adjectives sparingly in SIGINT reporting. Avoid phrases like "audible sounds" and "radical terrorists" that add nothing to the reader's comprehension. Use adjectives only when they add something significant to the meaning of the statement. • Adjectives that precede the nouns they modify are attributive adjectives. • Adjectives that follow the verb be or a linking verb are predicate adjectives. • Appositive adjectives may precede or follow the noun. See the entries for ilppositive and attributive; see the commq. entry for guidance on punctuating a series of adjectives. advance, advancement... Advance, as a noun, carries the sense of forward movement. Advancement implies the existence and action of an agent or outside force. adverbs ... Adverbs can modify verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs. An adverb may appear before or after the word it modifies, sometimes with several intervening words: He ran quickly. She suddenly changed course. I wanted to present the gift formally. Sometimes an adverb is placed between the auxiliary and main verbs: Theresa had barely avoided crashing into the wall. To avoid an awkward split, make sure that the adverb adds something useful to the sentence. If not, take it out: Bill was [really] working hard at the job. Avoid awkward splits, but do not avoid splits at all costs. If a sentence reads better or is clearer with the verb split, then split the verb. See the entries for f!C!.LadverQ$, :ly adverbs and ~mUllofinitive. adverse... Adverse means "unfavorable" and most often applies to non-human conditions: adverse circumstances, adverse weather. It is usually an attributive adjective. See the entry for averse. advice, advise... Advice is a noun; advise is a verb. adviser, advisor... Both are correct. For standardization, use the general term adviser rather than the legal term advisor. affect... Use affect only as a verb. It usually means "influence": Her speech affected the election. It also can mean "put on": He affected a dignified manner. Also see the entry for effect. age... Since age is a measurement of time, use numerals. Include hyphens when expressing age as an adjective before a noun (a 5-year-old boy) or as a substitute for a noun (the race is for 5-year-olds). When used as an adjective, but not before a noun, omit the hyphens: The girl is 5 years old. To express age ranges, add an "s": The suspect is in his 30s. agree... With a person, to a proposal, on a plan. aid, aide... Aid is assistance; an aide is a person who gives assistance to another. air base... Two words. (Compare to military base and naval base). aircraft... Do not abbreviate the generic types of aircraft in serialized reports. Use fighter, not "fir"; bomber, not "bmbr". In keeping with modern journalistic style, capitalize only the first letter of aircraft nicknames: F-15 (Eagle). aircraft designator... ~Always use the true designator (and when it is known the specific version, e.g., MiG-23E) in the title and lead of a serialized report. In a short report, use only the true designator. ~Inareportoffourormoreparagraphs,usethetruedesignatorinthelead.Inthebody,includethetruedesignator ~~d:i~xists,the ASCC nickname, e.g., 11-62 (Classic) on first reference. Afterwards use either the designator or the nickname, but be consistent. Using the popular name for Western aircraft (e.g., F-15 Eagle, F-1 Mirage) is optional. Add an "s" to form the plural (MIG-21s, ll-62s, F·15s). air-launched cruise missile... Abbreviate as ALCM. Avoid the redundant ALCM missile. airline... A single word when referring to a transportation company, e.g., Alitalia Airlines. airport... One word; capitalize it when it is part of a proper name: Berlin Airport. air-to-air missile... Abbreviate as AAM. Do not use the word "missile" after the abbreviation. air-to-surface missile... Abbreviate as ASM. Avoid the redundant ASM missile. airway... One word. Defined in JCS Pub 1-02 as "A control area or portion thereof established in the form of a corridor marked with radio navigational aids" and in Jane's Aerospace Dictionary as "An air route provided with ground organization." ALFA... Phonetic spelling of the letter "a." alias, a.k.a.... Use periods and lower-case letters (a.k.a., not AKA) allege, alleged, alleging... No "d" before the "g"; use these forms to describe what has not been proven to be the case, e.g., alleged murderer (who is a real, not alleged, suspect). If a murder is known to have occurred, it is a real murder, not an alleged murder. all of... All of is usual before personal pronouns: all of them. Either all or all of may be used before nouns. all ready... In the two-word form it means "prepared": The units are all ready to deploy. The all often can be deleted. Also see the entry for already. all right... In serialized reports, use the two-word form: Everything is all right. all together... Use the two-word form to indicate that the members of a group performed or underwent an action collectively. The two-word form is correct whenever the sentence can be rephrased and still make sense. The prisoners were confined all together could be stated as All the prisoners were confined together. Also see the entry for altog~thj;!r. allude, allusion... Usually means "refer to something indirectly," but also has the meaning "mention in passing." It is not synonymous with "refer" because an allusion is an indirect mention whereas a reference is a direct one. Also see the entries for E!IUdf! and illysion. ally ... When ally is used with to, it is usually followed by a verb in the past tense or a past participle. When ally is used with with, a greater variety of tenses appears. a lot... Do not use in serialized reports. already... As a single word, it means "previously." She had already left. See the entry for all ready. alternate, alternately... The idea here is that things occur in successive turns: My wife and I alternate picking up the mail, i.e., she goes one day and I go the next. Be cautious in using alternate as an adjective; it may confuse the reader. In a phrase such as the alternate plan, the reader may assume you are using a series of plans, one after the other. If you mean one choice from a set, use alternative. Also see the entry for ~tW_n_flt_ive. alternative, alternatively... The central idea behind the use of alternative is that of a choice of one among a set of possibilities. Traditionalists argue that no more than two alternatives can exist, but in actual usage writers have been referring to three or more alternatives for well over a century without confusing readers. See the entry for alternate. altitude ... Express altitudes in meters: 500 meters. Write out the word for meters before using the abbreviation, which is a lowercase "m": 500 m. altogether... Altogether is a single word meaning "wholly, entirely, thoroughly": That law is altogether unnecessary. Also see the entry for all together. always... Always means "on every occasion" or "forever." Do not use always when you mean "usually" or "habitually." ambassador... Capitalize when referring to a specific ambassador: Ambassador John Doe; the Zendian Ambassador. Do not capitalize when used alone: The ambassador arrived yesterday. ambiguity... Ambiguity is the actual or potential uncertainty of meaning that occurs when a word, phrase, or sentence can be understood in more than one way. In serialized reports, be as clear as possible in using words and phrases. amid... Do not use amidst. Amid stresses being surrounded: a house amid the trees. If you are referring to a location separating specific objects, use between: between the skyscrapers. See the entries for among and between. amok... Malay word; avoid it (and its variant form amuck). among... Among refers to being surrounded, or approximately so, by persons or objects that are individual and separable. It is usually followed by a plural or collective noun: living among the poor, living among the Bedouins. Among always refers to three or more. Pronouns following among are in the accusative case: There were several spies among them. Also see the entries for amid and between. amount of... Amount of is followed by singular mass nouns or by plural count nouns representing an aggregate. Amount usually takes a singular verb: The amount of money on hand was less than $100. Also see the entries for collectivenguns and numper of. amplitude modulation... Abbreviate as AM (capital letters and no periods). and... Although there is nothing wrong grammatically with using and at the beginning of a sentence, do not do so in serialized reports. Do not use a comma before and in a complex sentence unless it serves to connect independent clauses. WRONG: He walked during the early morning hours, and wrote during the afternoon. RIGHT: He walked during the morning hours and wrote during the afternoon. She did her research in the morning, and she did her interviews in the afternoon. NOTE: Some consider the comma optional when joining short independent clauses: He ran and I walked. Also see the entry for b_u1 and the box for comm~. and/or... A term used since 1853 in legal and commercial documents. Avoid it in SIGINT. Instead of "the ambassador and/or the charge d'affaires," say "the ambassador, the charge d'affaires, or both." See the entry for slant, slash, virgule. Anglo... Always capitalized. Use a hyphen when the word that follows is also capitalized: Anglo-Saxon. annual... This means "yearly" or "once a year." Since an event cannot be described as annual until it has been held in at least 2 successive years, avoid the term first annual. another... Some commentators argue that another refers to an additional element that in some way duplicates a previously stated quantity: Eight women passed, and another eight failed. They claim that it is incorrect to say Eight women passed, and another six failed since "six" does not duplicate "eight." In fact, most people will understand very clearly what you say, regardless of the numbers involved, since another refers to the noun in the phrase, not the number. ante... Prefix meaning "before"; usually not followed by a hyphen. Do not confuse it with the prefix hrases and misplaced modiJiers. dash... Use a dash to: • emphasize explanations, including appositives and definitions • emphasize a contrast • mark a sudden break or change in thought • setoffafinalclausethatsummarizesaseriesofideas. In electrical reports the dash consists of a pair of hyphens. Do not put a space before or after the dash. Be sure to place the won:I~SI/AEL) in dashes next to or near the words they explain: Rick's idea--a stupid one--was voted down. data, datum... The English word data is derived from the plural form of the Latin word datum. It is used in ways unrelated to its Latin ancestor. Unlike the plural of most count nouns, like "criteria" or "women," data cannot be modified by cardinal numbers. You can't say five data or two hundred data. Data, when used in the sense of an abstract mass noun (like "information"), takes a singular verb, modifiers, and pronoun: The data is clear, and it is consistent. (The earliest citation of data with a singular verb is from 1902.) When data takes on the sense of a plural noun, use a plural verb, modifiers, and pronoun: The data have been collected, and they are ready for analysis. Contrary to popular belief, the English word data is not related to the English count noun datum, which has its own meaning and plural form (datums). Merriam-Webster notes that all citations of datum prior to the mid-1960s were in the "learned media." The appearance since then of datum in the popular press, they speculate, may be due to the insistence of many newspaper editors that data is a plural only. See the entry for etymologic9-JJ9-J!acy. data base... Two words. data systems... When a generic description of a data system is not enough to differentiate between similar systems in a serialized report, use the cover name (e.g., SWAMP, MARKHAM). In such cases, give a narrative description and place the cover name (in capital letters) in parentheses right after the first use. In subsequent references the cover name may be used by itself. Also use a cover name when convention has made it commonplace. date... In serialized reports enter dates in day-month-year order only: 1 January 1995. Spell out the month in the narrative; in tables abbreviate the month using the first three letters: Jan, Feb, etc. When the month has been established, it is acceptable to refer to the date by the day only: again on the 27th; the next day. Include the month whenever its omission might confuse the reader. If all dates are in the current year, include the year only on the first reference. Always include the year as part of the date when it differs from the base year of the report. Do not use expressions like today, tomorrow, yesterday, or next week unless you are giving an exact quote. In that case provide the calendar date in parentheses immediately after: Tomorrow (15 April) we will attack from the west. For date ranges, choose either from 8 to 12 June or between 8 and 12 June. Use a hyphen only in tables of data. Dates in serialized reports do not take leading zeros: 4 July, not 04 July. Also see the entries for ordinal_date and time. day of the week... Abbreviate only in a tabular format. Use the first three letters: Mon., Tue, etc. Include the day of the week only when it provides necessary information. DDis...(Uitfl61:19t dearth ... Means a "scarcity" or "shortage." decade... In narrative text, always express a year or decade in four digits: 1990 or the 1990s, not ·90 or the 90s. Do not use an apostrophe when referring to decades: the 1990s, not the 1990's. Use the two-digit form only in listings or when citing a date-time-group (DTG): For more information on the Pridgian coup, see 2/00/123-95 121234Z JAN 95. decimals... Use a period and numerals to indicate decimal amounts. Extend the decimal no more than two places in most reports. Adjust the figures in a listing so that they line up on the decimal points. decimate... Originally meant "killing every tenth man as a punishment for cowardice or mutiny." Although usage since 1663 has expanded its meaning to "the destruction in any way of a large proportion of anything reckoned by number," it is not a synonym for "destroy" or "smash": WRONG: The town was decimated by the tornado. RIGHT: The town was smashed by the tornado. For the greatest accuracy, use decimate only with people: Famine decimated the population. (Not the land.) Do not use it with percentages other than one-tenth: WRONG: Famine decimated 37 percent of the population. See the entry for etymological fallacy. deduce, deduct... Deduce means "reach a conclusion by reasoning" or "trace the origin of something." Deduct carries the idea of "subtracting something from," as in deduct the total expenses from the total income. The noun deduction applies to both verb forms. defense... Use the American spelling, which is an "s," not a "c." See the entry for spelling. definitely... Avoid using this word unless you are strongly emphasizing a fact. In most cases, just state the fact. DELTA... Phonetic spelling of the letter "d." demolish, destroy... Both mean "do away with something." Purists say completely demolished and totally destroyed are redundant because demolished and destroyed are absolutes. This is inconsistent because even purists accept partially destroyed and partially demolished. Go ahead and use the modifiers without fear. denote... It means "mark or signify directly." Denote is used to indicate the thing a word names or the act it affirms: The word bachelor denotes an unmarried man. See the entry for connote. depart... Use a following preposition whenever amplifying or explaining: He will depart. He will depart from the train station. He will depart on Tuesday. deprecate, depreciate... Deprecate originally meant 'protest against." Today deprecate is used in the sense of "belittle" or "mildly disparage." Depreciate originally meant "reduce in value." Depreciate is used only as a financial term. desert, dessert... Desert has one "s," just like the word "sand." Dessert has an extra "s," just as a meal may have something extra. NOTE: In the phrase just deserts, the word deserts is related to the verb "deserve" and is spelled with one "s." desktop publishing (DTP)... A method of producing documents with embedded graphics and various fonts using a computer software package. Documents prepared using a DTP package should follow the principles of good design: effective use of white space, consistency, and restraint. The object is to make it easier to read--not a dazzling, pyrotechnic showcase of your skills. For serialized reports, follow the guidance in the Desktop Publishing Standards for SIGINT Reporting manual. destroy... See the entry for ®molish. dialogue... A dialogue is not restricted to two. The Greek dia means "through, across, or apart," not "two." It is used most often in relation to "two,' but also can have the meaning "an exchange of ideas and opinions" without reference to numbers. Thus, there can be a dialogue among several persons or parties. See the entry for etymological fallacy. dictionary... See the complete entry for dictional}'. different from/than/to... Things are different from each other: Her opinion is different from his. Even better, replace "is different from" with the phrase "differs from": Her opinion differs from his. The earliest recorded use of different from was in Shakespeare's Comedy of Errors in 1593. Different than is attested back to 1644. Today it is primarily American usage, especially when a clause follows "than": Gloria knew that things were different than they were when she was a child. In serialized reports, use different than only to compare differences: All three copies differ from the original, but the third is more different than the others. Different to is primarily British usage and dates back to 1603. dilemma... Dilemma originally was a rhetorical term for an argument presenting alternatives against an opponent, each of which was conclusive against him. It then was applied to a choice involving mutually exclusive alternatives or to the state of mind of a person making such a choice. By the middle of the 17th century, the word was also being applied to a choice between two unpleasant alternatives: He faced the dilemma of going to jail or becoming an informer. Today dilemma is most often used in instances in which the alternatives are not expressed or implied: "man's dilemma in society" (E.B. White). As such, it functions as a synonym for "predicament" or "problem" and in this sense is standard English. dimensions... See the entry for measurement. directions and regions... Capitalize the names of regions and their derivatives: Eastern Europe, the Far East, Western press. Use lowercase to refer to direction: He went east. Hungary is south of Poland. See the box for capitalization. disassociate, dissociate... Both forms go back to the early 17th century and are equally legitimate when talking about people. In nonpersonal senses, dissociate is preferable. disc, disk... Use disc in special terms, such as videodisc. For most purposes, use disk. discourse markers... A discourse marker is a tiny word or phrase that does not clearly contribute to the grammar or meaning of a sentence. Such markers are very common in speech, but not appropriate in writing. The discourse marker helps us adjust our speech to our audience, allowing us to shift the conversation, rephrase, start over, and hesitate based on the feedback we receive from the listener~/REI::t. Some of the most common markers in speech are well, I mean, and you know. discreet, discrete... Discreet means "prudent": AI was not very discreet. Discrete means "separate": There were four discrete events in the exercise. disinterested... Disinterested entered the language in the early 17th century with the meaning "unconcerned" or "having no interest in." In less than a century it picked up a second meaning of "having no personal stake in the outcome." Both uses are common today, desp~e the efforts of language purists. In the 20th century, disinterested has picked up a third meaning of "having lost interest in." If you use disinterested to mean "impartial"··the sense that most usage pundits prefer, though the noun "disinterest• means "lack of interest," not "impartiality"--make sure the context makes this clear. A disinterested opinion is clear; disinterested in the outcome is not clear. If you use disinterested in its oldest sense, some people will be confused and some will be sure you are wrong. In SIGINT reporting, therefore, use it to mean "impartial" only. See the entry for l,minte..res~d. dissemination... The provision of information to intelligence users outside the SIGINT community. Serialized reports are the most common form of dissemination, but any method used to get information to an intelligence user qualifies as dissemination. This includes telephone conversations, conferences, technical reports, and briefings. Dissemination of U.S. identities by any means--serialized report, telephone call, informal briefing--is prohibited without the approval of the DDO or his designee. Contact P0522 if a user asks for a U.S. identity. distance... See the entry for measurement. distinct, distinctive... Distinct means "clearly defined" or "sharply distinguished from other things": The warbler is not a distinct species. Distinctive refers to an attribute that enables us to distinguish one thing from another: The warbler has a distinctive song. distribution... See the complete entry for dJstribution. ditto marks... Do not use them in SIGINT reporting. divided usage... Usage is divided when two or more forms exist, both of which are in reputable use at the same level of language. The forms may differ as to pronunciation (advertisement), spelling (defense, defence), or verb forms (dived, dove). The point about divided usage is that both forms are acceptable, even though one of these forms may be preferable to a particular reader or listener. Some usage issues are no more than divided usage. dollars... To express U.S. currency, simply use the dollar sign ($) before the amount: $5,000. You need not add "U.S." before the dollar sign. double genitive... The double genitive occurs when the "of" and the ·'s"forms are used together: a friend of my father's. Use it to indicate that more than one of the entities in question belongs to the object of "of." double negative... Although a double negative can be used in certain circumstances--such as using one negative word or statement to qualify the meaning of another (e.g., the U.S. cannot just do nothing)··it is best to avoid using it. See the entry for haroJy. doubling final consonants... See the entry for spelling. doubt if... Although some commentators would label doubt if as informal, most find it interchangeable with "doi,Jbt that" or "doubt whether." doubt that, doubt whether... The traditional rule says to use doubt that or doubtful that to express complete rejection of a statement: I doubt that she will come. It is doubtful that he studied. When used with a negative, it means complete acceptance of the statement: I do not doubt that she is right. When the intention is to express genuine uncertainty, use doubt whether or doubtful whether: I doubt whether he knew the answer. It is doubtful whether she will come. The problem with the traditional rules, of course, is that they require absolute clarity in the context or clairvoyance on the reader's part to know whether disbelief or uncertainty is meant. As a practical matter, the choice among doubt if, doubt that, and doubt whether is a personal one unless the context indicates clearly whether disbelief or uncertainty is meant. See the entry for doubt if. dozen ... When a number is part of the phrase, use dozen: John Doe has four dozen suits. When there is no number, use the plural form: Police confiscated dozens of rifles. drone... Adrone is a pilotless vehicle used as atarget or for reconnaissance. drop shadow... In desktop publishing, a shadow that usually extends around the side or sides of a frame to make the frame stand out more clearly. The most common drop shadow extends from the bottom and right sides. In preparing a DTP-formatted report, use the same drop shadow pattern throughout the report. E each ... When pronoun each is followed by an "of" phrase and serves as the subject of a sentence, it generally takes a singular verb and pronoun: Each of the boys has played his best. When each follows a plural subject, however, the verb and following pronouns remain in the plural: The boys each have their own tasks. See the entries for betwe~_llilac_h, between every and for notional agr~_ement. each and every... This idiom is used for emphasis and takes a singuiar verb and pronoun: Each and every player knows his role. each other... Traditionalists argue that each other refers only to two and "one another" to more than two. In fact the terms are interchangeable and have been for many centuries. The old distributive for two, as opposed to several, was either, not "each." eager ... For maximum clarity, purists say, use eager only about something you want to happen: I am eager to leave on my vacation. The "traditional" rule, in American usage, is that eager implies positive whereas anxious implies unpleasant or negative. But see the entry for anl(ious for a discussion of this point. East European, Eastern Europe... Use Eastern Europe to refer to the region. East European is an adjective and modifies a noun or pronoun: East European economics. ecology, environment... Ecology is a branch of science concerned with the relationship between organisms and their environment. Environment refers to the factors or conditions that affect an organism. economic, economical... Economic means "having to do with business or trade." Economical means "thrifty." editing... As William Zinsser puts it in On Writing Well, "What a good editor brings to a piece of writing is an objective eye ...."As an editor, ensure that the reporter's words and style express the story clearly and logically. Do not allow something in a report that you do not understand, because the user may not understand it either. (U/IFOUOj It is the editor's responsibility to make sure that a serialized report follows the standards expressed in USSID CR1400 and its annexes, the SIGINT Reporter's Style Usage Manual, the U.S. Identities in SIGINT manual, and other guidance from P05 and the management chain. When specific instructions exist, the editor must see to it that reporters in that organization follow the instructions. Good editors never substitute their words for those of the reporter, except to correct minor errors in grammar. Even then, a good editor will discuss changes with the reporter and explain why certain changes need to be made. This is important because the change may affect a point that the reporter is making elsewhere in the report. The mortal sin of editing is going beyond changes in style or structure and tampering with a report's content. Editors who believe that the content is not correct or complete must go back to the reporter and discuss the issue. Editors who on their own change the content and thrust of a report are exceeding their authority. The report's content is the responsibility of the reporter, not the editor. Reporters and editors are a team and should work together to produce the best report possible. Look on each other as partners, not antagonists. · -ee ending... Use the -ee ending to refer to: • one who receives or is directly affected by an act (e.g., appointee) • a person with a specific condition (e.g., amputee) • a person performing some action (e.g., escapee) effect... As a noun, effect means "result": The effect was to block the advance. As a verb, effect means "bring about" or "produce": They implemented a plan to effect savings. Avoid using "effect" as a verb; it is often misused (see "affect") and is usually redundant (e.g. "effecting change" vs. "changing"). See the entry for affect. effectively... Effectively means "with effect": She spoke effectively about the issue. Use in effect to mean "more or less": The matter was dealt with, in effect, on Monday. effectuate... Do not use. It is a word for formal and legalistic contexts. e.g.... Abbreviation for the Latin exempli gratia. Use it to introduce one or more examples, generally in parenthetical entries. In the middle of a sentence, it is usually set off by a pair of commas. either... Either may be used as a pronoun, an adjective, or a conjunction. As a pronoun, it dates back to the year 1000 and is rarely used of more than two: Either can do the job. Either as an adjective dates back to the time of King Alfred (9th century). While it is less common than "each" or "both," it is still used by writers and is common in speech. ACCEPTABLE: Broil the fish on either side. MORE COMMON: Broil the fish on each side or Broil the fish on both sides. When either is used as a conjunction, it may be used to refer to more than two: The President ordered a change in policy without consulting either supporters, journalists, scholars, or critics. either ... or... The nouns or phrases that follow these words must be equivalent: Either John or Jane will go. Lynn had to decide either to stay with Edward or to go to the party alone. When all the elements in an either ... or construction are singular, the verb is singular. When one is singular and the other is plural, the verb agrees with the nearer element: Either he or his teammates are going. Better yet, rewrite the sentence to avoid such a construction: If he goes, his teammates won't go. Use the same pattern for constructions with neither ... nor. See the entry for parallelism. elder, eldest... Use elder and eldest when referring to people. In comparisons elder is followed by of: the elder of the brothers. See the entries for older, oldest and for superlative of two. elegant variation... A term coined by H. W. Fowler to describe the use of a synonym merely to avoid using the same word twice in a sentence or a short piece of text. Avoid the syndrome. ELlNT... 1 6 Q o o not include an lSI in the TAG line of an ELINT report unless you can determine the source of the signal involved. ~OperationalELlNT includes information on emitter deployment, use of the system, activity schedules, tactics, 1 W, and force composition. 1QTechnicalELINTisinformationaboutthecharacteristicsoftheemitter:frequencyrange,pulsewidth,etc. See the entry for requir~rnents. ellipsis... . .... In punctuation, use an ellipsis to indicate that part of a quoted work has been omitted. An ellipsis consists of three spaced dots. Always leave a space before and after the ellipsis, especially in the middle of a sentence: To learn a language, learn . . . a few everyday sentences. When what you omit falls at the end of the sentence, add a period after the final space: Lincoln said, "Fourscore and seven years ago, our fathers brought forth . . . . " If the omission falls after the end of a complete sentence, add the ellipsis mark after the period: Sally remained silent. ... Phil then left. Grammatically, ellipsis is the omission of part of a phrase or sentence. Sentence adverbs are an example of grammatical ellipsis. See the entries for hopefully and for sentence adverb. elude... Means "escape" or "avoid." Do not confuse it with "allude." See the entry for allud~. allusion. email... Shortened term for electronic mail. The spelling without the hyphen is becoming more common and is preferred, but the alternative form e-mail is also correct. embargo... An embargo is a government order prohibiting trade. See the entries for boycott and quarantine. embark... Do not use it in serialized reports to mean "start" or "begin." In naval jargon it has a specialized meaning, which may not be clear to all readers. If you are using embark in that context, explain its meaning in a footnote. embassy... Capitalize embassy when it is used with the name of a nation: the Zendian Embassy. Use lowercase when embassy appears alone: I will visit the embassy tomorrow. See the entry for ambassador. emigrant, emigrate... One who leaves a country emigrates and is an emigrant. See immigrant, immigrate. emigre... -P. L. A political term used to refer to someone who is forced to leave a country for political reasons. emphasis ... Emphasis means force or prominence. In serialized reports, emphasize the most important SIGINT facts and their significance by summarizing them in the lead of the report. enciphered ... ended, ending... Either ended or ending may be used when speaking of a period that ended in the past: the week ended (or ending) 26 February. enhance... Considered by some to be overused, it usually has a thing or quality as its object. Try improve, strengthen, increase, or another more specific word. en route... A French phrase meaning "on the way." Both one- and two-word forms are in use, but the two-word form is more common. In SIGINT it should always be used with the preposition "to" or "from": The aircraft was en route to (or from) Berlin. Always use the two-word form. ensure... Ensure means "make an outcome certain" or "make something secure from harm": ensure a nation's security. See the entries for assure and insure. entitled... Its more current meaning is "a right to do or have something": She was entitled to the promotion. The sense of "titled" or "named" is the older sense and goes back about 500 years. It is standard English, although less common in this sense today in American English: The book was entitled "Russian Policy in North Africa." equal... Some commentators consider equal an adjective without comparative forms and object to the phrase more equal. In fact, equal has been compared since the 17th century. The idiom more equal has the common meaning of "more nearly equal" and is standard English. Use it freely. equally as... An idiomatic phrase like "just as" or "every bit as." It is more common in speech than in writing and adds emphasis to the comparison involved. "Equally" or "as" can replace equally as in many, if not most, uses. Because many people regard the phrase as redundant in all contexts, avoid it in serialized reports. equipment designators... (UffFOtlet Include a description (in the text or in a footnote) the first time that you reference a piece of unfamiliar equipment by number: Zendia ordered 200 XYZ-31 radios (UHF 6-channel voice radio) for the Presidential Guard. Also see the entries for aircraft c;lesignators, ~)1jp_s, and weapon systems. equitable... In today's world, the adjective equitable carries the meaning of "fairness to all concerned." See the entry for equal. escalate... Although some consider it a fancy word for "raise" or "increase," it is now used figuratively to indicate a continuing and undesirable expansion in stages, with each stage provoking a further expansion. Its figurative sense is quite clear and causes no confusion. Use it freely. especially... Use especially in the sense of "pre-eminently" or "particularly": He is especially qualified. Tact is important, especially now. essential phrases and clauses... See the entry for restrictive elements. et al. ... Abbreviation of the Latin et alia, meaning "and others." Avoid it in serialized reports. etc.... Abbreviation for the Latin et cetera, meaning "and others of the same kind." Use it primarily within parenthetical expressions: Eat different kinds of vegetables (peas, carrots, etc.) every day. Do not use it at the end of a list introduced by "such as" or "for example." Do not use it with "and": WRONG: peas, carrots, and etc. RIGHT: peas, carrots, etc. etymology... The study of the history of words or a statement about the origin and history of a word. etymological fallacy... A term describing the insistence that a word in present-day English derived from a foreign word must have the same meaning as the foreign word or must be limited in some way. An example is the word "dilapidated." Author Ambrose Bierce asserted that it should apply only to rundown stone structures because the Latin root word lapis means "stone." He asserted that "dilapidated" should not apply to structures made of other materials, such as wood. This approach is nonsense. The etymological approach is applied selectively by its adherents. For example, few of them object to "December" being used for the twelfth month, even though its Latin root is ten, or to "manure" being used to mean "dung," when its root originally was a French verb meaning "work the land by hand." Don't fall into the trap of thinking that the foreign root or spelling of a word must control the English meaning and usage. It just isn't true. EURCOM ... Now out of date. Instead, use East European. euro... Do not capitalize. even ... If a sentence containing the adverb even is complex enough to cause confusion when it is read silently, put even directly in front of the word or phrase it modifies. This will help ensure clarity. eventuate... Do not use this word in serialized reports. every and its compounds... Every, everybody, and everyone are singular and take a singular verb. Everybody and everyone are single words when used in a collective sense: Everybody is playing a role. Everyone learns to read. Use two words when referring to each individual item: Every body of water is polluted. Every one of the clues was worthless. Usage is divided on whether a pronoun referring to an indefinite pronoun like everyone or everybody should be in the masculine singular (per the 18th century grammarians), or in the plural (an option dating back to Chaucer): Everybody did their best. Everybody did his best. See the entries for gender and for ootional agreement. everyplace, everywhere... Use everywhere rather than the informal everyplace as an adverb: Everywhere I go, I see him. Everywhere need not be followed by "that." Every place is acceptable in two-word form: Lorraine searched in every place he had suggested. evidence... As a verb, it is a very formal way of saying "show" or "exhibit." Avoid it in your reports. evince... Avoid this very formal word. exactness ... Exactness means using the word that will most correctly convey our meaning. It combines literal meaning (denotation), implied meaning (connotation), and degree of specificity. This allows the reader to grasp the intended meaning quickly and easily. See the entries for Q(evit)' and clarit)l. except... As a preposition, it means "with the exclusion of," and a following pronoun takes the accusative case: They invited everyone except me. As a conjunction, it means "if it were not for the fact that": He would buy the suit, except that it costs too much. As a verb it means "leave out" or "exclude": The new laws except juveniles. Chances are this construction is not one you will need in serialized reports. See the entry for CJ.ccept. exchange designator... exercise... An exercise is military activity conducted to evaluate either training for war or concepts for the conduct of war. Even when limited to a single service, training may have homogeneous, interdependent communications support or a scenario simulating wartime or combat conditions. Control is usually at division level or higher, but may be at a lower level. An exercise includes all joint and combined activities regardless of control echelon. Contrast with training. exercise names... See the entries for co<;te_yyQ(Q~ and for ~over name, cov(;lrnumber. expect... To expect is to look forward to the occurrence of something. It does not include the idea of preparation: We expect a record crowd. See the entry for anticipate. expletive... See the entry for obscenity. EYES ONLY... fact ... A fact is a record of something that has taken place. Merriam-Webster offers several definitions, one of which is "a piece of information presented as having objective reality." In a serialized report, include all the relevant facts, even those that tend to refute your main points. fact is, fact that... Phrases such as the fact is, the fact that, and in point of fact are used as transitions, but they can be eliminated more often than not. • Acceptable: In point of fact, production improved because the factory solved several problems. • Better: Production improved because the factory solved several problems. • Acceptable: The fact that Rome fell as a result of moral decay is clear. • Better: That Rome fell because of moral decay is clear. F factory names... Translate the descriptive portion of the name, but leave the honorific in the original language: the Przyjazn Cotton Mill (not the Friendship Cotton Mill). See the entry for names. Fahrenheit... Do not use Fahrenheit temperatures in a serialized report except in a direct quotation. To convert to Celsius, subtract 32 from the Fahrenheit figure, multiply the result by 5, and then divide by 9. familiar... Familiar with something; familiar to someone. Don't forget the "i" in the last syllable. farther, farthest... Use farther when measuring distance: He walked farther into the woods. Use farther or farthest as an adjective only when literal or figurative distance is involved: The farthest target was 300 meters away. See the entry for tyrther. fateful... Fateful means "affecting one's destiny or future." feel bad, feel badly... The controversy over feel bad and feel badly goes back more than 100 years and is not likely to be resolved soon. The decision to use one form or the other may be based on any one of the following theories: Some differentiate based on physical or mental state. Feel bad is used to refer to physical health; feel badly is used to refer to one's emotional state. Some follow the recommendations of 19th century handbooks to use badly after feel; some follow 20th century handbooks that tell you to use bad. Some argue that feel is a linking verb and must be followed by an adjective, not an adverb. But that isn't true. Several adverbs can qualify the degree or way of feeling: feel strongly about an issue, feel differently about a person. Usage supports all these positions. According to Merriam-Webster, although most school handbooks call for feel bad, most dictionaries and general usage books consider the expressions standard and interchangeable. Also see the entries for good and well. feminine... In grammar, a term denoting gender. In English, words based on feminine gender are restricted to personal pronouns, some nouns (e.g., doe"as opposed to "buck"), and nouns with certain suffix endings. See the entry for genQ_~. fewer... Use fewer with plural nouns or with things that can be counted: fewer children, fewer of the boys. Do not use fewer than to measure time, distance, or money, however: Less than (not fewer than) 4 hours remain until launch time. Doris has less than $100. See the entry for less. fewer than two... The idiomatic construction fewer than two always takes a plural verb: Fewer than two runners have finished the race. See the entry for more than_g_n_e. field training exercise... (U~Anexerciseinwhichtroopsdeploytofieldlocations,normallywithintheframeworkofascenario.Abbreviateitas FTX. fighter-bomber... An aircraft that can function in either of two modes. Takes a hyphen. figuratively... Figuratively means "expressed in a symbolic way" rather than in an exact sense. Example: It was raining cats and dogs. See the entry for literally. finalize... The earliest citation for finalize, according to Merriam-Webster, is Australian and dates back to 1922. The word reached the U.S. by 1927 and now is standard throughout the English-speaking world, primarily in business and official contexts. Finalize received heavy criticism from mid-20th century usage commentators, probably because of its origin in business and government writing. Although it is standard, its use does annoy purists. Consider alternatives like complete, finish, conclude, or end. See the entry for -ize. first, firstly... Use first, not "firstly," in a sequence. First can function as an adjective or an adverb. See the entry for ordinal numbers. first person... Do not use "first person" phrasing in SIGINT reports. Do not state in a conclusion or comment, for example, that "we believe" or "we think." first two, two first... The older construction is two first, which goes back to the 14th century. It appears much less often in 20th century prose. First two dates back to the 16th century and is the modern idiom: The first two gospels are attributed to Matthew and Mark. FISINT... (U/ffet:ffi) FISINT (foreign instrumentation signals intelligence) is derived from electromagnetic emissions associated with the testing and operational deployment of non-U.S. aerospace, surface, and subsurface systems that may have either military or civilian application. It includes, but is not limited to, intercept and analysis of the signals from telemetry, beaconry, electronic interrogators, and video data links. flagrant... Flagrant emphasizes wrong or evil that is glaring or notorious, and it carries a heavier moral censure than blatant. Therefore, one who willfully violates a pledge commits a flagrant act. When it means merely "conspicuous," it is interchangeable with blatant: a flagrant (or blatant) example. See the entry for blatant. flammable... In American English, use flammable to describe a substance that will burn. Something that will not burn is nonflammable. Use inflammable to describe figuratively a situation or temperament that is subject to sudden escalation: The politics of the Middle East are inflammable. flat adverbs... A flat adverb has the same form as its related adjective: e.g., "hard," in He hit the ball hard, and "sure," as in You sure fooled me. Flat adverbs were common until Middle English, but began to be replaced in the 18th century due to the influence of grammarians of that time. Today most flat adverbs also have an "-ly" form, which is applicable in some cases while the flat adverb fits in others. The controversy over flat adverbs arises from the fact that in Latin the same word could not be used as an adjective and an adverb. Early grammarians simply imposed the Latin grammar structure on English, creating a great deal of confusion about what was or was not ·correct" in English grammar. flaunt... To flaunt is to "exhibit ostentatiously" or "show off": She flaunted her diamonds. Since the 1940s, flaunt has frequently been used in the sense of "treat with contemptuous disregard." Even though this sense is very widespread, it draws the wrath of nearly all usage writers. Avoid it in SIGINT. See the entry for flout. fleet ... Capitalize when it is part of a name: The Sixth Fleet left yesterday. flounder... As a verb, flounder means "move clumsily" or "flop about." See the entry for founder. flout ... Flout means "defy openly" or "treat with contemptuous disregard": She flouted the rules. ' See the entry for flaynt. ' FNU ... Do not use this abbreviation for "first name unknown." ' f.o.b. ... See the entry for free on board. following... Well-established as a preposition but disliked by some, who prefer "after": She spoke following (or after) dinner. Following is often a counterpart to the preposition "during": during the war, following the war. FOLLOW-UP•.. See the complete entry for follow-up. font... A term used in publishing to refer to type styles, weights, and sizes. When preparing a report using DTP techniques, use the fonts outlined in the Desktop Publishing Standards for SIGINT Reporting manual published by P05. footer... Use footers in DTP-formatted reports to show the overall classification and the page number. footnotes... See the complete entry for footnotes. forced, forceful, forcible... Forced means "resulting from or compelled by an outside agent or situation": a forced march, a forced landing. Forceful is used figuratively to describe something that suggests strength: forceful speech. Forcible applies to actions accomplished by means of actual physical force: a forcible arrest. forego, forgo... Forego means "go before": the foregoing item. Forgo means "do without": forgo the appointment. foreign phrases and words... (U//Fet:fe) Keep the use of foreign words and phrases to a minimum. Few of our readers are linguists. Where the capability exists, as in DTP-formatted reports, italicize any foreign word or phrase that may not be known to the average reader. Commonly recognized terms that need not be italicized include, but are not limited to: • ad hoc • attache • blitzkrieg • bonafide • charged'affaires • communique • coupd'etat • defacto • demarche • detente • fait accompli • junta • laissezfaire • perse • persona non grata • rapprochement • versus • vis-a-vis former... Former refers to the first of two people or things. It is used less often than latter because of the distance between former and its referent. If more than two are involved, use the first, the second, etc. Remember that former is a convenience for the writer, not the reader. Do not use it if there is any chance that the reader will be confused. (b I (3 I -=P. L.86-3 6 Also see the entries for last, latest and for latter. fortuitous, fortunate... Fortuitous refers to something that happens by chance. A fortuitous event may be positive or negative. Fortunate means "unforeseen and positive." founder... It means "bog down, become disabled, or sink": The ship floundered for hours in the heavy seas, then foundered. See the entry for flounder. FOXTROT... Phonetic spelling of the letter "f." fractions... If you must use fractions in text, spell out the amount, using hyphens between the words: two-thirds, one-eighth, two-thirds of the crowd. Whenever possible, convert fractions to a decimal form, especially when giving specific measurements: a 2.625 meter diameter pipe, a 1.7 kg warhead. free on board... Use a footnote to explain free on board: The seller agrees to put the merchandise on a means of transportation at no charge, but transportation costs from that point must be paid by the buyer. The abbreviation is f.o.b. Use it with periods, which is the common form of the abbreviation. You might confuse the reader if the periods are omitted. FROG... (b) 13) (U~Theacronymfor"FreeRocketOverGround."Inareportthatgenericallydiscussesmissilesandartillery,itmightbe appropnate to expand FROG. Do not refer to a FROG as a missile. Avoid the redundant FROG rocket. Although the acronym FROG spells an English word, it does not take periods. Your reader is not likely to confuse it with the amphibian. Capitalize all letters in FROG. from ... through... Use from ... through to provide a precise and inclusive date or time range: from OBOOZ through 0940Z, from 15 May through 26 May. from ... to... Always use from ... to when expressing a non-inclusive range: from 20 to 26 May, from here to eternity, from noon to midnight. Do not use a hyphen between dates or use "and" with from. WRONG: from 7-10 July; from 7 and 10 July. See the entry for between ... and. further ... Use further to express an extension of time or degree: Mimi will look further into the mystery. ' In general prose further is also beginning to replace farther as an adverb when spatial, temporal, or metaphysical distance is ' involved, although many usage books continue to recommend farther. ' Use further in the sense of additional: Further efforts will not yield better results. ' See the entry for farther. ' fuse, fuze... Use fuze to discuss a military detonation device. To describe all detonating devices other than those in a projectile, torpedo, ' gage, gauge... A gauge is a "standard of measurement" or "an instrument used to measure something." The word gage, which is not likely to appear in SIGINT, means a "security" or "pledge." gender... When talking about a specific person, use a term appropriate to that person: chairman Jones, chairwoman Doe. Use neutral terms when talking about mixed groups or persons whose identity has not been established: members of the Assembly, rather than Assemblymen; a member of Congress rather than a Congressman. Do not change an official title to a neutral term. If the official title is "Party Chairman," use that term; don't say "Party Chairperson." For pronouns, the problem is different. Modern English does not have gender-neutral pronouns for people. When a pronoun must be used and the gender of its antecedent is not known or can refer to persons of either sex, there are four three choices the writer can make, all of which are acceptable in SIGINT serialized reports. G (3) 1. 2. 3. Use the plural pronoun: Everyone hopes they will win the contest. Place the whole sentence in the plural: All people hope they will win the contest. Rewrite the sentence and eliminate the personal pronoun: Everyone hopes to win the contest. See the entries for chair and its compounds, notional agreement, -person, and they, their, them. general secretary... Capitalize when used as a formal title before a name or when referring to a national-level office: General Secretary Gorbachev; the General Secretary is here. generalities... Use a specific number rather than terms such as "most" or "some." Try to quantify, if possible, terms such as "extensive" and "significant" when they precede the word "number." Avoid generalities as often as possible, but remember that there are times when a general word will be more appropriate than a specific one. See the entry for majority. generic terms... CU!lEOt;fQ.l.Sybject to the proyjsjoos of USSIP SP0018 and PO po,icy, use generic terms I . ~----------------~ (U/~ConsulttheU.S.IdentitiesinSIGINTmanualforcompleteguidance. genitive... The genitive case is used in English primarily to show possession: my son. Only pronouns have specific genitive forms, always without an apostrophe. See the entry for case. geographic coordinates... See the entry for cooccllnates. geographic references: cities... (U/7FOt:IQ.) Mention a city and country pair together once in each report, usually the first mention in the text. It is not necessary to repeat the country each subsequent time you use the city name. Examples: ort-de-Paix, Haiti; Akita, Japan. (U/~Countrynamesarenotrequiredtobepairedwithwell-knowncapitalsandothercitieswell-knowntotheaverage reader, such as Tokyo and Munich. If there is any chance that the reader could be confused, then the country must be given. Ensure that the country name is included in the report at least one time, either in the title or the text, even in the case of a capital or well-know city. Examples: ... meetings will be held in France in August at the Place de Concorde in Paris' 'the European leaders gathered in Vaduz, Liechtenstein; Windhoek, Namibia. See entries for coordinates, and geographic references: regions. geographic references: regions... (U/~Regionalreferencesrequirethecountryorcountriesbespecifiedatleastonce.Examples:theGreatRiftValley, Kenya; Provence, France. (U~ Regionsthatcrossnationalboundariesshouldalwaysbeidentifiedtospecifythecountryorcountriesinvolved. Examples: the Sahara Desert area in Algeria; the Indian Ocean territorial waters of Somalia and Kenya; the Alps of France, Switzerland, and Italy. See entries for coordinates, and geographic references: cities. gerund... A gerund is a verb form that functions as a noun and ends in "-ing." It may take an object (running a hotel) or a complement (being a hero). It may serve as a subject (Eating is fun), object (He taught skiing,) or predicate noun (Seeing is believing). The subject of a gerund usually is in the possessive form: I don't approve of their drinking. When the subject of a gerund is stressed, however, use the accusative case: I don't approve of them drinking. See the entry for garticigle. get, got... The use of got with a past participle--as in He got drunk--was condemned by 19th century grammarians, who suggested "was," "were," or "became" instead. Sometimes making the substitution will change the meaning of the sentence, so be careful. The phrase have got to is common in speech, but replace it in writing with "have to" or "must": ORAL: I have got to win. WRITIEN: I must win or I have to win. In writing, do not use get or get to in place of "start" or "begin." WRONG: When I get to thinking about it, I get confused. RIGHT: When I start thinking about it, I get confused. go and... Most commonly a speech idiom used to emphasize a following verb: Go and find your brother. The construction dates back to the 13th century. Among the authors who have used it are Johnson, Byron, Austen, Carroll, and Frost. Although it is acceptable in speech and general writing, it is not used in formal writing. Avoid it in serialized reports. go-between... Hyphenate it when used as a noun meaning "messenger" or "intermediary." GOLF... Phonetic spelling of the letter "g." good... Good used after a linking verb such as be, feel, or sound is most often an adjective: The apple tastes good. I feel good today. The new stereo sounds good. Use it after the verb "feel" to indicate good health or good spirits. Good has been used as an adverb since the 13th century, but today occurs mostly in speech, where it is used for emphasis. See the entry for well. goodwill... Goodwill is a single word when it describes a business asset or when it is used as an adjective: a goodwill gesture. As two words, it indicates kindness or friendliness: Peace to men of good will. government... Government, as a political term, refers to an established system of political administration. In American usage, it takes a singular verb; in British usage, it takes a plural verb. See the entry for regime. government of words... Refers to the way one word requires another to take a particular form. In English, it applies mostly to pronouns which, as objects of a verb or preposition, must be in the accusative (or objective) case: a friend to me; send them to her. grammar... The study of classes of words, their inflection, and their relationship in a sentence. Grammar allows the writer to communicate specific meanings to a reader through a shared understanding of the way a language works. The first English grammar was written by William Bullokar in 1586. Current English grammar is derived from the grammatical structure of Latin. Early grammarians simply applied grammatical terms and forms of Latin to English. Many so-called usage problems arose from the attempt to fit English forms into a Latin context. Grammar may be approached either as prescriptive (i.e., how one should or should not use the language) or descriptive (how people actually use the language). These different approaches also account for many usage issues. See the entry for rules of gr;:~mmar. graphic... Generic term for a picture, table, or chart used in a serialized report. Do not include graphics just because they are available. Use them when they will enhance the reader's understanding. Graphics are produced more easily when using DTP methods. gray, grey... Americans prefer gray. ground attack training... Not hyphenated. group... Group takes singular verbs and pronouns when acting as or considered as a unit: The group is reviewing its position. Use the plural forms when describing the actions of the individuals who make up the group: The group were divided in their sympathies. See the entry for notional agreement. guerrilla... Preferred spelling. The alternate spelling is guerilla. H' hackneyed phrases... Be sparing in the use of phrases such as "conducted operations" and "likely scenario." half..• When half, as a noun or adjective, is followed by a singular noun, it takes a singular verb: Half of the poison was left in the container. If followed by a plural noun, it takes a plural verb: Half of the boys have arrived. The proper phrases in writing are a half, half a, or half an: a half-dollar, half an hour. Do not use "a half a" or "a half an," which are oral idioms only. After verbs such as cut, break, and fold, use half: cut in half. Some commentators still recommend "halves" (cut in halves), but it is used less frequently. hard copy... Two words when used as a noun: That document is available in hard copy. Hyphenate when it is used attributively to modify another noun: Prepare a hard-copy report on this subject. See the entries for harg-copy report and serialization block. hard-copy report... hardly... It is not true that hardly has the force of a negative. If you think it does, then try substituting a real negative in the following sentence: I hardly studied at all. A true negative, such as I didn't study at all, does not have the same meaning. Hardly approaches a negative, but it is not the same as one. Purists argue that we should avoid using hardly with a negative because that produces a double negative. In fact, hardly with a negative produces a weaker negative, not a double negative. Phrases like can't hardly and don't hardly are a feature of speech. These phrases appear in writing only in fictional speech or first-person narration. hardly ... when... When hardly is followed by a clause, use when or before instead of "than": We were hardly asleep when (or before) the shots rang out. hassle... Hassle as a verb or noun is common in general prose but not acceptable in SIGINT serialized reports. head-on ... Hyphenate as both an adjective and an adverb. It means "facing forward" and usually is used to describe an attack in which two parties are heading toward each other. header... A header appears at the top of each page of a hard-copy report and includes the classification, compartmentation markings, and serialization block. headings... Use section headings in the report body to distinguish clearly what information each section provides. Section headings can appear whenever a report contains four or more paragraphs, but generally appear only in lengthy reports. The heading title "Summary" is acceptable in the "CONTENTS" section but omit it in the text. Use the heading "DETAILS" to separate the body from the lead/summary. Within the body of the report, use specific section headings (or subtitles) that accurately describe the information. headquarters... Always plural in form, but usually takes a singular verb: Company headquarters has given the bivouac dates to the battalion commander. The correct abbreviation is HQ, not HQS or Hq or Hqs. helicopter... Treat helicopters just like other aircraft. See the entry for aircraft. hemisphere... Capitalize only when referring to a specific geographic area: Northern Hemisphere. henceforth... Use from now on. he or she... Do not use the phrase he or she in serialized reports. See the entry for gender. her... Use it or its when referring to ships or nations. Her is British usage. hertz... The international unit of frequency measurement. It equals one cycle per second. Under the provisions of the Systeme lnternationale (SI), which we popularly call the "metric system," the abbreviation for hertz, like other abbreviations based on proper names, is capitalized (Hz). Under the Sl. the abbreviations for prefixes mega (M), giga (G), and tera (T) are always capitalized. Thus the correct abbreviation for megahertz is MHz and for gigahertz is GHz, but kilohertz is kHz and millihertz is mHz. See 8bbreviations Acrooym__s for information on how and when to abbreviate Sl measurements. high, highly... Use high for literal and figurative distance up: aims high, rose high. Highly denotes position on a scale and is used as an intensifier before adjectives and participles: highly placed, highly successful. highlighted by... Thought by many to be overused, although there is no proof of that. See the entry for chara_ct~rized by. his or her... Avoid the phrase his or her in SIGINT reports. See the entry for gencter. historic, historical... Historic means "famous in history" or "having considerable importance": The battle of Hastings was a historic event. Historical means "belonging to history" or "based on history." Use historical when you refer generally to events of the past, whether important or not: She provided a historical review of serfdom. NOTE: Use "a" before historic and historical since each begins with an aspirated "h": a historic battle, a historical character. home base, home port... Two words. home in on... The phrase home in on is correct. "Hone in on" is a nonstandard variant. hopefully... The earliest attested use of hopefully as a sentence adverb dates to 1932, but it didn't become popular until the early 1960s. It drew loud and heavy criticism in the mid-1960s and continued as a major issue until the late 1970s, when most commentators ended their opposition. If you use it, understand that you will raise the hackles of purists. Hopefully bothers them because it is an adverb, yet is commonly used without an adjective or verb to modify: Hopefully, the decision will be made soon. In grammatical terms, hopefully is an ellipsis (for "speaking hopefully") used as a sentence adverb--a type of construction that has been good English since at least the 16th century--and is paralleled by such adverbs as realistically, frankly, truthfully, and regrettably: Frankly, my dear, I don't give a darn. Truthfully, the purists are ideologues. See the entry for sentertce_ad\Lerb. HOTEL. .. Phonetic spelling of the letter "h." however... When followed by a comma, however is equivalent to "yet" or "nevertheless": However, the battle was not a total loss. When however is not followed by a comma, it takes the meaning "in whatever way": However he tried, he could not make it work. Ellen will finish the race, however difficult it may be. Most writers consider but and however to be redundant when placed side by side, but many accept them when they are separated by several words: But the death of General Zog and the loss of the high ground did not mean final defeat, however. Be sure to enclose however within a pair of commas when it separates two parts of a single independent clause: His choice, however, was the wrong one. Use a semicolon and comma when two independent clauses are involved: Lynnette said she loved me; however, it was a lie. human ... This noun has been standard for 450 years, even though (for some strange reason) many writers prefer "human being." hyphen ... See thecomplete entry for hyphen for rules on when to hyphenate words. hyphenate... Used more often as a verb than "hyphen." 1... Do not use I as the object of a preposition. WRONG: between you and I. RIGHT: between you and me. See the entry for first person. idea that... Try not to use the idea that, which can make a sentence wordy. ACCEPTABLE: The idea that space travel is near excites me. IMPROVED: That space travel is near excites me. idiom... An idiom is an expression in language that is peculiar to itself either grammatically or in meaning. An example is "hit the roof," which has nothing to do with striking the top of a building, but rather means "react with great anger to some event or situation." Many of the criticisms and objections made by usage commentators are attempts to correct idioms, especially those originating in the United States. Idioms are not subject to logical analysis, however, and the criticisms are not valid. Idiomatic phrases are quite normal and acceptable in English. Don't let purists tell you otherwise. i.e.... Abbreviation for the Latin id est, which means "that is." Use it sparingly, and only in parenthetical statements: Only one baseball team, i.e. the New York Yankees, has participated in more than 25 World Series competitions. Add a comma after i.e. only if the sense of the sentence requires one. The comma is not always necessary. if•.. If is irreplaceable in conditional statements: If he apologizes, I'll accept. If is preferred to "whether" when doubt or uncertainty is involved: Ask her if she will come. Either if or whether can be used to introduce a noun clause. The idea that if is not correct in such cases arose in 1762, but has never reflected actual usage or the views of most grammarians. Only a few commentators today consider if wrong. Use whether rather than if when infinitives identify alternatives: Fred didn't know whether to make dinner or go out for pizza. See the entry for whether. illegal, illegitimate, illicit... An illegal action violates a law or rule. An illicit action may or may not be illegal, but in some sense is not permitted by custom or community standards. Use illegitimate for things that violate the rules of evidence or logic: an illegitimate conclusion. illusion... An unreal or false impression: The administration tried to create the illusion of prosperity. See the entry for allvoe. allusion. imagery... ~P.L. 86~36 The phrase according to imagery is acceptable in a serialized report. Ensure that appropriate caveats and markings are placed on reports that include imagery. immigrant, immigrate... One who enters a country immigrates and is an immigrant. See emigrate, emigrant. impact... Contrary to the popular belief that the noun impact became a verb in the mid-20th century, impact was a verb in English before it was a noun. The earliest citation for it as a verb dates back to 1601. Figurative use of the verb began in literary circles after World War II, and it became very popular after 1970 in business and government circles. As a verb, impact now is standard, although you need not use it. Alternative choices include, but are not limited to, affect, hurt, and delay. impassable, impassible... Impassable means "incapable of being crossed or traversed." Impassible means "incapable of suffering or experiencing pain." impeach... Impeach means "make an accusation against" or "charge with an offense." Many people, however, think it means "remove from office." If you use impeach in a serialized report, make sure the context allows the reader to know which sense you are using. implicit comparative... A term used to identify a small group of words that were comparatives in Latin and function the same way in English. They are not true English comparatives because they cannot be used with "than." They include major, minor, inferior, superior, junior, and senior. imply... Imply means "state something indirectly." Authors and facts imply. It is from the Latin "implicare" meaning "fold in." Imply used with a personal subject to express the sense of "hint" was considered offensive in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and now is rarely used in print. EXAMPLE: What are you implying by that? See the entry for infer. important, importantly... Either more important or more importantly may be used as a sentence modifier. impracticable, impractical... Impracticable means "not capable of being done": Living on Mars is impracticable without life-support systems. Impractical means "not sensible or prudent," whether it can be done or not: Searching for oil beneath Manhattan is impractical. in, into... In shows location and can be used with some verbs of motion: She is in the office. Go jump in the lake! Into shows direction or movement and gives prominence to the entrance: She is going into the office. The ship sailed into the harbor. in accordance with... Use this phrase sparingly. It can be replaced by phrases like in line with, in keeping with, etc. inasmuch as... A lengthier way of saying since, as, or because. inception... Try start, beginning, or introduction, or use a verb. incident. .. An incident is a minor occurrence or an event of only momentary significance: A border incident occurred when a small patrol moved into the neutral zone for 15 minutes. Do not use incident to describe a major catastrophe or conflict. Invasions and earthquakes are not incidents. include... A list of items after the verb include may consist of one item, several items, or all items. Fowler points out that "with include there is no presumption (though it is often the fact) that all or even most of the components are mentioned": His auto collection includes a 1952 MG. When all items are given, some commentators recommend using "comprise": Janet's collection comprises an MG, a Corvette, and a Ferrari. But include is not wrong in such cases. See compose and comprise. in conjunction with... Often can be replaced by with. incredible, incredulous... Incredible means "unbelievable": an incredible story. ' Incredulous means "skeptical" or "expressing disbelief." Only people can be incredulous. ' indefinitely ... It means "for a long time,• not "forever." Do not use the modifier "more or less" with indefinitely. indentation ... In serialized reports, begin a paragraph or footnote in the sixth space from the left margin. (If your software uses proportional spacing and that will make a difference, begin .5 inch from the left margin.) Begin each line of a separate COMMENT paragraph in the sixth space so that the COMMENT stands out more clearly from the report body. You may also place the report lead within wider margins, in hard copy, to differentiate it from the report body. (UI~SeeUSSIDCR1400andtheDesktopPublishingStandardsforSIGINTReportingmanualforadditionalinstructions. index... For standardization, use the plural form indexes, which is a linguistic term, rather than the equally valid form indices, which is used in mathematical senses. INDIA... Phonetic spelling of the letter "i." indiscreet, indiscrete... The adjective indiscreet means "lacking prudence." Its noun is indiscretion. The adjective indiscrete means "not divisible into distinct parts." Its noun form is indiscreteness. individual... As a noun meaning ·a person," use it to distinguish one person from a group: the individual's right to dissent from the majority view. When the contrast is not evident, it almost always carries the sense of one person considered separately: Each individual is responsible. Do not use it as a general substitute for "person." POOR: Two individuals were hurt.BETTER: Two persons were hurt. See the entry for peJ~QIJ. ~P.L. 86~36 DOCID: infer... Infer has three main uses. The first dates back to 1528, and it means "draw a conclusion from a set of facts or evidence.· It is always done by the reader or listener, never by a speaker or writer. The second sense of infer first appeared in 1533 and means the same as "imply.• It is never used with a human subject. (Both these meanings have been traced to Thomas More.) The third use is that of infer with a personal subject and is known as "personal infer.." It first appeared in 1896. The controversy over infer and imply began in 1917 but did not become extensive until after World War II. The issue began with an injunction against the use in speech of infer with a personal subject, where it had the meaning "hint" or "suggest.• It may have replaced imply, which in that sense is considered offensive. According to Merriam-Webster, the objection to "personal infer" was social, since "personal infer" was associated with the speech of uncultured persons. Dictionaries did not support the distinction that critics were trying to make. This led many commentators to distrust the dictionaries. But dictionaries are based on written works, and Merriam-Webster notes only one written use of "personal infer" prior to the 1950s. What commentators object to is chiefly an oral use, not a written one. Nevertheless, many writers have taken to heart the distinction drawn by the commentators, and the 1533 sense of infer, while standard, is now infrequent. See the entry for imply. infinitive... The infinitive is the simple form of the verb and may be used as a noun or modifier. The preposition "to" occurs often with the infinitive, but the preposition is not part of it. The assumption that "to" is part of the infinitive dates back to the 18th century and has given us two usage controversies. See the entries for split infinitive and for try and, try to. ingenious, ingenuous... Ingenious means "clever" or "skillful." Ingenuous means "innocent" or "naive." initials... Leave a space between the initials of a person's name: J. F. Kennedy, C. S. Lewis. Omit the space when listing a country name or an organization: U.S., USSR, WHO, NASA. See Appendix 1 for further guidance. injuries... They are "suffered" or "sustained." Better yet: was injured. in lieu of... Instead, try instead. in order to... To can sometimes be a simpler alternative, but be careful that the sense and emphasis of the sentence or phrase are not affected. inquire, inquiry... Use the American spelling. Enquire is British. in regard to... Use "about" or "concerning" whenever doing so improves the sentence. NOTE: "In regards to" is an oral use. inside, inside of... Use inside to indicate position or location: inside the house. Inside of is commonly used with time, but can be replaced by "within" or "less than": I will be there inside of an hour or I will be there within an hour (or in less than an hour). insofar as... Try as far as. in spite of... Whenever possible use "despite," which means the same and is shorter. instances ... Instead of in many instances, consider "frequently" or "often" as alternatives. insure... In serialized reports, use insure to mean "protect against financial loss." See entries for a$sure and ensure. intelligence source identifier... See the entry for lSI. intense, intensive... The adjective intense describes an inherent characteristic that is extreme in degree: the intense heat of the sun. Intensive carries the special meaning of "concentrated" and tends to connote something applied from the outside: intensive study. intensives... An intensive is a word or phrase used to emphasize the meaning of other words. Adjectives and adverbs used as intensives include much, very, too, slightly, and extremely. Do not overuse intensives; overuse reduces the impact. inter-, intra-... The prefix inter- means "between or among two or more things": intergalactic occurs between (or among) galaxies. Intra- means "within one specific thing": intragalactic means within a single galaxy. inter alia... A Latin phrase meaning "among others." Use the English phrase. intercept. .. Avoid using this word in serialized reports to refer to message traffic. interesting... Avoid the phrase it is interesting to note. Your reader may not agree with your assessment of what is interesting. Simply provide the fact and let the reader decide what is, or isn't, interesting. Internet, internet... a shortened form of the word internetwork; "internetwork" is now not used at all. When using the word to refer to the collection of global, public networks and gateways using the TCP/IP protocols to communicate, capitalize Internet as a proper noun or adjective. When referring generically to any group of interconnected networks (the original meaning), use lower case. INTERNET (all caps) is not correct. interpolation... Interpolation is the insertion of material into a text. Use parentheses to indicate the interpolation of material in electrical or hard-copy reports: When the President (of Zendia) arrived, President Smith greeted her warmly. When inserting information in quoted material, use a double set of parentheses: Prime Minister Lakitch threatened that her government would "annex the province ((of Usagia)) immediately." in the event that... Use if or in case whenever possible. in the month of... Generally use in or during. involve... Sometimes misused. Rephrase the sentence to eliminate it, or replace involve with another word or phrase whenever possible. • COMMON: The attack involved an aircraft flying at 5000 meters. • IMPROVED: In the attack, the aircraft flew at 5000 meters. • COMMON: the deployments involved helicopters. • IMPROVED:thedeploymentsbyhelicopters. irregardless... Not accepted in formal English despite its existence in speech (and occasionally in edited prose) for at least 80 years. It continues to be roundly condemned by almost all usage commentators as a sign of ignorance. In serialized reports, use regardless. See the entry for regardJess. irregular verbs... Irregular verbs are those whose past and past participle forms do not take the standard ending -d or -ed. Many irregular verbs also change the middle vowel in the past and past participle: sing, sang, sung. Consult the Merriam-Webster dictionaries for proper forms of irregular verbs. irrespective... Irrespective of means "without consideration of other factors": Irrespective of our competitor's plans, we will develop this new product. (UI~SeeUSSID315forfurtherguidance. island..• Capitalize as part of a name: Hawaiian Islands. isle... Valid only when it is part of a name: the Isle of Man. Otherwise use island. it... (b)(3J-P.L Use it rather than "she" in reference to a ship or nation. Also see the entry for its, it's. italics... In a DTP-formatted report, use italics for ship names, uncommon foreign words, names of reference works, etc.: USS Nautilus, Pravda. In traditional formats without an italics capability, enclose the name of a ship in quotation marks: "USS Nautilus." its, it's... Its is the possessive form of the pronoun it. Use its rather than "their'' to refer to a corporation as a single entity: Jones Sons gave Its employees a bonus. Gargantuan Motor Corporation presented a new contract to its employees. The use of "their" in such contexts is a feature of speech. It's is a contraction of the phrase "it is" or "it has." Do not use it to show possession. Generally speaking, do not use the contraction in serialized reports. -ize ... Purists hate the formation of verbs by adding -ize to a noun, a practice which goes back to at least 1591 . Noah Webster was criticized for including demoralize, deputize, and Americanize in his 1828 dictionary. Jeopardize was attacked in 1869 (commentators suggested using "jeopard" instead) almost as vociferously as finalize is attacked today. In 1988, reports Merriam- Webster, one usage book suggested avoiding "theorize" as it was "pretentious and unnecessary jargon." Theorize has been used since 1638 by many respected writers. When a verb ends in -ize and adds something useful to your sentence, use it freely. If it doesn't say something useful, avoid it. NOTE: The British typically spell this suffix -ise. J '= jargon... The special vocabulary and idioms of a particular class or occupational group. To non-members of the group, the words and syntax can be confusing because they do not follow standard English. Since clarity is the most important principle in SIGINT reporting, use SIGINT jargon sparingly. If the meaning of a SIGINT word or phrase may be unfamiliar to some readers, include an explanation either in the text or in a footnote. jihad... Preferred transliteration of the Arabic word for "holy war." joint... Military training or exercises in which elements of more than one service of the same nation participate. When not all of the services are involved, specify which ones are participating: joint Army-Navy. Distinguish joint from combined, which means more than one nation participates: a combined French-Danish exercise. journalese... A general, non-technical pejorative term for the way in which journalists write or are thought to write. Language purists look down on journalese as bad writing, preferring a literary style over the immediacy of journalese. Journalese is a term often used to describe newspapers and magazines that are more interested in 'popular" themes (such as gossip, sports, social events, and sensational stories) rather than in-depth stories and complex events. Such newspapers and magazines generally are aimed at a less-educated audience. SIGINT reporters should be wary of some pitfalls of journalese: unnecessary and excessive modifiers, cliches, word inflation or inaccurate use, sensationalism, and the injection of comment or opinion without identifying it as such. journalism ... Journalism, at its best and most serious, is a writing style in which the writer provides a clear, direct presentation of the facts or the occurrences and clearly identifies what is interpretation. Active verbs, short paragraphs, and a "semi-literary" style are characteristics of journalism. In journalism, unlike literature, the emphasis is on presentation of the important facts at the beginning of the article, with lesser facts and full details following. Serious journalism is directed at a literate audience and includes newspapers like The New York Times and the Wall Street Journal and magazines like National Review and The Nation. judgment, judgement... In serialized reports, do not insert an "e" after the "g." Stick with the more common American spelling, although judgement is a valid alternative. judicial, judicious... Judicial refers to legal judgments or issues: a judicial decree, a judicial decision. Judicious refers to the mental faculty of sound judgment: a judicious approach to the problem. julian date... See the entry for ordinal date. JULIETT... Phonetic spelling for the letter "j." junta ... A small group holding state power after a coup d'etat. A junta ordinarily consists of military officers, but it may include civilians as well. justification... Refers to the vertical alignment of text in a report. Most DTP packages provide automatic justification of text for both left and right margins. When automatic justification is not possible, use left justification. karat. .. A unit of fineness for gold. Do not mistake it for carox. missile... A missile is an unmanned, self-propelled weapon whose flight path or trajectory can be controlled. A missile may be aerodynamic or ballistic. Distinguish it from a "rocket,• which is a self-propelled vehicle whose trajectory or flight path cannot be controlled. See the entries for Msl and for weallQ.!l...§y_m_em de~gnator. mitigate... It means "alleviate• or "moderate": The accused offered several mitigating circumstances in his defense. See the entry for militate. mobile... Use mobile to describe something that moves frequently or is designed for easy transport: mobile home, mobile HQ. See the entry for movabl_e. MOD... Since it can mean either the Minister of Defense or the Ministry of Defense, do not use this abbreviation without expanding it first. Do not use it in a serialized report to represent both terms. momenta... According to Merriam-Webster, memento is a rare variant spelling of "memento" that was first noted in 1853. Memento also is Italian for "one minute." Because it is uncommon in general use, avoid it in SIGINT reports. Use memento instead. money... (U//FOUO) See Stalldar_c:l_'N_o[ldw_i_cje Currency Names and Abbreviations for in-depth currency and conversion information. Include U.S. dollar equivalents in parentheses after the foreign currency: 48.1 million zloty ($2,000). Note the exchange rate in a footnote only when the currency is undergoing significant daily fluctuations or some other extraordinary condition exists. When knowledge of the conversion rate is important, place the information, including the date and source of the quoted rate, in a footnote: (A) Based on a rate of 24049 zloty to $1, cited in The Washington Post, 2 December 1994. If black market rates are important to the SIGINT story, indicate that in the footnote. When the same term is used to denote currency in more than one country (e.g., dollar, pound, franc), indicate which currency is involved: British pounds, Lebanese pounds; French francs, Swiss francs. Do not capitalize "euro." more than one... The idiom more than one generally modifies a singular noun, which in turn takes a singular verb: More than one student has failed the exam. Use a plural verb when the modified noun requires the plural: More than one of the recruits are from Maryland. See the entry for fewer than two. mosque... A mosque is a building used by Muslims for public worship. Capitalize mosque when it is part of the name of a specific building: Aya Sofia Mosque. Do not capitalize it when referring to a building: Abd ai-Hamid will meet us in front of the mosque. mostly... Use mostly to refer the largest number of a group: They arrested mostly students. movable... Use movable to describe something that can be moved but is not designed for transport: a movable wall, a movable sculpture. The variant spelling is moveable. See the entry for IIIQbil~. mph... Use mph for "miles per hour' only when quoting from text. It always follows a number. Unless you are quoting, report speed in metric form (kph) in serialized reports: The aircraft flew at a computed average ground speed of 880 kph. (not 550 mph) If you are quoting, however, insert the metric equivalent in a double set of parentheses immediately after the quoted figure: General Zog noted, "the new tank's top speed is nearly 50 mph ((80 kph)), even under the worst conditions." Ms... A courtesy title used to refer to or address a woman, irrespective of marital status. While it is now standard in general use, do not use Ms. (or any other courtesy titles) in serialized reports. See the entry for courtesy titLes. Msl... Use the abbreviation Msl as part of a unit designator only after first spelling out the word missile. Use it sparingly in a short report that mentions only one unit, but freely in listings and narrative reports that repeatedly refer to missile units: 5th Msl Regt. Otherwise, spell out missile. must... Use must or have to, not "got to" or "have got to," which are oral idioms. mutual... Mutual in the sense of "common" or "shared" has been used by writers since Shakespeare. The first objection to this sense was from Robert Baker in 1770 who objected to the phrases mutual benefactor and mutual friend, even though they were used by many writers. Most commentators in the 19th and 20th centuries have followed Baker's theory even though writers have not. Mutual often does mean "reciprocal" or describes the relation between two people or things: a mutual dislike, mutual arms reduction. But mutual in the sense of "common" is clear and well-entrenched usage, not likely to confuse any reader. There is no valid reason to object to phrases such as mutual friend. See the entry for common. N nadir... The lowest point. Its antonym is zenith. names of enterprises... For the names of factories and other enterprises, translate the descriptive portion of the name but leave the actual name in the original language: the Przyjan Cotton Mill, not the Friendship Cotton Mill. When possible, italicize the actual name in a report. See the entry for foreign phrases and words. names, personal... In a report title, the official title or rank and the last name usually are sufficient: Zendian President Doe Impeached rather than Zendian President John J. Doe Impeached. When referencing a person for the first time in text, always include the first name (and title) if known: Interior Minister John Doe or Jane Doe, Minister of Defense. In subsequent references, you may use the title, the last name, or both: Doe, Minister Doe, or the Minister. Capitalize only the first letter of a person's name in a SIGINT serialized report: Clark Kent, not CLARK KENT. Do not use courtesy titles in SIGINT reports. See the entry for titles. NATO designators... See aircraft designator, ASCC designator, and weapon systems. nautical mile... Abbreviate it as nm whenever it follows a number. Since it is a measurement, always use figures: 5 nm, not five nautical miles. See the entries for measurement and mile. NBC... This abbreviation for nuclear, biological (see SW and CBW), and chemical (see CW) must be expanded on first reference. Do not use "bacteriological" instead of "biological" unless the reference is to protective gear used by the military; NIPF topics do not use the term "bacteriological." near, nearly... Near in the sense of "almost, nearly" dates back to about 1200. It is an example of a flat adverb and sounds somewhat old- fashioned, but is not an error. In SIGINT reporting, however, use the more common adverbial form nearly. See the entry for fli!.t!ldverbs. necessity... The common idioms are the necessity of and the necessity for: I do not see the necessity of lying. I do not see the necessity for lying. Although necessity can sometimes be followed by an infinitive, try to avoid such use in SIGINT. NOTE: The distinction between the nouns need and necessity is that necessity intensifies the sense of urgency to the point of denying that the particular need can be ignored. For example, cash is a need in order to buy things, but cash is a necessity when the store will not take checks or credit cards. needless to say... A standard English idiom, generally used to emphasize that a statement is self-evident or provide a smooth transition between sentences or paragraphs. Use it in serialized reports only when necessary. negative modifiers... When possible, avoid weakening a statement with unnecessary modifiers such as undisclosed, unspecified, unidentified, and so on. Emphasize the facts rather than lack of facts (unless the lack of facts is what is important). On the other hand, don't try to hide the fact that we do not know something. Save the reader a phone call by letting him know in the text of the report, an analyst comment, or a footnote that there is no additional information. See the entries for negative reporting and for NFI. negative reporting... Unless the lack of information is itself significant or a user has requested such reports, do not issue negative reports (sometimes referred to as an NTR (nothing to report)). Even when reporting negative data, try to present it in positive terms: A communications stand-down is under way in the Zendian Army rather than There have been no Zendian Army communications for4 days. neither... When neither serves as the negative counterpart of either, it takes a singular verb, especially when used by itself: Neither is coming. Neither followed by "of" and a plural noun or pronoun may take a singular or plural verb: Neither of the doctors was in. Neither of them were on time. A pronoun with neither as an antecedent, therefore, may be singular or plural: Neither of the doctors is likely to reveal her (or their) identity. See the entry for notiOI1al. order of presentation... The order in which information is presented in a SIGINT report is the order in which they register in the mind of the reader. For this reason it is important to place the essential facts and their significance at the beginning of the report in the title and the report lead. To do otherwise risks having the busy reader say "why bother with this?" In the body of the report, present the material in a logical order that allows the reader to understand how the story or event developed. This may or may not be chronological order. Sometimes the body of the report has to present information in such a way that the most significant facts come at the end. This is acceptable as long as the report title and lead contain the important facts and conclusions. order of battle... Order of battle refers to the strength, identification, command structure, and disposition of the personnel, units, and equipment of a military service. Hyphenate it as an adjective: order-of-battle data. ordinal date... The ordinal date (often referred to erroneously as the julian date) is a number, usually in three-digit form, representing the day of the year: 1 January is 001, 1 February is 032, 11 March is 070, etc. Adjust the ordinal dates in leap years. (U//FSYQ.).In serialized reports, the ordinal date is the last required field in the report Identification and Accounting Line (for example, XXMMENP01 F0096123 would be on reports published on 3 May). ordinal numbers... Use an ordinal number to indicate a position in a series: first base, second base, third base. Spell out ordinals for the numbers 1 through 9 and use numerals for those greater than nine: fifth on the list, 50th wedding anniversary. Do not add the -ly suffix to ordinals. Use first, second, third, etc. Do not use firstly, secondly, thirdly, etc. In true unit designators, use figures except for an Army Corps: 33rd Mountain Division, 8th Army, VI Army Corps. NOTE: The standard abbreviated forms for second and third are 2nd and 3rd. The 1984 edition of the GPO Style Manual uses 2d and 3d, but does not give any reason for this usage. Follow the Chicago Manual of Style, almost all other sources, and common usage in using 2nd and 3rd. See the entry for numerals. ordinance, ordnance... An ordinance is a statute passed by a nonsovereign legislature. Ordnance refers to military supplies, i.e., ammunition and weapons. organizations... Capitalize the full name of an organization: the Ministry of Agriculture, the Smallville Town Council. Capitalize the shortened form only if it is a national-level body: the Ministry, but: the town council. See the entry for c_apitalization. orient, orientate... American English uses orient. British English prefers orientate. originator line... ornate words... Pass over words like apprise, citizenry, eschew, and opine in favor of simpler ones whenever appropriate. Use them only for emphasis, and then only rarely. OSCAR... (U)Phoneticspellingoftheletter"o." out, out of... Out is more often used in expressions such as walk out the door or look out the window. Use out of with nouns designating places or things thought to be containing or surrounding: Rick was glad to get out of jail. outside... When used as a noun, outside is followed by "of": the outside of the box. When used as an adjective or adverb, the of is omitted: an outside chance; he went outside. When used as a preposition, outside normally is not followed by "of": Norm left it outside the house. overall... Overall is a single word whether used as an adjective or an adverb: Overall, they succeeded; an overall increase in results. overall classification statement... In serialized reports, use individual paragraph markings, placed within parentheses, rather than an overall classification statement. An overall classification statement is not the same thing as the overall classification line, which comes after the Distribution Line. In past reports, the overall classification statement appeared in the TEXT Line portion of a serialized report, usually within a double set of parentheses. Direct questions about the proper classification of serialized reports to your organization's classification advisory officer, P0521 (963-1911), or P05/SAO (963-5463). overstatement... Overstatement is a mark of the inexperienced writer. It can damage credibility very quickly. Make certain you are providing the facts, not inflating your assessments. See the entry for credibility. overuse... This is a charge made against many common words, such as stated. Rarely, however, do the critics offer any evidence to show that the word in question actually is used too often. More often than not, the critic simply orders you to take his word for it. If someone suggests that a word or phrase you have chosen is overused, ask for the evidence that backs up the claim. owing to... The controversy over owing to began in the 18th century when some objected to the use of the present (or active) participle in the sense of "owed" or "due," which was thought to be proper only for the past (or passive) participle. While the argument raged on the active-passive issue, owing to crept into standard use as a preposition and is now grammatically impeccable. See the entries for because of and due to. Oxford comma... Another term for serial comma, derived from the house style at Oxford University. The style mandates the use of a comma before and in a series of three or more items. p page numbers... On hard-copy reports, place the page number at the bottom of the page, but above the classification. There is no need to center the page number between a pair of hyphens. Use lowercase roman numerals for introductory pages such as a table of contents or preface. Do not number pages of an appendix separately. When referring the reader to another page, do not capitalize "page": e.g., See the figure on page 6. pair... Use a singular verb when pair refers to a set of two items as a single unit: This pair of lamps is on sale. Use a plural verb when referring to the two members of the set as individuals: The pair of them work well together. The pair are saying their wedding vows tomorrow. After a numeral other than "one," pair can be either singular or plural, although the plural is more common now: Imelda bought six pairs (or pair) of shoes. PAPA... Phonetic spelling for the letter "p." paragraph ... Keep paragraphs short, especially in a 2-column format. Newspapers rarely have more than two or three sentences in a paragraph. Long paragraphs tend to be more difficult to read. Magazines and journals of opinion tend to allow longer paragraphs that range from 100 to 200 words. This would suit a one- column format more readily than a two-column format. Use your best judgment. parallel... Capitalize when referring to specific geographic lines, as in 38th Parallel. See the entry for coordinates. parallelism ... Readers can more easily absorb a series of words, phrases, or clauses in a sentence or paragraph when they are expressed in grammatically equal (parallel) form. Poor: He went running, for a bike ride, and to swim. Improved: He went running, biking, and swimming. Make sure that each element in the pair or series is grammatically the same. POOR: Betty liked to watch Paul dance and his singing. IMPROVED: Betty liked to watch Paul dance and listen to him sing or Betty liked Paul's dancing and singing. When the series consists of lengthy or complex phrases or clauses, repeating the preposition or conjunction that introduces them often ensures clarity: The new auto line is marked by months of careful planning, by continuous surveys of the market, and by close attention to quality during construction. Make the elements of each bullet item in a series parallel in structure, (all nouns, all infinitives, etc.). For example, We need to follow this procedure: • discuss the goals • plan the steps to be taken • organize a working group • implementtheprogram parameter... Parameter originally was a specific term used in mathematics to describe a characteristic element. It is often confused with "perimeter," which means a boundary line or the area immediately inside the boundary. Before deciding which to use, think about whether you mean a trait, a factor, a criterion, or a boundary or limited area. See perimeter. parenthesis... The plural form is parentheses. A set of parentheses consists of an opening parenthesis and a closing parenthesis. Use a set of parentheses to: • establish an abbreviation or acronym: air defense exercise (ADX) • includecoordinatesinareport:GothamCity(0001N00001W) • set off parenthetical material: Zendian Freedom Movement (a Maoist guerrilla group founded by Jokiz Blog in 1992) • refer the reader to an appendix o~r figure: Exports have nearly doubled since 1988 (see figure 2). ...________, • set off analytic comments within or at the end of a paragraph: (COMMENT: This is an analytic comment.) Use a double set of parentheses to: • enclose expanded security control markings or a warning statement • indicate an interpolation in quoted material Punctuation: • set off paragraph classification: • place a comma after the closing parenthesis, not before • place a period after the closing parenthesis when referencing a figure or chart • place a period after the closing parenthesis when the phrase in parenthesis is dependent on the surrounding material: The table shows increased spending (by 50 percent). • place a period after the closing parenthesis when the material inside is not a complete sentence (such as this fragment). (A complete, independent parenthetical sentence, however, takes a period before the closing parenthesis.) See brackets. part... Replace on the part of with "by" or "among" whenever it improves the sentence. partially, partly... Use partially to mean "to a degree" when referring to a condition or process: partially frozen. Use partly when referring to a part as opposed to the whole, especially of physical objects: The building is partly brick. Partly is also more common before a clause or phrase offered by way of explanation: Our defeat occurred partly because General Doe's forces executed an unanticipated flanking maneuver. participle... Present participles, all of which end in "-ing," and past participles, most of which end in "-d" or ·-ed," are forms of the verb in that they are used with auxiliary verbs to make compound forms: As I was saying, you have delayed enough. Both participles may function as an adjective: a shining light, a boiled egg. Participles used as adjectives generally precede the noun they modify, identify a "permanent" condition, and may take an object or be modified by an adverb. Present participles also may function as nouns. (See the entry for gerund.} parts of speech... Parts of speech are categories created by grammarians for use in analyzing a language. The number of categories in English has ranged from four to nine through the years, with eight as the accepted number (although not always the same eight) since the late 18th century. The categories we use are not based on English but rather are taken from Latin grammar; in English they actually describe word functions, not categories, since English words can function as more than one part of speech. (In Latin, a word functions as only one part of speech.) Many usage "problems" arise from the insistence by some grammarians and purists on trying to restrict English words to absolute Latin categories. party... The use of party as a synonym for "person" has been traced back to the 15th century and remains standard today. It became a usage issue in the 19th century when the term was associated with shopkeepers and tradesmen. Its use was considered an indication of lower social class, and some commentators of the time argued against its use in formal writing. Their argument is spurious. Party as a term in legal usage goes back to at least the 13th century: He was indicted as a party to the conspiracy. See the entry for political parties and philosophies. passive voice... Do not make a fetish of avoiding the passive voice. There are a number of very good reasons to use it: 1. 2. 3. 4. When the actor is not known: "Their business was robbed." When the actor is unimportant and the result is what counts. "The MiG-21 was hit by ground fire." When the relative value of actor and patient are greatly different: "A bus ran over Bob" vs. "Bob was run over by a bus." To avoid ambiguity: (compare the titles"Officer Kills Man With Knife" and "Man With Knife Killed By Officer"). See the entries for active voice and oureauqates.e. pass-over point... A point on the earth's surface that an aircraft flies over. Although the chances are slim that it could be confused with the Jewish holiday "Passover," use a hyphen to prevent confusion. pastime ... It is a single word and only takes one "t" when referring to something that amuses and serves to make time pass agreeably: Baseball is the national pastime. But: It is past time to fix this. PDOG ... peaceable, peaceful... Use peaceable, which means "disposed toward peace," to describe people. Use peaceful, which generally means "characterized by peace," to describe actions and things. Although peaceable and peaceful have been used synonymously since the 14th century, the above meanings are the most common today. pendant, pennant... Use the American form pennant number rather than the British form pendant number. Do not use a pennant number to refer to a ship unless you do not know the ship's name or hull number. See ship~ and ship ne3.mes. people... Use people to refer to a large group collectively and indefinitely: Many people were killed or injured. In modern usage, people can be used with any plural number: Six people were injured. Over 50,000 people were there. When referring as a collective noun to a single race or nation, people takes a plural verb: The American people are united. When referring to two or more distinct political or cultural entities, use peoples: the peoples of Africa. The possessive forms are people's, in the singular, and peoples', in the plural: the People's Republic of China, the Slavic peoples' history. See the entries for Qerson and JNrsQoDel. per... Use per freely in statistics and units of measurement: miles per hour, barrels per day. Use it sparingly to mean "in accordance with," as in per the Minister's instructions. perceive... Originally perceive meant only "become aware of something as it really is," i.e. external observation: Karen perceived the nature of my brewing method. Its newer use deals with the mental conception or interpretation of what something is, regardless of reality: Washington was perceived as hostile toward the new government of Zendia. The newer usage is usually in the passive voice. percent, per cent... The one-word form is more common in American use, but either form is correct. Since it is a measurement, always use figures: 18 percent, 2 percent. Percent takes a singular verb when standing alone or when a singular word follows "of": The teacher said 60 percent was a failing grade. Only 5 percent of the membership was present. Use a plural verb when a plural word follows "of": Only 15 percent of the members were there. When giving a range, you need not repeat the word percent after each figure: He estimates 35 to 45 percent of the electorate will not vote. percentage... When preceded by the article "the," percentage takes a singular verb: The percentage of failures is down. When preceded by the article "a," it takes a singular or plural verb, depending on the noun in the "of" phrase that follows: A large percentage of the students have failed the exam. A large percentage of the crop has spoiled. peremptory... It means "putting an end to debate or action": a peremptory command. See the entry for pre_etmgtory. perfect... The idea that perfect is an absolute adjective originated in 1795. Perfect, however, has been used in both comparative and superlative forms since the 14th century, including the preamble to the Constitution. In such cases, what is being stated is that the "thing being described" has more of the characteristics of what is perfect than "some other thing." The comparative or superlative form is quite acceptable except when perfect is used in its most literal sense. perimeter... the boundary line or the area immediately inside the boundary (synonyms: margin, border); a line enclosing a plane area; the size of something as given by the distance around it. See parameter. period... Use a period: • at the end of a declarative sentence • aftertheinitialsofapersoi!'Sname • when omission of the period might confuse the reader after an abbreviation or acronym (e.g., c.o.d.). If the reader would not be confused, the period is not needed. • in the abbreviation U.S. • with decimals Always place the period within quotation marks. If a sentence ends with an abbreviation that takes a period, do not add a second period: Prime Minister Renee spoke to each of the delegates from the U.S. See the entry for initials and Appendix 1 on abbreviations. period (of time)... Avoid using period in expressions of time. Instead of during the period from 7 to 15 October, just say from 7 to 15 October. perishability ... Perishable information is information that is of limited or no value to users of intelligence after a particular date, usually one that is very near. Issue perishable information at a higher priority than non-perishable data. An example of perishable information is knowledge that two nations will sign a secret treaty on trade on December 1. Isolating the information on November 28 means getting a report to users very quickly so that they can prepare their response or take some action. If the information about the treaty is isolated on October 1, however, it is not perishable. Users will have ample time to act. Be aware that perishable information is useful to more than high-level officials. Also, even though it may be too late to take any action, the information may still be valuable to some users. Don't avoid reporting useful information simply because a date has gone by. person ... Use person when speaking of an individual or of a specific and relatively small number of individuals: Three persons were killed. In the second sense (a relatively small number}, people is equally valid: Three people were killed. See the entries at people and personnel. -person... Avoid coined words such as chairperson and spokesperson when describing known individuals. Instead, use chairman, spokesman, etc., if referring to a man, or chairwoman, spokeswoman, etc., if referring to a woman. Wherever possible use a neutral word, such as leader or firefighter, to refer to someone whose sex is not known or to mixed groups. When speaking of a specific office, use the official title of the office. Use chairperson or similar words only when it is the formal title for the office. See the entries for gender and chair_and its compoynds. personal names... See the entry for names, personal. personnel ... A collective term for a group of people or for an administrative group concerned with a group of people: the personnel department. Avoid using a number directly before the word personnel. POOR: Six personnel were injured. IMPROVED: Six people were injured. A number is acceptable, however, when another qualifying word modifies personnel: Fifty armed forces personnel tested the new weapon. See entries for people and person. phone... "cell phone" vs. "mobile phone": It is true that most mobile phones now do not use cell technology and that therefore "mobile phone" is more accurate. It is also true that most Americans call all mobile phones "cell phones" now, and our Commonwealth partners tend to stick with "mobile." Some target countries use one term, and some the other. Decide whether this is really an issue in your reporting before you ask for arbitration; is it just a matter of translation, or is it an indicator of the type of technology, and, if the latter, does it make a difference to your intelligence product? placename... Placename has been spelled in several forms: one-word, two-word, and hyphenated. Merriam-Webster's form is hyphenated, both as a noun and as an adjective. GPO says in rule 6.8 to "print solid two nouns that form a third," especially when the prefixed noun consists of one syllable. What do you do? English language trends show that most compound words move from two-word to one-word form, sometimes going through the hyphenated stage, sometimes not. In the interest of standardization in SIGINT reporting and as an exception to the general instructions on spelling, therefore, follow the GPO rule and use the one-word form. For placenames themselves, follow the spelling given in the NSA Standard Placename Tetragraph List (SPNTL). If the placename is not listed in the SPNTL and a U.S. Board of Geographic Names (BGN) transliteration system applies, use the spelling in the BGN gazetteer. If the placename is not listed in the gazetteer, check with E312 (963-5585). In cases where a special SIGINT transliteration system must be used to transliterate a non-roman alphabet, consult the proper annex of USSID 406 for the correct method of transliterating the name. See the entries for coordinates and for latitude, longitude. plaintext, plain text... Use the one-word form as an adjective: plaintext message. Use the two-word form as a noun (as in "cipher text"): What is the underlying plain text? plough, plow... Americans use plow. Plough is chiefly British. plurality... Use plurality to signify the highest number of votes received, but only when that number is less than half of the total vote. (NOTE: In 1960, Kennedy won a plurality of the popular vote and a majority of the electoral college vote.) Also see the entry for majority. plurals... Form most plurals as outlined in the Merriam-Webster dictionaries. If the dictionary doesn't provide the answer, check the GPO Style Manual. Keep in mind that two plural forms, in some cases, are equally valid. When that is the case, use the one listed first in the dictionary. In forming the plural of compound terms, the significant word takes the plural form: brothers-in-law, attorneys general, judge advocate generals. (The addition of an "s" to the last word in a compound term (e.g., attorney generals) is a feature of speech, not writing.) To follow modern style in serialized SIGINT reports, append an "s" to form the plural of all acronyms and decades: SAMs, the 1990s. For proper nouns, do not change a final y to ies: Germany, Germanys; Reilly, the Reillys. Exception: the Rockies. plus addressees... See the box for distribution. point in time... Although many people think this phrase was born in the Watergate hearings of the 1970s, it has been around since the late 19th century. It is wordy, and generally you will do better to use either "point" or "time" by itself when writing of past events or "now" when speaking of a current event. point-of-contact line... Add a point-of-contact line to every serialized report. In an electrical report, place it after the text and any footnotes. In a hard- copy report, place it on the distribution page. The point-of-contact entry is a service to the reader and should be the person who can answer questions about the report. It need not be the author. It is not intended to be, nor should it serve as, a means of providing a "byline" or credit for analysts, linguists, or transcribers. Place the flag "POC:" at the left margin. Beginning in the 1Oth space, list the organization designator, the name, and the NSTS telephone number on one line and the STU-Ill numbers (if needed) on a second line. If more than one line is necessary, begin each line in the 1Oth space. NOTE: (UitFOUQt-Field stations will enter the site SIGAD, NSTS number, and a STU-Ill number (only from the Defense Switched Network). Do not provide a name or internal designator. Provide only one organization or name unless the report is the combined product of two organizations whose areas of expertise are so diverse that no one person can answer all possible questions. In such cases, list two names and indicate the area of expertise for each. NOTE: Field stations may list numbers for a day shop (including day-shift hours in ZULU time) and a watch. political parties and philosophies... Capitalize the name of the party and the word party when they are used together: the Communist Party. Capitalize party when it stands for a specific political party: The Party controls the country. Capitalize Communist, Socialist, etc., when referring to individuals who are members of a specific political party. Use lowercase to refer to the political philosophy or to someone who advocates a philosophy without being a member of a specific party: communism, socialism, capitalism, socialist, capitalist. pope... Capitalize when used before a name or when referring to a specific pope: Pope Pius XII. The Pope will visit France and Spain soon. Use lowercase tor other references: Only males may be elected pope in the Roman Catholic Church. Use lowercase tor all related words such as papal, patriarch, and pontiff. port... Nautical term. From the helmsman's point of view, the left side, as opposed to starboard, the right side. (b) (31 -P. L. portrait orientation... Portrait orientation refers to a page that is longer than it is wide. Most narratives are in portrait orientation. Also see the entry for @.ndsc;~Re orientation. possessives ... To form the possessive of: • most nouns, add an apostrophe and an "s": my aunt's pen • common nouns ending in "s," add an apostrophe and an "s": That is the boss's pen • compound words, make only the last word possessive: the Attorney General's brief • a multi-syllable word ending in an "s" or "z" sound and followed by a word beginning with an "s" or "z" sound, add only the apostrophe: for convenience' sake • plural words ending in "s," add only an apostrophe: the boys' team, the Joneses' new car Do not use an apostrophe: • with personal pronouns: ours, yours, his, hers, its, theirs • after the names of states, countries, or other organized bodies ending in "s": League of Nations mandate • after words that are used as descriptives rather than possessives: states rights, writers guide. Do use the apostrophe if the intent is clearly possessive: The state's right to levy income taxes is based on the state constitution. See the entries for apostrophe and double genitive. possible, possibly... Possible is an adjective and modifies nouns, but the usage "a possible scenario" is a SIGINT idiom that has no parallel in ordinary English. In everyday English, no one would say "The baby swallowed a possible penny," but reporters often write that a military unit "conducted a possible exercise." It is argued that this usage has the advantage of brevity and is well understood by the customer. This is true, but other considerations may override the argument; for years now, reporting classes have instructed analysts to write reports in a more "journalistic" style that is less stilted and closer to standard English. This is partly to get reporters to hone their communications skills, to enable them convey more accurate information and to present different aspects of a report to different audiences with ease. For instance, journalistic style would use "The unit conducted what may have been an exercise" or "The unit may have conducted an exercise." Note the difference in nuance here: the first sentence conveys certainty that the unit conducted something and uncertainty about what that something was; the second conveys a lack of certainty about what the unit was doing. Possibly is an adverb modifying verbs, adjectives, and other adverbs. Do not use it to modify nouns. Instead of "a possible regiment," use "a unit, possibly a regiment." The same guidance applies to probable and probably. Also see the entry for validity marker. pound... Always use figures when using pound as a measurement of weight. To convert to kilograms, multiply the number of pounds by .453. Always report weights in metric terms unless you are quoting directly. Do not use the abbreviation for pound in a serialized report. See the box for measurements. Do not abbreviate pound when speaking of a unit of currency, such as pounds sterling or Lebanese pounds. See the entry for mon~y. pounds sterling... Do not use this phrase in serialized reports. Instead use British pounds. practicable, practical... Something practicable can be put into effect. Something practical is that which is sensible and worthwhile. It might be practicable to bicycle from Baltimore to Phoenix, but it would not be practical if you had to be there tomorrow morning. practically ... Practically in the sense of "nearly," "almost," or "all but" has been in use since the mid-18th century. Although it is quite standard in this sense, some usage commentators have objected to it because other words can do the job as well. You may use it if you wish. John had practically (or nearly or almost or all but) finished the test when the bell rang. precipitate, precipitately... Use these words primarily to identify rash, overhasty human actions: The precipitate commitment of his entire reserve force was a major error by General Zog. precipitous, precipitously... Although used primarily in the sense of physical steepness, these words can be used in a figurative sense to demonstrate a sudden or abrupt change: a precipitous decline in sales. predicate ... Predicate in the sense of "base upon" or "establish" has been in use since at least 1766. George Washington, William James, and Reinhold Niebuhr, among others, have used it. It also has the older meaning of "affirm" or "attribute." predominant(ly), predominate(ly)... The adjective/adverb is predominant/predominantly. Predominate is a verb, but has been appearing increasingly as an adjective, a confusing usage that should not appear in SIGINT reporting. Stick with predominant and predominantly. preemptory ... Preemptory means "displacing something.' The verb preempt generally carries the meaning of one thing taking precedence over or taking the place of another: The President's speech preempted normal television programming. See the entry for QeremP-tQ_ry. prefix... Most prefixes form a single word without hyphens. When you use two prefixes with one base word in a sentence, you may write the base word only once, after the second prefix. But follow both prefixes with a hyphen: two-=and four-year colleges; pre- and post-war eras. See the box on hyphens. prepositional phrases... Often the culprit in wordy prose. Re'NOrding the sentence usually solves the problem. Instead of John Doe, the Minister of Agriculture in Zendia, complained about the problems of the Committee on Livestock, try rewording it as Zendian Agriculture Minister John Doe complained about the Livestock Committee's problems. prepositions... The alleged rule about ending sentences with a preposition was invented in 1672 by English writer John Dryden, who criticized such usage by Shakespeare, Ben Jonson, and others. Dryden apparently developed this rule because such a construction was not possible in Latin. AHhough many people were taught in grammar school and high school that this "rule" existed, nearly all respected commentators and dictionaries have noted that, as H. W. Fowler put it, this is a "cherished superstition." Such beliefs die hard, however, and purists will insist today that the ·rule" is true. Merriam-Webster notes that this construction, known as the postponed preposition, was a regular feature of some constructions In Old English and is required by various constructions (such as the restrictive clause introduced by that) even today. Usage shows that in speech the natural placement of the preposition often comes at the end of the sentence. The same is true in questions. There is no valid grammatical reason to move It elsewhere in writing. Use it without fear, despite the howls of purists. prescribe... It means set down as a rule or guide. In a medical sense, it means order or recommend the use of a drug or other treatment. See the entry for r:~roscribe. prescriptive grammar... A term for an account that sets out rules for how a grammar should be used. Such a grammar establishes an arbitrary "correct" form and often does not take into account changes and variations in language. See proscriptive grammar. presently... Use it with a present tense verb when you mean "now": The unit is presently deployed on the Zendian border. This use has been standard since 1485. Ignore those usage commentators who warn against it. Use it with a future tense verb when you mean "soon": I will be with you presently. president... Capitalize when used before a name or referring to a specific president at the national level; President Lincoln; the President signed the crime bill. Use lowercase letters in other circumstances. preventative, preventive... Both forms have been in reputable use for more than 300 years, but preventive is much more common. previous to... A compound preposition used since the 18th century. The preposition "before" is a more common choice, but previous to can be used for variety. See the entry for prior to. principal, principle... Principle is a noun only, meaning a basic and fundamental truth, law, doctrine, or standard: principles of economics, moral principles. Principal as a noun refers to one holding high position (especially the head of a school) or to a sum of money: The principal spoke to the students. Lynn reduced the principal on her mortgage to less than $10,000. Principal as an adjective means "chief" or "most important": The principal causes of business failure are inadequate cash reserves and poor record-keeping. principal components... prior to... Generally used in formal or impersonal contexts. In less formal writing, use the preposition before. See the entry for previous to. probable, probably... Follow the guidance outlined in the entry for possible, possibly. Also see the entry for validity words. product. .. SIGINT product is the foreign intelligence information derived from signals intelligence processing in response to stated or implied requirements. SIGINT product is disseminated to intelligence users primarily in written serialized reports, but can be disseminated in audio, written, or visual form. profanity... See the entry for obscenity. pronouns... Pronouns that are the subject of a verb or clause should be in the nominative case: I, you, he, she, we, they. He and I met to discuss the situation. Pronouns that are the object of a verb or preposition should be in the accusative (also called objective) case: me, him, her, us, them. Janet turned the matter over to us. Place the bottle between him and me. Remember that in addition to personal pronouns, we have relative pronouns, reflexive pronouns, indefinite pronouns, and demonstrative pronouns. All but indefinite pronouns require an antecedent. See the entries for a_otecedent, gender, notional agreement, their and they, their,Jhem. propellant, propellent... The preferred spelling, whether noun or adjective, is propellant. According to Merriam-Webster, recent evidence for the alternate spelling propellent is primarily British. proscribe... Means "condemn" or "prohibit." proscriptive grammar... A term for a rule that forbids a particular use of language on the grounds that it is incorrect or undesirable. Many such rules are based on factors other than correct or historical usage. Some of these factors are social status, etymology, level of education, and personal likes. proved, proven... As a general rule, use proved for the past participle and proven for the adjective. Both forms are acceptable in either situation, but the general rule shows the more common use. The regular form proved is the preferred form of the past participle: He has proved his point. It can also be used as an adjective meaning "successfully tested or demonstrated": a proved theory. Proven is descended from Scottish English and comes to us from legal usage: The charges were not proven. When used as an adjective, proven has the meaning "tested by time": a proven remedy, a proven talent. provided, providing... When used as a conjunction meaning "on the condition that," use provided rather than providing. While either form is correct, provided is the more common. proximity... Generally sufficient by itself. Do not use the idiom in close proximity unless you are trying to distinguish among various degrees of proximity. punctuation... We use punctuation in writing to make what we say clear to the reader. Consider how difficult it is to understand any lengthy piece of writing that is not punctuated. It takes several readings to be confident that you know just what the writer was trying to say. Punctuation in written work tends to serve the same purpose as pauses, inflection, body language, and emphasis in speech. The Oxford Companion to the English Language notes that until the 18th century punctuation was closely related to spoken delivery, but now is more often based on grammatical structure. While many people think that punctuation is based on rules of grammar, it actually represents a style choice by printing houses. Many forms of punctuation have become standard, even though described by different terms (period versus full stop), but differences still exist. For example, American publishers generally place the comma and period inside quotation marks; British publishers place them outside quotation marks. Think of punctuation as a courtesy to your readers, designed to help them understand what you are saying when they cannot use your body language or voice to help interpret your meaning. See the specific entries for apostrophe, colon, comma, dash, ellipsis, hyphen, parenthesis, period, quotation marks, and semicolon. purist. .. A term used to describe those who believe they hold the proper knowledge and view of what is "correct English" and "correct grammar" and who try to impose those forms and beliefs on everyone else. Purists decry the state of current usage and bemoan the future of the English language. The true purist develops "rules" based on propriety, taste, education level, and personal preference, while disregarding the evidence of literature (except to correct it) and general writing, ignoring the historical development of English, and refusing to accept anything new in usage or vocabulary. In most cases language purists are neither scholars nor great writers. Many are people drilled in particular rules or practices during their schooling who have not kept up with the latest findings about language. While some hold positions in journalism or in academic fields other than English, a large number do not. Perhaps Harry Shaw said it best in Errors in English: "A purist seems to feel that man was made for language and refuses to acknowledge that language was not only made for man but that it is determined and shaped by his use--and nothing else." Q qualifiers... See the entry for validity_mar~er. quarantine... The verb quarantine has the meaning "isolate politically or economically." See the entries for bQycott and embargo. quart... Use metric measurements in SIGINT reports unless you are quoting directly. Multiply the number of quarts by .946 to get the equivalent in liters. QUEBEC ... Phonetic spelling of the letter "q." question... {U) When preceded by a qualifier like "little" or "no,• question often is followed by a clause beginning with that, but that, or but what. All three forms are standard. There is no question but that Julius will be pleased. quick, quickly... Quick has been used as an adverb since the year 1300 and appears as such in the works of authors such as Shakespeare and Milton. Nowadays such use is more likely in speech than in writing and almost always follows the verb it modifies: Come quick! {U) Quickly is more common in writing and may precede or follow the verb it modifies: The murderer quickly left the scene of the crime or The murderer left the scene of the crime quickly. See the entry for Oat acJ.Yj!JQs. quid pro quo... {U) A Latin phrase meaning "an equal exchange.• Use it sparingly in SIGINT serialized reports. It does not need to be italicized. quotation, quote... {U) In most cases, the noun quotation is a better choice In SIGINT reporting than the noun quote, which appears in more Informal or casual uses. quotation marks... {U) Quotation marks may be single or double. The American convention Is to use the double quotation marks("...") as the standardandtousesinglequotationmarks('... )onlywhenquotingwithinaquotation. Use quotation marks: • to indicate the exact words of a speaker or writer: The sign said, "Repent! The end Is near!" • to suggest irony: It was a "lucky" break. • to introduce an unfamiliar term: Fred was diagnosed as a chronic "somnambulist." • in an electrical report, to indicate a foreign term: Gorbachev introduced the concept of "glasnost." (But: Use italics rather than quotation marks for foreign words or phrases whenever possible.) When using quotation marks, place other punctuation marks as follows: • Commas and periods go Inside quotation marks. • The colon and semicolon appear outside quotation marks. • The question mark, dash, and exclamation point go inside the quotation marks when they apply to the quoted matter ("What is truth?") and outside when they do not (Have you read Poe's "The Raven"?) NOTE: The common American practices regarding punctuation do not necessarily match those of the Second-Party nations. R radar names... See the entry for EI,.INT. RADINT... RADINT is a form of collateral and consists of intelligence information collected by U.S. or Allied Forces radar. Do not confuse RADINT, such as COBRA SHOE, with ELINT. railroad, railway... In American English, railroad is more common when referring to the transportation system, but either is correct. In American English, railway is more likely to refer to a set of tracks. raise, rise... Raise takes an object; rise doesn't: She raised her hand. The moon rises. range... Express ranges as follows: 0800Z to 1200Z, 10 percent to 20 percent, or 5 June 1986 to 8 July 1988. When using pairs of prepositions to express ranges, express them as "from x to y" or "between x and y": from 1983 to 1991, between June and November. NOTE: When giving dates, you may omit the month and year after the first element if they are the same as in the final element: 10 to 12 September 1988, 5 June to 15 August 1990. rare, scarce... Both mean "uncommon," but scarce carries the additional implication of insufficient quantity: rare books, scarce grain reserves. rarely ever... An established colloquial idiom, in use since at least 1694. The more common form in print, however, is rarely if ever, which dates to 1756. In the idiom rarely if ever, the if ever sometimes is set off by a pair of commas. Other phrases are hardly ever and rarely or never. All are standard. ratio... Always use figures when expressing a ratio: The odds were 50 to 1. The teacher-student ratio was 1:12. The measure was approved by a 90 to 3 vote. reason ... Although in use since the 17th century, the phrase the reason is because is routinely condemned by teachers and language purists as a redundancy. They do so by defining because as "for the reason that," an argument that has been traced to Robert Baker in 1770. In fact, the meaning assigned out of context by the critics to because in this construction is no more valid than the meaning "the fact that" or just "that." What the purists are doing is defining the word because in a way guaranteed to support their objection. The objection made by purists is also inconsistent with their approach to similar phrases. Many of the same people who object vociferously to the reason is because have no hesitation about using it is because, which introduces the same kind of grammatical construction but is rarely criticized. Merriam-Webster notes three things about this construction. First, there are usually intervening words between the reason and is because. Second, the phrase is not one avoided by good writers. Third, the reason that (the suggested alternative) occurs in print about twice as often as the reason is because. In speech, the ratio is reversed. If you use the reason is because--you certainly don't have to--you will be in the company of authors such as Bacon, Swift, Faulkner, Frost, and E. B. White. Nevertheless, it can be dropped, in many cases, without changing the meaning of the sentence: [The reason] they have difficulty with physics [is) because they have no interest in it. The choice--keeping or dropping the phrase-- is yours. reason why... The idiom the reason why goes back to 1225, according to Merriam-Webster, and has been used by writers such as Swift, Johnson, Dickinson, Carroll, Shaw, and Thurber. Like the reason is because, it is condemned by some teachers and language purists. The theory that the reason why is incorrect is a 2oth century American one, and it doesn't hold water. Use it freely. rebellion ... Rebellion is the defiance of authority in general or open (but unorganized) disobedience. In the political sense, rebellion usually is applied to an open, armed, and organized insurrection against authority that fails to achieve its aims: Shays's Rebellion, Whiskey Rebellion. See the entry for revolt,_revolution. rebut... To rebut means "set forth counterarguments against an assertion." See the entry for refute. recall/ revision... (U/~InAugust2005,theDirectorofNationalIntelligenceissuedordersforallmembersoftheIntelligenceCommunityto comply with new community-wide standards when they correct or cancel a report. Much of the new requirement mirrors the process that NSNCSS has used for many years. In fact, the new process, which went into effect on 1 January 2006, is based on the original NSNCSS one. (U/fF6t::let The new process did, however, require several changes: • (U/fFObJQf The term "REVISION" is now used instead of "CORRECTION," and "RECALL" is now used instead of "CANCELLATION" except in the SERIAL line of all product reports. Our legacy systems require the continued use of the terms "CORRECTION" or "CANCELLATION" in the SERIAL line. • (U/fFel::le) The new terms are added as the first words of the title (or subject) of all recalled/revised reports. •(U/~Theexplanatoryparagraphsthatwehavelongusedmustnowusethenewterms.Thewordingotherwise remains the same. • (UI~Therearenowvariouscategoriesofrevisionsandrecalls,whichareexplainedintheworkingaid"SIGINT H~P9rters' Guioe to_B~YiSio!lS anJI.Recalls". reciprocal... Applies to the relationship between two or more members of a group, with the added sense of an exchange of goods or favors: reciprocal trade agreement. See the entry for mutyal. reconnaissance ... Two n's and s's. Avoid abbreviating it as "Recon" except as part of a unit designator in a listing or in a narrative report where it occurs repeatedly. Also avoid the abbreviation "recce," which is chiefly British. The verb form of reconnaissance is reconnoiter. recur, reoccur... The verb recur (and the noun recurrence) can suggest a periodic or frequent repetition as well as the simpler notion of "happening again." Reoccur tells you that something happened again without implying anything about the number of occurrences. In SIGINT reporting, use recur and recurrence. Red ... Capitalize as part of a title: Red Army Faction, Red Cross. Do not refer to Communists as "Reds" except in direct quotes. redundancy ... Merriam-Webster distinguishes between two kinds of redundancies: useful and wordy. Useful redundancy is much more prevalent in speech than in writing, and it often involves adverbs and prepositions: And both return back to their chairs (Shakespeare, Richard II); . . . begin with a true and authentic story (Thackeray). A grammar written by Lindley Murray in 1795 first expressed the notion that redundant words should be taken out of writing. Writers and grammarians since then have argued over the validity of Murray's precept. Journalists and school grammars tend to follow Murray; writers very often do not. Some writers and usage commentators argue that there are times when redundancy is needed for reinforcement or emphasis and that in such cases being concise is not the ultimate goal. They would also argue that redundancy limits the chance of error in communication. In the words of Bergen Evans, "In writing, as in conversation, an economical use of words is not always what we want." Redundancy is rarely useful in serialized reports, but don't be afraid to use it if necessary to ensure your reader's understanding. Redundancy is not a crime. See the entry on wordiness for a discussion of wordy redundancy. reference of pronouns... See the entry for antecedent. reference works... Cite freely, either in text or as a footnote, any unclassified reference works used as a collateral source. In a footnote, include enough information to identify the work: Saying What You Mean, Robert Claiborne; 1986, W. W. Norton, p. 392. Identify a U.S. media source only when citing factual material: According to The New York Times (UNCLASSIFIED) of 26 February, the new Prime Minister is not a native-born citizen. Do not cite editorial or columnist opinions from U.S. press. Doing so violates Operations Directorate policy. For guidance on citing the identity of Second Party press, see the U.S. Identities in SIGINT manual, published by P052. See the entry for collateral. referendum ... Referenda is more common, but referendums is equally acceptable as a plural form. refute ... To refute means "prove or show your opponent's assertion to be false or invalid." This sense is not in dispute. In the 20th century, however, it also has taken on the sense "deny the truth or accuracy of." This sense is very common today and appears most often in journalism, where it is used to record the denials made by those accused of illegal or unethical behavior. Most usage commentators think the sense erroneous. regard ... The proper form in writing is in regard to. The form in regards to is generally restricted to speech. = = In regard to, with regard to, regarding, or as regards are all acceptable, but in regard to is preferred. regardless... Regardless means "in spite of": Regardless of the efforts of the players, the team lost. See the entry for irregarqless. regime... Regime is a synonym for a political system, not an administrative system: a fascist regime. Regime is often used in a pejorative sense to denote a government that the speaker or writer disapproves of: the Pinochet regime, the Castro regime. Use the term with caution. See the entry for govemmeot. regions... See the entry for <:IJce~tiQrrs_;=!,OO regions. {U) See the entry for securlty control markings. releasability statement... -P•L. Expand in the "TEXT:" line of an electrical serialized report any releasability entry used in the report as a security control marking. If the report must remain within U.S. channels, place the label NOT RELEASABLE TO FOREIGN NATIONALS ahead of other security control markings except the expanded ORCON statement. religious titles... Capitalize a religious title used before or in place of a name: "Rabbi O'Leary," she said, "the Archbishop has arrived." Use lowercase when the title is used generically: The pope appoints all bishops in the Roman Catholic Church. Also see the entries for cardinal and pope. reoccur ... See the entry for recur, reoccur. repel, repulse... Both mean "drive back" or "drive off," but only repel is used in the sense of "causing distaste": His eating habits repelled us. repetition of words... Repetition may help hold a passage together, emphasize an idea, or simply avoid a hunt for multiple synonyms; it also may be needed to introduce a series of parallel phrases or clauses. If you must repeat a name or title, do so. Repetition is not an error. Unnecessary repetition, however, is of two types. Reuse of the same word several times when another will not affect the understanding of the sentence is one. Don't bore your reader. Use of the same base word in two senses is another. POOR: My marks showed a marked improvement. IMPROVED: My grades showed a marked improvement or My marks improved significantly. See the entry for elegant variation. report... See the entries for seriali£eQ report, SIGINT repocr, and technical_ report. represents ... A formal word that often can be replaced by "is": This represents the first time; this is the first time. Where possible, replace represents with "is" or some other active verb. request. .. Use either a noun or a f!OUnal clause introduced by "that" after the verb request: She requested more time. She requested that I not speak to her again. Avoid using request immediately before the infinitive. Use the verb ask instead. AWKWARD: He requested to go sailing with us. IMPROVED: He asked to go sailing with us. See the entry for ask. requirements... Requirements are statements of the need for intelligence information levied on the U.S. SIGINT System by intelligence users. Each report must note the requirements it satisfies. Current requirements are in the National SIGINT Requirements List (NSRL). There are two kinds of requirements. Bridging requirements list general areas of strategic interest, either by geography or by subject. Standing requirements identify specific areas of interest by target and topic. List requirements after the prosign "REQS:" in the form OxOOOO, where the first number is the priority, the letter or letters indicate the source (R for COMINT; RF for FISINT; RT for technical EllNT; and RD for operational ELINT), and the last several numbers identify the specific requirement. Do not include leading zeros as part of the specific requirement.The correct form is, for example, 3R123, not 3R0123; 2RF15, not 2RF0015. Padded bridging requirements take the form OR9000. The padded NATO requirement takes the form ORNOOOO. Other padded requirements take the form OxOOOO, where x is the source letter or letters. restive, restless... Restive implies either "resistance to some sort of restraint" or "impatience under restriction or restraint." Restless means "unable to keep motionless or still." restrictive elements... Restrictive elements are words, phrases, and clauses that follow and restrict the meaning of the words they modify: • The word poobah comes from the name of a character in the Mikado. (Poobah is a restrictive appositive.) • The two presidents most widely known are Washington and Lincoln. (Most widely known is a restrictive phrase.) • We are going to convict and punish those who break the law. (Who break the law is a restrictive clause.) Do not use commas to set off restrictive elements--sometimes called essential elements--in a sentence. See the entries for appo~itives, nonrestrictjy_e_ele1!1ents, that, and which. resultant•.. Instead, use the more natural form resulting. revenge... Suggests malice or resentment rather than justice and is used to indicate a real or imagined attack against oneself: "... the hope of revenging himself on me was a strong inducement. .."(Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice). revert back... Used much less frequently in edited prose than revert. As a speech idiom, it can be considered an example of useful redundancy. revolt, revolution... A revolt is widespread opposition to current standards. Politically, it refers to an armed attempt to change authority. A revolution is a radical alteration in a system or in social conditions. In the political sense, it is the overthrow by open and organized armed force of an established government and its replacement by another. See the entry for rebellion. right... Capitalize when referring to the group of people professing "right-wing" political views: the Right. Be vary careful in assigning terms such as Right and Left to political movements. Such applications may be misunderstood or incorrectly applied. As a rule, use them only in direct quotations. See the entry for left. right turn... Use right tum, not right-hand turn. right-of-way... Always include the hyphens. The plural form is rights-of-way. ring, ringed... Use ring or ringed when you mean "surrounded": Police ringed the warehouse. river... Capitalize when part of a name: the Nile River. But: cruising down the river on a Sunday afternoon. rocket... A self-propelled vehicle whose trajectory or course, while in flight, cannot be controlled. See the entry for missiLe. Romania... Not Rumania or Roumania. roman numerals... In the traditional outline format, roman numerals indicated the major headings when one or more of the headings contained subheadings: I. Summary II. First Event ' A. First Item ' B. Second Item ' Ill. Second Event ' A. First Item ' B. Second Item ' C. Third Item ' IV. Conclusions ' A. Conclusion 1 ' B. Conclusion 2 ' In modern reporting, avoid the outline format in favor of clear subtitles. Use uppercase roman numerals in the TUD of an army corps: VII Corps. Use lowercase roman numerals in a hard-copy report for the page numbers of the CONTENTS and PREFACE, if any. roundtable... For the sake of standardization and consistency in SIGINT writing, use the one-word form: The peace talks were held up until all sides agreed to engage in a roundtable discussion. rules of grammar... The following is taken from Writing With A Purpose, by James McCrimmon: Ib) I3 l -=P. L.86-3 6 "Contrary to popular belief, the rules of grammar do not determine how the language should be spoken and written. Grammar . . . follows the general scientific method of reporting not what ought to be but what is... If the rule does not fit the facts, or if it ceases to fit them, it must be revised or discarded.... What most people mean by 'rules of grammar' are statements about preferred usage. . . . There is likely to be a usage gap between what people think standard usage is and what it has in fact become. . . . The rules of grammar, then, are not 'Thou shalt not's'; they say, Thisis how it is done.' They are explanations of conventions that have grown up between writers and readers.... The conventions of usage should serve, not be served by, the writer's purpose. A [reporter] whose main thought is to get his spelling, punctuation, and grammatical forms ·correct' is in no condition to communicate.... memorizing the conventions of usage is at best a poor substitute for working with them." Russian ... Use only to refer to the citizens, language, and special characteristics of the Russian Republic: Laveme speaks Russian well. Have you tried this Russian food? Who is the new Russian ambassador? s '= SALT... Abbreviation for Strategic Arms Limitation Talks. Need not be expanded. Avoid the redundant phrase SALT talks. same... Same has been in continuous use as a pronoun since the 14th century, usually in the expression the same: I'll have the same. It is most common in business contexts but also appears in literature. same as... This adverbial phrase, while less common in writing than either "as" or "just as," is standard. sans-serif... A type style without small horizontal strokes at the top and bottom of each letter. Generally used with larger point sizes, as in titles or headings. satisfy... Has been used in a sense synonymous with "convince" since at least 1520. Be careful of the context, however, or you may get some ambiguous statements: The family was satisfied that Rick had been murdered. scan... Scan has two senses. The older is "examine thoroughly and carefully." The newer (dating back to the 1920s) and more usual sense today is "glance through or look over quickly." The easiest way to ensure that the sense is clear is to use an appropriate adverb with scan: Eileen thoroughly scanned the material. Mimi quickly scanned the text. scarce... See the entry for rare, scarce. scotch... The verb scotch originally meant "disable," not "destroy." Although some usage writers still contend that "disable" is the only acceptable meaning, the current meaning is "put an end to": Lew scotched the rumors about his resignation. Scotch, Scottish, Scots... Use Scottish for people, Scotch for things: the Scottish children, Scotch pine. Use Scots in referring to law or language: Scots words and phrases. Scud ... A missile, not a rocket: Scud missile. See the entry for missile. season ... Lowercase the seasons and their derivatives unless part of a proper name: this summer, Summer Olympics. seasonable, seasonal... ~P.L. 86~36 Seasonable means "what is appropriate to the time of the year" or "timely": seasonable clothing. Its antonym is unseasonable: unseasonable weather. Seasonal means "dependent on or controlled by the season of the year": a seasonal increase in vacation travel, seasonal migration. secretary general... No hyphen. Capitalize when it precedes a name (former UN Secretary General U Thant) or when it refers to a particular individual at the national or international level (The Secretary General is here). section headings... See the entry for tleJ;tdings. secure... Use enciphered rather than secure when describing communications. The term secure describes the vulnerability of a signal to cryptologic attack. An enciphered signal is always enciphered, but whether it is secure depends on the cipher used. security control markings... Words or phrases added to restrict the dissemination of a serialized report. At this time there are five such markings: • ORCON - Dissemination and Extraction of Information Controlled by Originator • NOFORN - Not Releasable to Foreign Nationals • PROPIN- Proprietary Information Involved • REL-Releasableto(nameofthecountries) • EYES ONLY - (used only on electrical reports in place of REL due to existing software limitations) The marking PROPIN generally comes from collateral that is being used in a serialized report. see where... The idiom see where is used to introduce a noun clause serving as the object of the verb. It is considered a characteristic of informal speech and writing. Avoid it in serialized reports. seldom if ever, seldom or never... Both idioms are in common use in the 20th century, according to Merriam-Webster. The idiom seldom ever, which has been around since about A.D. 1000, today is more frequently used in speech than in writing. self... When self is a prefix added to another word, use a hyphen: self-defense, self-confessed. When self is the root word, omit the hyphen: selfless, selfsame. semantics... The study of meaning. In general usage, semantics refers to the meanings of words, including their denotations, implications, connotations, and ambiguities. semi... Use a hyphen after the prefix only to avoid doubling a vowel, especially "i," or tripling a consonant: semi-invalid, but semifinal; shell-like, but shellfish. semiannual... For clarity's sake, say twice a year. See the entry for biannual. semicolon... Use a semicolon to link independent clauses not linked by and, but, or, nor, for, so, or yet: The package was due last week; it arrived today. Use the semicolon sparingly in this situation. Use a semicolon to separate a series of items which themselves contain commas: Important figures in American literature include James Fenimore Cooper, author of the Leatherstocking Tales; Walt Whitman, author of Leaves of Grass; and Sinclair Lewis, author of Main Street. Make sure that the semicolon is used between elements of equal grammatical rank. Do not use a semicolon to separate a clause from a phrase. Place the semicolon outside quotation marks. sentence... Sometimes the easiest way to solve a problem in a sentence is to get rid of the problem element. Ask yourself if the word or phrase or clause is necessary. Often you will find it isn't. Make every element--and every sentence--fill some useful function or get rid of it. Write with nouns and active verbs, not adjectives and adverbs. Do not follow blindly advice such as "Keep sentences short." Doing so often results in choppy writing. Avoid numerous complex clauses, but do vary the sentence length and structure to create a readable report. When a sentence does go on and on, try cutting it into two or more sentences. sentence adverb... An adverb or adverbial phrase connected to an entire sentence rather than to a single element. The sentence adverb commonly expresses an attitude of the writer or speaker and permits the writer or speaker to express in a single word or phrase what would otherwise take a much longer form: Basically, Samantha is the most extroverted of my cousin's children. Hopefully, I will win this week's lottery. Sentence adverbs most often come at the beginning but may appear in other parts of the sentence as well: "This is one of the words that turn up, predictably, in the sports pages." (Harper Dictionary of Contemporary Usage, 1985, 2nd edition.) See the entry for hopefully. sequence of tenses... See the entry for verb teo~e. serial number... ~ Serial numbers are assigned to NSA reports on a one-up annual basis according to the PDDG issuing the report . Every serial includes the classification level, the PDDG of the originator, and a one-up annual number, as in the following examples: • ~/500123-10 • 123-09 • s /50085-09 • E/00/1 0466-09 • 1/00/10023·10 • Z-3[]133·10 ,(bl (1I serialization block... Place a serialization block on all hard-copy and video reports. (U/Iffit:1e) Consult USSID CR1400, section 10, and the Desktop Publishing Standards for SIGINT Reporting manual for the format and placement of the serialization block on cover sheets and internal pages of hard-copy reports. (U~USSIDCR1400,section11,containsfullinstructionsontheformatandplacementoftheserializationblockinvideo serialized reports. serialized reports... The primary means by which we provide foreign intelligence information to intelligence users, most of whom are not part of the SIGINT community. A report can be in electrical, hard-copy, video, or digital form, depending on the information's nature and perishability. (U~TheUSSIDCR14xxseries(primarilyUSSIDCR1400)governsthepreparationandformatofSIGINTserialized reports. See the entries for dissemination, product, SIGINT production information, target signals information, and technical report. series... See the comma entry for guidance on punctuation of items in a series. serif... A type style that has small horizontal strokes at the top and bottom of letters. This style is more suitable to text than sans-serif. serve, service... Use serve for "supply goods or services to": Our firm serves customers throughout New England. Use service for "repair or maintain": Mr. Handyman will service your appliances at the lowest price in town. set, sit... Persons or things sit: Janet is sitting on the deck. The exceptions to this rule are jelly, plaster, and concrete. All these set. The sun and hens either sit or set, depending on the context: the sun sets in the west or the sun is sitting on the horizon; the hens are setting on their eggs. When you mean "place," use set: The children set their books on the table when they came home from school. sexism ... See the entry for gender. shall... The traditional rule for shall is to use it for the simple future in the first person: I shall go, we shall win. This continues to be the rule in British English, but has long been modified in American, Irish, and Scottish English. The "rule" was first stated in the 17th century by John Wallis in a grammar written in Latin for foreigners. But the "rule" did not reflect the general practice of his times or of earlier times. Merriam-Webster's evidence shows that shall and will have been used interchangeably since Middle English to express the simple future by writers ranging from Chaucer to Samuel Johnson to Byron. In modern American usage, there is no real distinction between shall and will in expressing the future except that will is more common: I will leave tomorrow. Nevertheless, there are some constructions where shall is more appropriate than will. Use shall: • with pronouns of all persons to express determination: We shall overcome. You shall use good English in SIGINT reports. • in laws, resolutions, and directives: All employees shall begin work at 8 a.m. and remain until 5 p.m. • inquestionsthataskforanopinion,apreference,oradecision:Shallwestayorleave? See the entries for should, will, and would. she... Do not use this pronoun to refer to ships or nations. Use "it" instead. s/he, (SfiREL)he... These are artificial forms intended to eliminate the gender-neutral problem in English. According to Merriam-Webster, s/he is chiefly American and (91/~EL)he is primarily British. Their use has been limited primarily to specialized journals in the fields of English language and linguistics. Both forms are ' unpronounceable, which works against their use becoming widespread. ' In serialized reports, avoid both forms. See the entry for gender. ships... l011AE14-Qn first reference to ships of a foreign navy, give as much information as possible in the following order: • country (unless already established) • vessel class and type • pennantnumber • the ship name (see next entry) ~P.L. 86~36 • hullnumber(inparentheses) iQ'tAEI:.) Example: Zendian Kilo-class patrol submarine 135 Zigzag (Hull345). In subsequent references, use the name or hull number, or if necessary the pennant number, but be consistent. (C!}AEL) On first reference to merchant ships, provide the following: • countryofflagging • typeofvessel • name of ship (see next entry) • gross tonnage (in parentheses) ~61/AEL) Example: The Zendian-flagged roll-on/roll-off ship Sea Horse (13,500 GT). In subsequent references, use the name only. If the ownership or chartering of a merchant ship is significant, include it in the body of the report. (U/~efer to ships and submarines of the U.S. Navy or Coast Guard by vessel type and name. If additional information is necessary, place that information in a footnote. See boat and ship names. ship names... In reports, italicize the name of a ship whenever possible. When italics are not possible, enclose the name in a pair of double quotation marks: "USS Nautilus," the "Flying Dutchman." Do not italicize a ship class: Delta-class, not Delta-class. In keeping with current journalistic style, capitalize only the first letter of the ship name or of a class of ships: USS Nautilus, Delta-class. (U/~Fornavalvessels,usethespellinggiveninJane'sFightingShips.Formerchantvessels,usethespellinggivenin Lloyd's Registry. For vessels not listed in either Jane's or Lloyd's, spell the name as intercepted, using the annexes of USSID 406 if a special SIGINT transliteration system exists. Otherwise use standard BGN transliteration. Refer to a ship as "it, • not "she." short title... This term is sometimes used to refer to the report serial. should... Use should: • as an auxiliary to express a mild sense of obligation: I should go. We should help the needy. • in all three persons in a conditional clause: If you should decide to go, call me. • to indicate some doubt or uncertainty about what is being said: My sister should be home for Christmas. Also see the entries for shall, will, and would. should of... The correct written expression is should have. Should of is an oral idiom. [sic]... "Sic" is the Latin for "thus" and is used after a printed word or passage to indicate that it exactly reproduces the original and that the author realizes it may be perceived as an error. Ex. "We realized it would have a severe affect [sic] on the situation." Brackets rather than parentheses are used because the expression is that of the reporter and not of the original speaker. Ex. "The president said, Iam proud to introduce the Prime Minister of India [sic], Benazir Bhutto."' It can also be expressed as "The president introduced Benazir Bhutto as the Prime Minister of India (Ms. Bhutto is in fact the Prime Minister of Pakistan)." In serialized reports, avoid [sic] and use a footnote instead. This will prevent the problem of the reader not knowing whether [sic] was in the original or inserted by the reporter. SIGAD... (U/~ExpandstoSIGINTActivityDesignatorandisusedtoidentifyelementsoftheSIGINTsystem.USSIDSP02QQ promulgates the SIGINT Address Book (SAB), which contains a full record of active SIGADs and PDDGs. To view a sorted PDDG or SIGAD list, check the 8111 PDDG Listing. (UI~ SIGADs appear in the FM and TO lines of electrical reports and electrical PRECIS, and in the DISTRIBUTION section of hard-copy and video reports. See the entry for PDDG. SIGINT... SIGINT (signals intelligence) is intelligence information derived from signals intercept comprising, either individually or in combination, all COM INT, ELINT, and FISINT, however transmitted. SIGINTese... Try to avoid terms such as "co-located" in serialized reports. You are reporting to people outside the SIGINT community who might not understand the special meaning of the word. Stick with standard American English as much as possible. If you must use a term with a specialized SIGINT meaning that will not be familiar to your readers, explain the term in the text or, preferably, in a footnote. SIGINT product... See the entries for product and for serialized reports. SIGINT production information (SPI)... SIGINT report... See the entry for serializeo reports. similar... One thing is similar to another in a particular way. Two or more things are similar in certain ways. simplicity... Simplicity is natural, direct expression. It allows the reader to understand, without struggle, what we are saying. Obstacles to simplicity are ornate words, jargon, passive voice, etc. See the entry for wQrdiness. sink, sank, sunk... Both sank and sunk are used as the past tense of sink. Sank is more common, but sunk is not rare. In serialized reports, use sank. situation... The general rule is to eliminate the word situation from coined phrases like weather situation and emergency situation. This is a greater concern in British English than in American English. Although a crisis situation is not quite the same as a crisis, readers will understand what you mean if you use the word crisis by itself. The phrase no-win situation, however, describes a complex idea in just a few words and is a common American idiom. Use it freely. skeptic, skeptical... Skeptic and skeptical are the forms in American usage. The British spelling is sceptic, sceptical. slant, slash, virgule... Avoid the use of a slant between terms in serialized reports. A coined term such as day/night training, for example, is not clear. Instead use one of the following: day or night training, day and night training, day training or night training or both. See the entry for and/or. slow, slowly... Slow may be used as an adjective or adverb. Slowly is only an adverb. Slow was used as an adverb by Shakespeare and Swift, among others, but generally has a more restricted range of applications. Use slow after a verb of action or motion: The war moves slow if it moves at all (Robert Frost). Slow also can be used in hyphenated compounds with present participles: slow-moving vehicles. Slowly can precede or follow a verb and is more widely used in edited prose. Slowly also modifies participial adjectives: The slowly moving cars crept past the scene of the accident. See the entry for flat adverbs. so-called... The use of quotation marks following so-called is not an error, but it is unnecessary: so-called friends, not so-called "friends." Omit the quotation marks. some... Some is usually an indefinite pronoun or an adjective: Some arrived late. Some people are extroverts. Notional agreement determines whether pronoun some takes a singular or plural verb in the expression some of: Some of them were already here. Some of the news is not fit to print. See the entry for notional agreement. some and its compounds... Somebody, someone, someplace, someway, somewhat, and somewhere are written as one word. Someday is a single word when used as an adverb. For a discussion on the use of pronouns to refer to a compound form of an indefinite pronoun, like some, see the discussion at every and its compounds and the entry for notional agreement. sometime, some time... As an adjective it is a single word, the original meaning of which is "former": a sometime cook, a sometime champion. Its newer meaning, dating back to the 1930s, is "occasional": a sometime thing. As an adverb it is a single word, meaning "at an unspecified or indefinite time": My parents left sometime yesterday on their trip to Paris and London. The noun phrase is written as two words: She needed some time alone. An easy way to determine if sometime should be one word or two is to insert the word "quite" before some. If the passage still makes sense, use the two-word form. sortie... A military term meaning "an operational flight by one aircraft." Make sure that your meaning is clear. •The aircraft flew six sorties during the exercise. (One aircraft flew six different times.) •Six aircraft flew sorties during the exercise. (Six aircraft flew one time each.) •Six bombers flew a total of 35 sorties. (The number of sorties per aircraft is unknown or insignificant.) sort of... A common speech idiom. In written work, it appears most often in fictional speech or light prose. See the entry for kind of. Soviet...= An adjective pertaining to the former USSR and its elements. Do not use it to represent individuals. In today's world, always use it with the adjective "former'': the former Soviet Rocket Forces, the former Soviet leadership. Soviet Union... Acceptable in all references for the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. USSR is also acceptable. The collapse of the Soviet Union has made these terms obsolete except for historical reference. No single term has evolved as of this writing to refer collectively to the group of republics formed out of the former Soviet Union, but consider something like "the successor states to the USSR." spacecraft... The plural is also spacecraft. spacing...= As a general rule, leave a single space between the elements in a prosign line and after each punctuation mark in text. Do not leave spaces, however, on either side of a dash or hyphen. In DTP formatting, spacing is more important because of proportional spacing and automatic justification features. Skipping a line after each paragraph is now the rule for the text of all reports. Skip two lines, however, before a subtitle and one line after. See the entry for inQentaliorJ. special... As an adjective, special is often used euphemistically by NATO to refer to nuclear weapons or intelligence operations. Thus, avoid phrases such as special weapons shipments and special intelligence reports. Others which should be used carefully are special purpose, which can refer to SPETSNAZ, and its U.S. equivalent special operations. special characters... See the entry for ~ymbols. SPECIAL FOLLOW-UP... No series closure is necessary for SPECIAL FOLLOW-UPs. specially... Use specially when referring to a particular purpose: specially trained troops. See the entry for especially. species... This word is spelled the same in both singular and plural. SPECTRE... speed... Report speed in kilometers per hour (kph), Mach (aircraft only), or knots (ships only). Use figures because speed is a measurement: The Mirage flew at a speed of 650 kph. The XY-53 tank has a top speed of 90 kph. Hyphenate the adjectival form: a 10-knot wind. Do not use traditional English measurements (e.g., miles per hour) or other nonmetric forms unless you are quoting directly. In such cases, include the metric equivalent in parentheses: 50 mph (80 kph) winds. spelled, spelt... An example of divided usage. Spelled is more common in American usage, spell in British usage. spelling...= See the complete entry for spelling. spilled, spilt... Divided usage. Spilled is American; spilt is British. split infinitive... The construction in which an adverb comes between the preposition "to" and the infinitive is called a split infinitive. In the ancient languages of Latin and Greek, the infinitive was a single word and thus could not be split. In English the infinitive is also a single word, even though many think of it as a two-word form including the preposition "to." Split infinitives have been traced back to the 14th century, but did not become an object of criticism until the mid-19th century. The split infinitive is not a grammatical error, but it is often unnecessary. Much of the time the adverb does not add anything useful to the sentence. For example, there is no real difference between "to understand" and "to truly understand." Even so, the split infinitive is no longer a major issue among grammarians. The best way to change a split infinitive is to delete the adverb unless it adds something useful to the sentence. UNNECESSARY: Phil wanted to [really] understand my reasons for dropping out of school. USEFUL: We expect to more than triple our sales this year. Another way is to move the adverb to another position, particularly when emphasizing the adverb: Roger vowed to serve his country loyally. Do not avoid splits at all costs, but do avoid awkward or useless ones. If a split infinitive comes in a sentence after a negative, particularly "never'' or "not," do not "split the infinitive": I intended never to return, but Paula said not to go. spokesperson... See g~n_der and -person. standard English ... As defined by Merriam-Webster, standard English is "the language of business, literature, and journalism. It has evolved over the centuries as the means by which speakers of diverse dialects of English can communicate effectively with each other." When most usage commentators use the term, they tend to identify as standard English only those forms, words, and expressions of English that they personally agree with. Therefore, look on it with caution, just like the term "careful writer." See the entries for style and PS<:~ge. starboard ... Nautical term. From the helmsman's point of view, the right side, as opposed to port, the left side. state... It has been an article of faith since at least 1870 among some usage commentators that the verb state is overused. The editors at Merriam-Webster, however, have little evidence of such overuse. Their records show only that state is used "to imply a formal, precise, or emphatic declaration or report." There are, of course, many alternatives for the writer. You can use say, assert, comment, demand, declare, or other verbs whenever you wish to vary your word choice. But there is no valid reason to avoid using state. statute mile... Measures 5,280 feet and is used for land measurements. Since it is a measurement, always use figures. The word statute is assumed--and thus may be omitted--when referring to land measurements. Convert statute miles to kilometers in serialized reports. To convert to kilometers, multiply miles by 1.6 (5 miles X 1.6 8 km). To convert to approximate nautical miles, multiply by .869. Use miles in serialized reports only when quoting directly. After miles place the metric equivalent: 50 miles (80 km). See the entries for mile and nautical mile. (b) (31 strait... Capitalize when it is part of a proper name: the Bering Strait. The term is singular unless there is more than one passageway: the Danish Straits. Do not add the word strait after the Bosporus, the Dardenelles, the Kattegat, and the Skaggerak. All are preceded by "the": the Dardanelles. style... See the complete entry for §lyle. sub...= ( b )( 1 i Never acceptable in serialized reports as a shortened form of the word "submarine." subheading... A minor subject heading in the text of a report. Also referred to as a subtitle. Use subheadings in a lengthy report to help the Begin each subheading at the left margin. Skip one line before a subheading and one line after. Capitalize the initial letter of each word. Do not underline the words or insert any unnecessary spaces. subject/topic component... reader's comprehension. (U/fFet::10) If you need a new component, forward the reuest for the new comonent to P0521OPS #1 963-1911 s. lnclu in the request your proposed element and a definition. ~----------------------------------------~ subjunctive... Although pundits have been proclaiming the death of the subjunctive for more than a century, it still exists in written English. Use the subjunctive mood in "if clauses" for "speculation or conditions contrary to fact": If it were to rain, it would ruin my plans. I would not do that if I were you. Since "if," "as if," and "as though" do not always introduce a "hypothetical or unreal condition; the subjunctive is not necessarily required after these terms: I do not know if he was a carpenter or a cardiologist. Use the subjunctive to express doubts or wishes: I wish it were true. I doubt if more money would be the answer. submarine... Do not use the abbreviation "sub" for this word. See the entries for sbips and shiR names. subordination... Unless military unit subordination is essential to understanding the report, put it in a footnote. subsequent to... Normally used in very formal writing. It usually can be replaced by "after," but be cautious. Subsequent to can imply that something not only follows but also in some way grows out of or is closely connected to what precedes it: Subsequent to Mary's appointment as supervisor, office morale improved greatly. substandard ... In most dictionaries, substandard refers only to speech patterns and is an indicator of social status, not correctness. {U) In much usage commentary, substandard is applied to words and constructions that do not accord with the commentator's notion of good English. See the entry for npn~tanc;lard. such...= Such has been used as a pronoun since the time of King Alfred the Great. It is standard English, but is more common in writing than in speech. such as... When introducing examples, such as usually follows a comma: Fred prefers team sports, such as baseball, football, and basketball. suitable... Most commonly followed by the preposition "for" and less often by "to." superlative of two... One of the great shibboleths of modern purists. The "rule" against using the superlative when dealing with two was created in the mid-=to late 18th century and has never reflected actual usage. It serves no useful purpose since no one will misunderstand the sentence no matter which form you use. Consider the following examples: Who is the older of the two? Who is the oldest of the two? Both forms are clear. According to Merriam-Webster, writers since the time of Shakespeare have used both the superlative and comparative in comparing two things. The superlative seems to be most likely when the judgment, measurement, or characteristic denoted by the adjective or adverb is the primary point being considered: "dinghy, dingey. The first is best" (H. W. Fowler). The comparative is required only when it is followed by "than": Janet is smarter than Lynn. In any other construction, either the comparative or superlative form may be used without confusing the reader. superscript... Use superscript numbers as footnote indicators whenever possible. Place the superscript number immediately after the item it references. Begin the footnote with the superscript number, then indicate the abbreviated classification, and enter the actual footnote. See the box for footnotes. sure, surely... Both are used as adverbs. Sure is used as an intensifier, particularly of verbs, when the writer expects the reader to agree: Paul sure is in a bad mood today. Surely is used as an intensifier in more formal contexts, often with a more speculative or hopeful tone: That approach will surely lead to a solution. surveil... A back-formation, dating to 1949, from the noun surveillance. The verb form has been recognized as early as Merriam-= Webster's 8th New Collegiate Dictionary (1979 edition) and the American Heritage Dictionary (1982). Like most new words, surveil draws criticism and writers are urged to avoid it. The real question, however, is whether it fills a unique need. Is there another word that conveys the same meaning? Since the suggested verb alternatives (watch, observe, note) do not convey quite the same idea of something more than passive watching, surveil seems to be a worthwhile addition. Go ahead and use it, but be prepared for the howls of purists. suspended hyphens... See the box on tlyRhens. sustain...= Since 1866, when the first objection was noted, some commentators have criticized sustain in the sense of "suffer or undergo." This sense of sustain, however, has been traced back to the early 1400s and was included in the dictionaries of Samuel Johnson and Noah Webster. It is standard. symbols... The following list comprises the only symbols authorized for inclusion in the text of SIGINT reports: •At@ •Apostrophe •Colon: •Comma, •Number Symbol # •Dash-= •Dollar Symbol $ •Exclamation Point ! •Parentheses ( ) •Period. •Quotation Mark • •Semicolon ; •Slant/ •Question Mark ? Word processing capabilities and unique character sets may be available to reporters; the ability to create a word such as Attache or 10% does not mean it can be used in end product reports. Punctuation or symbols included on some keyboards or instruments may not be used; spell out the word or use an abbreviation instead. For clarity, the following Jist includes some, but not all, of the prohibited symbols: •Ampersand •Plus+ •Asterisk* •Percent sign % (see ~rcem, per cent) •Tilde-= •Accent grave e (U/~Webding, Wingding, Dingbats, Bookshelf symbol, or any other font to include Arabic, Greek, Cyrillic, Chinese, Korean, Hebrew, and diacritical marks to include umlauts, accents, and circumflexes, may not be used in SIGINT end product reporting. synagogue... Capitalize only when it is part of a name: Beth Israel Synagogue, but the synagogue. See the entry for church. T '= table... Because the verb "to table" means opposite things to U.S. and to Second Party readers, do not use in SIGINT reporting. U.S. usage indicates a delay or postponement ("this agenda item was tabled until the next meeting pending further investigation") while British and Commonwealth usage is the converse - ("the committee tabled the new proposal during the negotiations over the border demarcation"). Suitable alternatives include "delayed," "set aside," "postponed discussion"-=or, if you are a Second Party reporter, "brought up for discussion," "laid out," or "presented." table of contents... Use a table of contents for lengthy, hard-copy reports. They rarely are needed on electrical or video reports. Use the modern label "CONTENTS" rather than "TABLE OF CONTENTS." Otherwise follow the guidance in USSID CR1400 and in the Desktop Publishing Standards for SIGINT Reporting manual. tabular material... When making a table as a graphic element in a serialized report, follow the principles of good layout and design. Place the caption above the table and the classification, if needed, in double parentheses below the table and any footnotes. Use abbreviations as needed to make the material fit the format, but expand the abbreviations in a footnote or appendix. (U)SeeUSSIDCR1400andtheDesktop_P].,lblishingStal'!cJaJdsforSIGINTReportingmanual.= TAGs... See the entries for !SJ, subjectLtopic cpmponeot. and principal component for more specific guidance. take ... Use take when the movement is away from the speaker: Take your money and get out of here. Use either take or bring when the direction of movement is unknown or unrelated to the speaker: She brought him to the doctor's office or She took him to the doctor's office. See the entry for bring. TANGO... Phonetic spelling for the letter "t." target digraphs... See the entry for TIS. target signals information... Do not include TSI in a serialized report unless the TSI is of intelligence value to all the recipients, which is not usually the case. Generally, TSI appears in tailored reports with a limited distribution. See the entry for SIGINT productiorUnformation. Technical Identification System... See the entry for TIS. technical report... I= I SIGINT technical reports are not intended to be--and should not be--another way of doing all-source analysis and passing that to intelligence users. That is not within NSA's charter. I= technical weapons ... ~r-----------------------~ telephone... ( b )( 1 ) "cell phone" vs. "mobile phone": It is true that most mobile phones now do not use cell technology and that therefore "mobile phone" is more accurate. It is also true that most Americans call all mobile phones "cell phones" now, and our Commonwealth partners tend to stick with "mobile." Some target countries use one term, and some the other. Decide whether this is really an issue in your reporting before you ask for arbitration; is it just a matter of translation, or is it an indicator of the type of technology, and, if the latter, does it make a difference to your intelligence product? temperature... Report temperature in Celsius and use figures for all readings except zero. Use the word "minus• rather than a minus sign to indicate temperatures below zero: The low was minus 20 C. "Degrees" is not needed except after "zero." Place a capital "C" after a number; spell out Celsius when no number is used and in the phrase "zero degrees Celsius.". tend to...= Tend to in the sense of "pay attention to" is standard American usage: Tend to your own business. tense...= See the entry for verb tense. text... The text of a report includes a summary statement or paragraph, known as the lead; full details of the activity and any analytic comments, known as the body; and any footnotes. The text is normally written in narrative style, but when a formatted or mixed format approach is more useful to the reader, go ahead and use that style. than...= -50 Use the nominative case after than when than serves as a conjunction introducing the second element of an unequal comparison: Pauline is a better athlete than I. When used as a preposition, than often follows "more" or "better," and a following element is in the accusative: He disliked no one more than her. She liked him better than me. (NOTE: Than has been used as a preposition since the 16th century.) that... That as a relative pronoun may refer to either persons or things. Use that to introduce a restrictive clause when the sentence sounds or looks awkward without it. Although there are no hard-and-fast rules about when to omit that, you may omit it after forms of the verbs believe, hope, say, and think: I believe [that] you are correct. I hope [that] you will join us. The President said [that] he will sign the bill. You also may omit that when it serves as the object of the verb in a relative clause: He is a man [that]l know well. Eileen is the candidate [that]l support. It is easier to state when you must use that: •when a time element comes between the verb and the dependent clause •when the dependent clause comes at the beginning of the sentence •when the dependent clause comes after certain verbs, such as assert, declare, estimate, point out, and propose •before dependent clauses beginning with conjunctions such as after, because, before, until, and while •at the beginning of each of a series of parallel clauses •in appositive clauses after nouns like wish, desire, and belief Keep in mind that including that is not always necessary, but never wrong. Omitting that when it should be there can confuse the reader. their ... Their is a possessive pronoun and normally has a plural antecedent: They went to their jobs every morning. The plural antecedent is sometimes implicit rather than explicit, as with collective nouns or compounds like everyone and everybody: The couple said their vows. Everybody should pick up their hat and coat. Also see the entries for gender, notional agreement, and they, their, them. there is, there are... Begin sentences with these expressions sparingly, not because there is anything wrong with them grammatically, but rather because many people object to them as wordy. In this structure, there is an "anticipatory subject," a very old and very common form in English. In most cases, the proper verb form is determined by the number of the following true subject: There is a time for all things. There are many people here. they, their, them... These pronouns have been used as common-gender pronouns at least since Chaucer to refer to persons of either sex or of unknown sex: Every one of them demonstrated their musical skill. This is based on the principle of "notional agreement" and the lack of sexual identification in the plural pronouns. When used with singular nouns such as person, human being, and fool, these pronouns function as a common-number pronoun when the singular noun to which they refer stands for and includes any or all, even if gender is obvious: No man takes a job expecting to be fired, but sometimes they do get fired. Any fool can show their ignorance in public. Both uses are standard. See the entries for gender, notional agreement, and their. they're... Do not use this contraction in serialized reports. think... Avoid this verb in serialized reports unless quoting directly. We rarely know what a target "thinks." Also, do not say "we think" in a comment or in the conclusions of a report. Just state the comment or conclusions. Third World... Refers to the economically developing nations of Africa, Asia, and Latin America. These countries are also known as "less developed countries" (LDCs). Do not confuse this political term with the political term non-aligned, which with the collapse of the former USSR now may be obsolete. threesome... Generally used as a golf term. Avoid it in serialized reports. thus, thusly... Thusly is more common than thus when the adverb follows the verb and precedes a colon. Paul directed him thusly: "Go straight about 2 miles, then turn left." More common than either thus or thusly is a phrase such as "in this way" or "as follows." Thusly is not wrong, but it is uncommon. It is a distinct adverb used in a distinct way. If you prefer not to use it, try one of the more common expressions. till...= Both till and until are acceptable. Till is the older form and has been traced back to the 9th century. Till is less common at the beginning of a sentence or clause, but can be used in such constructions. Do not use the variant spellingtil. See the entry for until. time...= Use ZULU time in all reports: 1345Z, OSOOZ. In the Universal Time System, which is the basis for ZULU time, both 0000 and 2400 are valid. You can use either form at your discretion. (NOTE: modern computer systems tend to require the use of 0000 rather than 2400.) The phrase ALL TIMES ZULU may precede the summary of a report containing a large number of time entries to avoid adding the designator "Z," which is always capitalized, to every time entry. If you are not using the phrase ALL TIMES ZULU, add the "Z" to each time entry: Bombing runs occurred at 0815Z, 0827Z, 0840Z, and 0858Z. Do not use a hyphen to express time ranges except in listings. Phrases like during the 0800 ZULU hour are acceptable, but avoid indefinite ones, such as during the morning ZULU hours. Express time in the shortest possible form, avoiding phrases like "during the period from" and "time frame." (UII~ Enter local time when it has intelligence value to the reader. Such entries are particularly useful in local support efforts and can include itineraries of officials and events occurring at unexpected times. If you include local time in a report, place the ZULU time immediately after within a pair of parentheses or, if many times are given, in a footnote with a statement such as "all local times are ZULU plus four." (b) ( 1 I (U)Seetheentryfordate.= times less... Some people object to the phrase "ten times less" and similar wordings on the grounds that times in mathematics is used to compare a greater amount to a lesser one. This objection is an attempt to apply mathematical logic to the understanding of language. In language, however, there is no confusion about what is meant, and phrases like this one are perfectly acceptable and readily understood. TIS... (UI/FOI:JO~ Analysts and reporters who seek additions, changes, or deletions to TIS-approved standards must work through their Group representative. Contact P0521if you do not know who that is. title... Some intelligence users base their decision on whether to read a report solely on the title. Make yours count. Use the title to get your reader's attention. The title should contain the most Important SIGINT fact and, if possible, its significance. Keep it accurate, specific, short (preferably no more than two lines), and in the active voice. Include a date or time only when it is both well-defined and important to the intelligence fact. Most titles are in headline or telegraphic style: i.e., they omit articles, connectives, and other words not necessary for understanding. EXAMPLE: Pandora Declares Independence; Asks U.S. Military Aid. Capitalize only the first letter of significant words: Doe Elected Speaker of the National Assembly; General Zog Calls for Calm after Earthquake. Remember to place the abbreviated classification of the title at the end in parentheses. Base the classification on the information in the title, not on the overall classification of the report, even though they may coincide. In titles, use punctuation as follows: •a comma to represent "and" •a semicolon to represent an "end of thought" •a colon to represent "equals" title after a name... Capitalize only national-level titles (Cabinet-level or above) that appear after a name: Jane Doe, Minister of Defense. Lowercase and set off with commas most other titles that appear after a name: John Doe, the deputy assistant minister of culture, arrived yesterday. See the entries for cour1esy tjtl~s. 111Hitary rao~. and religioustitles. title before a name... Capitalize a formal title appearing before a name: President Jane Doe, Assistant Secretary John Jones. Do not capitalize a title that serves primarily as an occupational designator: astronaut John Doe. Capitalize the word acting in Acting President, but not elect or designate: President-elect. See the entries for courtesy tjtles, military rank, and religious titles. title caption... (UJ1110UO) A title caption is a short preface assigned by NSA or one of its SIGINT partners for general subject matter. Title captions are optional on serialized reports. The proper format for title captions is target/ topic, with no more than two targets listed in alphabetical order and separated by a hyphen. Example: France-Italy: Trade Negotiations. (U/IF6\:IQ.) The group-level staffs will assign all title captions. Outside normal duty hours, the SRO in NSOC will assign temporary captions if a need exists. title slug... .(U/~) A short, coined title preface assigned by NSA for a specified event or activity of short duration, or to a very specific and narrowly-defined topic. Use a title slug to tie several reports together or to alert the intelligence user to a subject of specific interest. (U/ffeOO) Title slugs should be no more than a few words to identify the subject of the report. EXAMPLES: Black Plague Epidemic, Valkyrian Invasion, Zendian Crisis, Widget Import Negotiations. Slugs are not required on serialized reports, but once established should be used on all reports related to that slug. The group-level staffs will establish all title slugs during normal duty hours. Outside normal duty hours, the SRO in NSOC will assign temporary title slugs. Capitalize only the initial letter of significant words in a title slug. ton...= A metric ton equals 1,000 kilograms or about 2,200 pounds. List metric tons in a serialized report. Abbreviate it as MT after a first reference, especially in listings. Abbreviate gross tons as "GT." A short ton equals 2,000 pounds or .91metric tons. A long ton, also known as a British ton, equals 2,240 pounds or 1.02 metric tons. too... In the sense of "also," it is set off by commas: This, too, shall pass. The use of too at the beginning of a sentence or a clause is correct, but it is not common. total... Use the phrase a total of at the beginning of a sentence or when its omission might confuse the reader: A total of 1,534 people participated. Three aircraft flew a total of seven sorties. In most cases, just use the actual number within the sentence: There were 350 T-72 tanks at Fort Merriam, 250 at Fort Webster, and 225 at Fort Oxford. The aircraft flew four sorties. The adjective total is used for emphasis with nouns such as "annihilation" or "destruction." It can be omitted, but be aware that the sentence will not have quite the same rhythm. totalitarian... Avoid. See the entry for authoritarian. toward, towards... Divided usage. Toward is American; towards is chiefly British. trademark... A one-word form designating a sign or name secured by legal registration and used to distinguish one product from another. Capitalize the initial letter of a trademark: Xerox, Pontiac, Windows. Many words that originated as trademarks have now passed into English as part of the common vocabulary. Such words are not capitalized: e.g., aspirin, kerosene, nylon. Some trademark names are used as verbs. In such cases, the trademark is capitalized while the verb form is not: e.g., Xerox (name), xerox (verb). traffic... Add the letter "k" before the "-ed" and "-ing" verb forms and before the "-er" in the noun "trafficker." training... Training is military activity associated with developing or increasing individual or unit combat efficiency. See exercise and QRerations. transit... While some commentators suggest avoiding transit as a verb, there is no objective reason for doing so. It has been a verb since the 15th century. transition ... A word or phrase used at the end or beginning of a sentence or paragraph to increase the readability or flow of a report. Words and phrases such as meanwhile, therefore, in other activity, and the next day serve as aids to the reader.. Use them, but don't force them. transliteration...= (U/~Transliterate,inaccordancewiththeguidelinesinUSSID406,foreignwordsandnamesusedinaserializedreport.= For most (but not all) languages, use the Board on Geographic Names transliteration system for that language. Also see the entries for fQreigt"l Rh(aj)e~ g.nd words and for placename. trillion...= When listing large amounts, always spell out trillion rather than writing out the numerical form: U.S. S5 trillion, not U.S. $5,000,000,000,000. true unit designator... The abbreviation TUD is acceptable in listings, but expand it on the first reference in text. See the entry for arbitrary unit designator. try and, try to... Try and has been in use since the 17th century and may be older than try to. It has been common in print for about 150 years. The use of and between two verbs when "to" might be expected has been traced back to the 13th century. The basis for the objection to try and is the assumption that try must be followed by the infinitive form, which supposedly includes the preposition to. But to is not part of the infinitive form. (See the entries for infinitive and split infinitive.) Infinitives are used in many constructions without to, usually following verbs like go, come, and try (e.g., go play outside). Try and appears in fixed form and is always followed by the infinitive: Try and join us for lunch. Among the authors who have used try and are Austen, Dickens, Thackery, Melville, Eliot, Twain, Fitzgerald, and White. If you inflect try or insert an adverb, however, you must use try to: He is trying to behave. You must try never to treat others badly. A negative may precede try and, but a negative after try requires to: Don't try and cheat me. Try not to cheat her. Try and is more informal than try to and appears more often in speech and casual writing, but it is not wrong. For very formal writing, use try to. TUD••. See true unit designator. type, type of... Many handbook writers object to the use of type as an attributive modifier (e.g., a summary type report) on the grounds that type is a noun and should not be used as an adjective. However, attributive nouns (such as apple in apple pie) are common in English and there is no grammatical reason why type should not be used in this way. (See the entry for attributive.) Strangely, the use of a hyphen in technical and general contexts makes this kind of structure more acceptable to most usage · commentators: a summary-type report. The construction is more common in speech and in technical and business usage than in academic or general prose. Most commentators recommend using type of in place of the attributive type in writing. Type of is most appropriate when reference is made to a well-defined or sharply distinct category: This type of sentence contains a compound verb. Make sure that type of is necessary to the sentence. It often can be omitted. See entries for kind of and sort of. type size... Always given in points. In printing there are 72 points per inch. For DTP-formatted reports, the standards for titles, text, footnotes, and other parts of a report are listed in the Desktop Publishing Standards for SIGINT Reporting manual. u U/1, UNID... In serialized reports, use the common SIGINT abbreviations for unidentified (U/1 and UNID) only in a listing. In narrative text and footnotes, always spell out unidentified. UK, United Kingdom... Use the abbreviation for the United Kingdom either as a noun or adjective: The UK participated in the exercise; UK policy. In most cases, use British for the adjective rather than UK. In titles and ordinary text, it is sometimes better to spell out United Kingdom as a noun: Zendian President Doe to Visit United Kingdom. un-... Add a hyphen when it precedes a capitalized word: un-American. "un" words... Avoid indiscriminately using negative terms such as undisclosed, unspecified, unknown, unlocated, etc. See negative modifiers. unaware, unawares... Unaware is most often an adjective, but also can function as an adverb. Unawares is solely an adverb. Both forms have been used as adverbs since the 1600s, but unaware is far more common in adverbial uses. under secretary... The GPO Style Manual and older editions of the Merriam-Webster dictionaries list under secretary as a two-word form, which is how it appears in the United States Gov~rnment M~n\lal. This title, however, is shifting to a one-word form in general use. The Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary, 1Oth edition (published in 1993), lists undersecretary as one word. For serialized reports, however, continue using the two-word form. Capitalize this title only when it is used before a name: Under Secretary Jane Doe, but Jane Doe, the under secretary for natural resources. When under secretary is preceded by a modifier, such as "deputy" or "assistant," keep it as a two-word form: Deputy Under Secretary Glenn Burny. under way... One word when used as an adjective: underway replenishment. Two words as an adverb: We are under way. NOTE: Merriam-Webster reports an increasing tendency over the last 20 years to print under way as a single word, but finds the two-word form still more common as of 1989. unequivocally... Avoid the form unequivocably, which is nonstandard. The standard form is unequivocally. UNIFORM... Phonetic spelling for the letter "u." uninterested... The original meaning of uninterested in the 17th century was "unbiased." This meaning was replaced by the modern sense "lacking any interest in," which first appeared in 1771. Avoid using it in its original sense of "impartial" or "unbiased,• where it has been replaced by disinterested. See the entry for disinterested. unique... Purists tell us that unique means "having no like or equal" and that it cannot be modified by adverbs of degree. The evidence shows, however, that unique has been so modified for more than 150 years in speech and general prose by authors such as Charlotte Bronte, Lewis Carroll, and Arthur Miller. There are four senses in use today, the least common of which is the original sense of "the only one, single": Is that a unique copy? The use approved by purists is the second sense of "having no like or equal": It was a unique performance. In this sense, unique can be modified by adverbs such as "almost," "nearly," and "practically": a curious, almost unique turn of affairs (New Yorker, August 1983). In the third sense, unique is used with "to" and has the meaning "distinctly characteristic" or "peculiar": a condition unique to winter exercises. The fourth sense, and most controversial one, is the sense of "unusual, "distinctive,• or "rare." It is the one most often modified by adverbs: an extremely unique approach to the problem. It often means not only "standing alone" but also "having unusual excellence." Many writers and editors (but by no means all) strongly disapprove of unique in the sense of "unusual," even though such usage is quite common in general prose and very common in speech. For that reason it is probably better to avoid using it, but it is not wrong. Editors who revise passages where unique is modified by an adverb should not delete the adverb but rather should replace unique with an uncontroversial synonym, such as "rare" or "unusual." United Nations... Do not use any periods in the abbreviation UN. Be sure to add a hyphen when appending UN to another word, such as a UN-= sponsored relief mission. Always use uppercase letters for acronyms for UN organizations: UNICEF. United States... May be spelled out in full or abbreviated as either a noun or adjective: the United States, the U.S.; United States policy, U.S. policy. The full spelling is more common as a noun, the abbreviation more common as an adjective. For consistency with past practice, use periods. Do not insert a space between the letters of the abbreviation. unknown... Enclose unknown in a pair of parentheses when it is used after a noun: Zendia instructed Ambassador Zod to purchase up to 20 tons of raw materials for "sivle" (unknown). Avoid the abbreviation "UNK" except in listings. unlocated... Enclose unlocated in a pair of parentheses when it is used after a placename: Metropolis (unlocated). Avoid the abbreviation "U/L" except in listings. until... Both till and until are acceptable. Until is a more recent word, dating back only to the 12th century. Until is more formal than till, and it is more likely at the beginning of a sentence or clause. See the entry for tiJJ.= up...= The idiomatic particle up follows many verbs, such as bring, hurry, rise, and climb. Some commentators consider up to be unnecessary in most of these combinations and recommend dropping "up." The "savings" to you and the reader will be all of two letters and one space. Don't worry about it; let "up" fall where it will idiomatically. upcoming ... Formed in the same way as ongoing, upcoming has never been as widely disparaged by usage commentators. As is the case with ongoing, there is no objective reason to avoid using the word. It is standard. uppercase... One word. Another way of saying capital letters. usage... See the complete entry for u.sage. user ... Generally paired with the word "intelligence" in the phrase intelligence user. It is the preferred designator for the recipient of serialized reports. See consumer, customer, user. user letters... U.S. persons... ~U.S.personsmaybeidentifiedbynameorpersonalidentifierinserializedreportsonlyinlife-threateningsituations= ~or whe'nlfietr inclusion has been approved by the DDO or the DDO's designee. Senior officials in the executive branch of the U.S. government may be identified by title if that title is necessary to u~derirantlor assess the intelligence information. Use only those titles listed in the most recent edition of the United States Government Manual. In all other cases, use a generic term such as U.S. person, U.S. official, or U.S. company. The identities of those identified in generic terms (such as U.S. person) may not be disseminated in any form (i.e., written or oral) to users except in response to specific requests, and even then only with the approval of the DDO or the DDO's designee. Refer any request for a U.S. identity to P0522 (963-3968s). USSID SP0018... (U~This USSID defines who is a U.S. person for collection, processing, reporting, and dissemination purposes. USSR... Acceptable in all references for Soviet Union or Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. This term is now obsolete except as a historical reference and generally should be preceded by the adjective "former": the former USSR. utilize... Utilize is a distinct word that suggests a deliberate decision to employ someone or something for a practical purpose. It often implies making productive something that had not been productive before or finding a new use for something. In serialized reports, however, it is rarely used in these specific senses. Utilize suffers from two "sins": it is two syllables longer than use and it ends in -ize (see ~ize). As a result, it draws the wrath of many usage commentators, who see it as wordy and pretentious. As in many usage issues, it is easier to go along than try and overcome strongly held, though erroneous, opinions. Therefore, follow the cliche: don't use utilize; utilize use. UTM Grids... If required by the intelligence user, include UTM (Universal Transverse Mercator) grids along with geographic coordinates. List the grid or site number after the coordinates and separated by a space. Do not include spaces, hyphens, or decimal points within the UTM coordinates. When the practice better serves the user, list the UTM grids before the geographic coordinates. (b(3)-50 (b{3) v validity... (UtfFOU~ In SIGINT reports, use validity words (possibly, probably, etc.) to express ideas that are not known to be complete, accurate, and reliable. •When information has been established beyond a doubt, state the fact. •When there is evidence almost sufficient to permit certainty, use words like probably, likely, and evidently. •When the evidence is less complete, use possibly, may, or might. •When there is little evidence, but it points to valid information, use words like suggests, tenuous, or suspected. See p_Qssjl:l_[e, possibly. validity marker... various of... Various is sometimes used as a pronoun and is followed by of. The usage dates back to at least 1877, and many purists have condemned it, claiming that turning the adjective various into a pronoun is not acceptable. The purists, however, do not explain why various differs from adjectives like several, some, all, many, few, and certain, all of which are used as pronouns. If you use various as a pronoun, you can be sure that some of your readers will regard it as a mistake, even though it isn't. verb ... Verbs are the most important words in the sentence. Use them carefully and precisely. Put your verbs in the active voice to make them carry the strength of your report. Try not to use passive voice, which weakens a sentence, more often than necessary. Remember, however, that passive voice is sometimes the proper choice. See the entries for notional agreemerJt, ~Riit infinitive, active voice, Rassive yQice, and verb tense. ibl Ill -50 ( b )( 3 ) - P . . 8 6 - 3 6 verbal... The definition of verbal in the dictionaries of Samuel Johnson (1755) and Noah Webster (1828) was "spoken, not written." This sense has been traced back to at least 1591, about 35 years earlier than the synonymous sense of oral. The first objection to this sense, based on the etymology of verbal, was raised in 1881--almost 400 years after the sense was established. Most modem commentators prefer oral in this sense over verbal, usually arguing that the multiple meanings of verbal can be confusing. Verbal in the sense of "spoken" has been used by Pepys, Fielding, Swift, and Dickens, among others, and its use is rarely ambiguous or confusing. If you see that a particular context may be ambiguous, you may use oral instead, but such instances probably will be rare. See the entries for oral and for etymological fallacy. verbal noun... See the entry for gerund. verb tense... In a SIGINT report, tense should be based on three factors: •when the traffic was transmitted •what it says •when the reader will see the report. ( b )( 1 I ~ ~ls-nefcton 7 November if the traffic was intercepted on 3 November and you are writing and issuing the report on 4 November. Don't say a meeting will occur on 7 November if it is already 7 November or later. On the other hand, don't say a meeting Avoid distorting the facts or confusing the reader by using improper time sequence or by shifting tense unnecessarily in a sentence or paragraph. -G In titles, use present or future tense (or the infinitive) rather than past tense: Zendia Elects Doe (not Doe Elected In Zendia), or Zendian President Will Visit (or To Visit) France. versus... Do not abbreviate versus in a sentence. The abbreviation "vs." is acceptable in listings. very... Use sparingly. Like most intensifiers, it loses force when used too often. vessel...= See the entries for boat and ships. vice...= Avoid it as a synonym for "not" or "instead of." Vice is a separate word in titles or ranks: vice president, vice admiral. Capitalize it when it is part of the formal title of a national-level figure: Vice President Jane Doe left today on a trip to Asia. But: John Doe, the vice chairman of the committee, resigned. vicinity...= Use near rather than in the vicinity of. Restrict its use to locations rather than to degree or amount. VICTOR... Phonetic spelling of the letter "v." virgule... Printer's term for slash or slant. See the entry for slant, slasb. vis-a-vis... Always include the hyphens. It need not be italicized as a foreign word. voice ... See the entries for active voice and passive voice. voluntarism, volunteerism... Voluntarism first appeared in print in 1838. It is the older term and has two senses: first, the principle of doing something by relying on voluntary action; second, a belief in the supremacy of the will. Today voluntarism is used mainly in its second sense. The first sense is more often conveyed by the term volunteerism, which has been traced back to 1844. It is now standard in most new dictionary editions. w -ward, -wards... In American English, use the suffix form -ward for adjectives and adverbs: a backward glance; move forward. British English omits the "s" for the adjective and includes the "s" for the adverb. There is no need to use the construction "to the" before the adverb. POOR: Columbus sailed to the westward. BETTER: Columbus sailed westward. warn...= The use of warn as an intransitive verb is common and acceptable in American English, particularly if the warning is intended generally rather than to a specific individual or group: The President warned against an unrealistic view of the world. warning statements... Warning statements precede the text of the report and provide specific cautions regarding the sensitivity and releasability of the information. Warsaw Pact... Now disbanded; avoid the term except in a historical context. way, ways... Both are standard in American English. Ways as a synonym for way has been traced back to 1588. Although it occurs regularly in speech and writing, most commentators look on ways as more colloquial than way. weapon system designators... {U) See the entry for ASCC designator. weather activity or conditions... The word weather usually will suffice without any qualifying words, such as condition or activity. See the entry for bad weather. Webster's... Originally used to identify dictionaries based on Noah Webster's American Dictionary of the English Language, it is now a generic term for American dictionaries and related works. For serialized reports, the authority for spelling ordinary words is Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, 1Oth edition, or for older or less common words Webster's Third New International Dictionary, published in 1961. Both are products of Merriam-= Webster of Springfield, Massachusetts. When variant spellings are listed, use the first one given. Other dictionaries using the generic "Webster's," such as Webster's New World Dictionary, are not considered authoritative for serialized reports. well... "Well" is both an adjective and an adverb. Use it freely after a linking verb. The idiom "feel well" always refers to physical health. "Well" at the beginning of a sentence (Well, I don't think so) considered informal and more characteristic of speech than of writing. Do not use in SIGINT reporting. when•.. Avoid using the phrase is when (or is where) if you are giving a definition. Such use was common among grammarians in the 18th and 19th centuries, but has fallen out of use today. The phrase is acceptable in other contexts. AVOID: A "fudge factor" is when you leave some room for error. ACCEPTABLE: That is when Brutus kills himself. where... Where often follows see, forget, tell, hear, find, read, and remember in Informal speech and writing. The phrases are not part of formal writing. Avoid them in serialized reports. wherever... One word, no double e. whether... Used to introduce a noun clause; generally used in more formal contexts than "if," especially when alternatives exist that are expressed using the infinitive: Carol could not decide whether to join Lorraine for dinner or return home. See the entry for if. whether or not... When a clause beginning with whether serves as the subject of the sentence or as the object of a verb or preposition, the "or not" may be omitted: Whether to accept the nomination was not an issue. Beatrice did not know whether to accept Lucien's proposal. Retain the "or not' when the clause functions as an adverb: Whether he won the prize or not, Roger always gave his best effort. which...= {U) In modem English, which may be used to introduce both restrictive and non-restrictive clauses. It is the only acceptable choice for non-restrictive clauses. Use which to refer to things. See the entries for nonrest_rictiv_e__el_ements, restrictive elements, and th_at while... The use of while in senses unrelated to time has been established since the time of Shakespeare: While Alice may have little money, she is very happy. It is rarely ambiguous. WHISKEY... Phonetic spelling of the letter "w." who, whom...= Use who and whom, and the less common pronouns whoever and whomever, to refer to either humans or animals. Who is correct when the pronoun is the subject of a sentence or clause: •Who is responsible for the error? •The man who wanted to buy the house is here. (Who is the subject of "wanted.") •The Prime Minister, who Patricia said would arrive tomorrow, will meet with the President Thursday. (Who is the subject of "would arrive.") When the pronoun is the object of a verb or preposition, use whom: •To whom should I mail this? •The man whom we had met left Metropolis yesterday. (Whom is the object of "had met.") When who or whom introduces a parenthetical clause within a sentence, set the clause within a pair of commas. who's... Avoid the contraction for "who is" in serialized reports. whose... Whose is a possessive form and refers to either persons or things. It has been traced back to the 14th century. Among the writers who have used whose for things are Wycliff, Shakespeare, Milton, Pope, Lewis, and Updike. The theory that whose applies only to persons is a superstition. will... Use will to describe the simple future in all persons: I will go tomorrow. Also use will in questions that ask for a prediction: Will Bob win the lottery? See the entries for shall, should, and would. WNINTEL... This abbreviated form is no longer a valid security control marking. Do not use it or its expansion, Warning Notice, Intelligence Sources or Methods Involved. words... Words have no meanings in themselves; they have meanings in relation to people and in particular contexts. The word "dog" conjures up many different images to people, depending on whether you have one as a pet or know of a particular breed. Choose words with care. More often than not, use short words rather than long ones. They are easier to read, but don't blindly pick the "common" word or the shortest word. Pick the right word to convey the meaning. Be specific. wordiness... Wordiness is common in SIGINT because of: •the problems in putting translations into succinct, idiomatic English ~P.L. 86~36 •the hedging and qualifying around the SIGINT facts •the need to provide subordinations and amplifying data, such as coordinates •the excessive use of passive voice in SIGINT reporting In general, omit "unnecessary" words. The problem, of course, is determining which words are "unnecessary." Delete words when doing so Improves and clarifies the sentence. When longer words or phrases suit the rhythm of a sentence better than short ones, feel free to use the longer word or phrase. Modern grammar and journalism put a premium on brevity, sometimes at the expense of clarity, style, and rhythm. But remember, briefer is not always better or clearer. Don't get caught in the trap of counting letters, syllables, or words, even though conciseness must be one of your goals. Write in the best way to convey information clearly to the reader. The two goals may coincide, and most often do, but the second goal is more important. word order... Normal word order in an English sentence is subject, verb, object. Generally, words that appear outside normal order receive greater emphasis. As a rule, place modifiers near the words they modify. In English this is most often before the modified word, as with adjectives. Take care that any modifiers separated from the word they modify are not misleading. MURKY: Last year the firm was able to obtain discounts on the products it buys with little opposition. IMPROVED: Last year the firm was able to obtain, with little opposition, discounts on the products it buys. work havoc, wreak havoc... Wreak havoc is the more common idiom, but work havoc (generally in the form wrought havoc) also is standard. worthwhile... Worthwhile originated as a two-word phrase. It began to be used as a hyphenated, attributive adjective early in the 20th century, but the solid form is now the choice in all contexts. Use worthwhile when you need a very general word of approval, but a more specific adjective is a better choice most of the time. would ... Use would with pronouns of all persons to express habitual action: In the summer we would spend hours by the seashore. Also use would to form the conditional past tense or to express a wish: If I had not left the stadium early, I would have been caught in traffic. Helen wishes her parents would understand her dilemma. NOTE: Do not use would in an "if" clause at the beginning of a sentence. WRONG: If he would have gone, he would have succeeded. RIGHT: If he had gone, he would have succeeded. See the entries for shall, should, and will. X X-ray... Divided usage. GPO uses x-ray; Merriam-Webster capitalizes the noun but not the verb. The American Heritage Dictionary prefers lower case, but notes both. For standardization, use X-ray for the noun and x-ray for the verb. XRAY... Phonetic spelling of the letter "x." Retum to the Table of Contents y YANKEE... Phonetic spelling of the letter "y." yard... Convert this unit of length to meters in serialized reports. To convert to meters, multiply the number of yards by .91. year... In the narrative of a serialized report, express the year in four digits only: 1991, not 91 or '91. Two-digit forms are acceptable when expressing the year only in: •referencing DTGs in the prosign lines of FOLLOW-UP reports, corrections, and cancellations •referencing in a footnote the DTG of a cross-reference •listings When giving a range or series of dates within a single year, place the year after the last element only: from 28 May to 16 July 1990; on 28 May, 5 June, 11 June, and 26 June 1991. Always include the year when it is not the current year: from 16 December 1992 to 8 January 1993. See the entries for date and decade. yet... May be used as a conjunction meaning "nevertheless": The play was not the best I have seen, yet I enjoyed the music. Yugoslav... Not Yugoslavian. The language spoken by the majority of "Yugoslavs" is Serbo-Croatian. Yugoslav is now most appropriate in a historical sense due to the secessions of Slovenia, Croatia, Macedonia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina from the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, which is now dissolved. z z... Append the letter "Z" (always capitalized) to all ZULU time entries in a serialized report unless you are using the phrase ALL TIMES ZULU at the beginning of the report. See the entry for time. zeal... You can have zeal "for doing" something or zeal "to do" something. zenith ... Refers to the highest point. Its antonym is nadir. zero ... The plural form is zeros. zloty ... The Polish national currency is spelled the same whether it is singular or plural. ZULU ... Phonetic spelling of the letter "z." Appendix 1 Abbreviations and Acronyms An abbreviation is a shortened form of a word or phrase used in place of the whole. An acronym is a new word formed from the initial letter or letters of each of the successive parts or major parts of a compound term, e.g. radar (from RAdio Detection And Ranging). Use an abbreviation or acronym: •to shorten a report without losing clarity •to avoid distracting the reader by needless spelling of repetitious words or phrases •to keep the meaning from being lost in long technical or organizational terminology. Unless the abbreviation or acronym is readily recognized by the average reader (not just the usual recipients of the report), spell out the term in the title and the first time it is used in the body. How does one know when an abbreviation or acronym is commonly recognized? While there is no hard-and-fast rule, the following principles apply: a. The abbreviation or acronym must have one primary meaning. This does not mean that an abbreviation may not (3) stand for more than one thing; only that one meaning comes to mind for most people. •An abbreviation that meets the test is CPA, which most people understand to mean Certified Public Accountant, although it can also stand for critical-path analysis. •An abbreviation that fails the test is CAP, which can be interpreted as Civil Air Patrol, Combat Air Patrol, or Common Agricultural Policy. b. The term must be known and understood by the average reader. Even if a term is recognizable in context, do not use it if the average reader is not likely to understand it. Spell out (the first time it is used) any term that cannot be understood. Thus, ASAP is acceptable and CAGS is not, as in the following examples: •Deliver the package ASAP. •The aircraft flew at a computed average ground speed (CAGS) of 785 kph. Commonly recognized abbreviations and acronyms may be used in titles. When in doubt, use the full spelling of the term. Ten Rules for Abbreviations and Acronyms 1. Use an abbreviation or acronym when it is better known than the expansion: laser, radar, sonar, USSR, VASCAR 2. Use abbreviations for common weights and measures only with figures: (NOTE: The abbreviations of units of measure are identical in the singular and plural. Do not add an "s" to the abbreviation.) •1 kg, 12 oz, 8 km, 500 bbl, 6 gal •Measure the distance in kilometers. •I need a gallon of milk, please. Spell out uncommon measurements, such as hectare and pascal. The measurement decibel often is abbreviated as "dB" in technical reports. Be sure your readers will recognize it. If in doubt, spell it out. (b).(3) The International System of Units (SI) used by scientists around the world is roughly equivalent to what is popularly called the metric system. All Sl units are written in lowercase style when spelled in full. Abbreviations within this system are lowercase except for those derived from proper names. (The exception to this rule is the abbreviation for liter (L), which is always capitalized.) Thus, the abbreviations for hertz and pascal are capitalized and those for meter and candela are not. Hz (hertz), Pa (pascal), m (meter), cd (candela) NOTE: Always capitalize the following Sl prefix abbreviations: mega (M), giga (G), tera (T), peta (P), and exa (E) Omit internal and terminal punctuation in units of measure in accordance with the practice adopted by national and international technical groups. (e.g. Btu, GHz) 3. Spell out the names of countries, except for the USSR, U.S., PRC, and UK.Use the abbreviations as either nouns or modifiers (e.g., Yeltsin to Visit UK; U.S. administration, PRC delegation). Do not abbreviate placename prefixes except those beginning with "Saint" (St./Ste.). 4. Abbreviate civil, religious, and military titles only when the full name is used. (Gen. Ulysses S. Grant, but General Grant). If the title itself is modified, spell out the title (e.g., Very Reverend Elmer Gantry). 5. Use abbreviations of Latin origin (such as e.g. and i.e.) only in parenthetical references and footnotes. The abbreviation etc. (etcetera) is acceptable in text. 6. Insert a space after the period in the initials of a personal name: U. S. Grant, G. Washington. In other abbreviations with internal periods, do not include a space after the period: N.Y., a.m., U.S. 7. Do not expand designators of aircraft and other equipment (especially military equipment), even though they may contain an acronym or abbreviation of a personal or corporate name. examples: MiG-21, ZSU-23, DC-10, UNIVAC, SA-8, IBM PC . 8. Use periods when an abbreviation or acronym might cause confusion for the reader. With the shift in serialized reports to uppercase and lowercase letters, very few abbreviations will cause confusion. Thus, most abbreviations will not require periods. 9. In serialized reports, follow the guidance in the GPO Style Manual for the proper form of standard abbreviations and acronyms not listed below. If the abbreviation or acronym is not listed in GPO, consult the Merriam-Webster dictionaries. If neither of these sources provides a standard form and the Office of Primary Concern has not created one, follow the rules in the GPO Style Manual on creating abbreviations and acronyms.When a coined word or symbol is formed from only the first letter of each word, use uppercase letters (e.g. MIRV); when proper names are used in shortened form and more than the first letter of each word is used, use uppercase and lowercase (e.g. Conrail, Aramco). 10. Use the indefinite article "a" before abbreviations and acronyms that when spoken begin with a consonant sound or an aspirated "h": examples: a NATO exercise, a JCS memo, a Conrail ad Use the indefinite article "an" before abbreviations and acronyms that when spoken begin with a vowel sound or a silent "h": examples: an AWACS flight, an ETA of oaooz, an HF signal Commonly-Recognized Abbreviations & Acronyms Preferred Form Expansion AAA ABM Adm. ADP AIDS a.k.a. AM ASW AWACS AWOL bbl antiaircraft artillery antiballistic missile Admiral automated data processing Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome also known as amplitude modulation antisubmarine warfare Airborne Warning and Control System absent without official leave barrel Brig. Gen. Btu Capt. CEO CIA Co. c.o.d. Col. Comdr. COMSAT Corp. Cpl. dB Dept doz e.g. e-mail Ens. ETA ETD etc. EU r::/\V Brigadier General British Thermal Unit Captain Chief Executive Officer Central Intelligence Agency company cash on delivery Colonel Commander communications satellite corporation Corporal decibel department dozen for example (exempli gratia) electronic mail Ensign estimated time of arrival estimated time of departure and so on (etcetera) European Union FM f.o.b. FROG ft= FTP FY= gal Gen. facsimile frequency modulation free on board free rocket over ground foot or feet File transfer Protocol fiscal year gallon General gross domestic product gross national product high frequency headquarters hertz intercontinental ballistic missile that is (id est) improvised explosive device identification friend or foe incorporated International Telecommunications Satellite Organization International Police Internet Protocol GOP GNP HF= HQ= Hz ICBM i.e. lED IFF Inc. = = = INTELSAT INTERPOL IP lr'C kg kHz KIA km kph KST laser Lt. Ltd m Maj. MEDEVAC MHz MIA mm mph NATO NCO nm OAS OPEC "7 Joint Chiefs of Staff kilogram kilohertz killed in action kilometer kilometers per hour known or suspected terrorist light amplitude stimulated by the emission of radiation Lieutenant limited meter Major medical evacuation megahertz missing in action millimeter miles per hour North Atlantic Treaty Organization non-commissioned officer nautical miles Organization of American States Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries -P. L. PLO POW PAC Pvt. radar rpm SALT SDI Sgt. sonar TCP/IP TNT TV UAE UDP UFO UHF UK UN= URL u.s. 1/LJt: ounce Palestine Liberation Organization prisoner of war People's Republic of China Private radio detection and ranging revolutions per minute Strategic Arms Limitation Talks Strategic Defense Initiative Sergeant sound navigation ranging Transmission Control ProtocoVInternet Protocol trinitrotoluene (dynamite) television United Arab Emirates User Datagram Protocol unidentified flying object ultra-high frequency United Kingdom United Nations Universal Resource Locator United States (b) (31 very high frequency VoiP Voice over Internet Protocol VIP very important person VP vice president VPN virtual private network VSAT very small aperture terminal WHO World Health Organization z ZULU time zone Bibliography A Dictionary of Modern English Usage; Henry Fowler. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1926 2nd ed., 1965; edited by Sir Ernest Gowers American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language. 2nd College ed.; Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1982 Barnes and Noble English Grammar; George Curme New York: Barnes and Noble, 1953 The Chicago Manual of Style; John Grossman, ed. 14th edition; Chicago, Ill.: University of Chicago Press, 1993 Composition and Grammar. Farmer, Zemelman, Yesner, and Boone. River Forest, Ill.: Laidlaw Brothers, 1985 Effective Writing for Engineers, Managers, Scientists; H. J. Tichy. New York: John Wiley &= Sons, 1966 The Elements of Rhetoric; Vincent Ruggiero. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, 1971 The Elements of Style; William F. Strunk, Jr. and E. B. White. New York: Macmillan, 1959; 2nd ed., 1972; 3rd ed., 1979 The English Language Today, Sidney Greenbaum, ed. Oxford: Pergamon Press, 1985 GPO Style Manuat, U.S. Government Printing Office. Washington: GPO, 1984 Harbrace College Handbook, John C. Hodges and Mary E. Whitten. 9th ed.; New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1984 Heath's College Handbook of Composition; Langdon Elsbree and Frederick Bracher. Lexington, Mass: D. C. Heath, 1972 Jane's Aerospace Dictionary; Bill Gunston. New York: Jane's Publishing, 1980 Meffiam-Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary; Frederick C. Mish, ed. 10th ed.; Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1993 News Reporting and Writing, The Missouri Group. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1980 On Writing Welf, William Zinsser. New York: Harper and Row, 1976 Oxford Companion to the English Language; Tom McArthur, ed. New York: Oxford University Press, 1992 The Practical Stylist; Sheridan Baker. 3rd ed.; New York: Thomas Crowell, 1973; 5th ed., 1981 The Random House College Dictionary; Jess Stein, ed. Revised ed.; New York: Random House, 1980. The Random House Dictionary of the English Language. New York: Random House, 1966; 2nd ed., 1987 Saying What You Mean -A Commonsense Guide to American Usage; Robert Claiborne. New York: W. W. Norton, 1986 Simon & Schuster Handbook for Writers; Lynn Quitman Troyka. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Simon& Schuster, 1987 TheStoryofWebster'sThird;HerbertC.Morton.= New York: Cambridge University Press, 1994 Strictly Speaking; Edwin Newman. New York: Warner Books, 1975 Stylebook for Writers and Editors. 5th ed.; Washington: U.S. News and World Report, 1984 Webster's Dictionary of English Usage; E. Ward Gilman, ed. Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1989 Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary. 8th ed., Henry B. Woolf, ed.; Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1979. 9th ed., FrederickC. Mish, ed.;, Springfield, Mass: Merriam-Webster, 1983 10th ed. (see under Merriam-Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary.) Webster's Third New International Dictionary; Philip B. Gove, ed. Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1961 Writer's Guide and Index to English; Porter Perrin. 3rd ed.; Glenview, Ill.: Scott, Foresman, 1959; 5th ed., 1972 Writing With A Purpose; Joseph Trimmer and James McCrimmon. 5th ed.; Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1972; 9th ed., 1988 Historical Information (U~Someofthemanual'smorediscursivedescriptivistentries,whichmayinterestreadersfromatheoreticalorhistorical= standpoint, have been moved to this section of the manual. dictionary... See complete historical entry for dictionary parameter.•. Parameter originally was a specific term used in mathematics to describe a characteristic element. It moved into general use in the mid-20th century, generally in the plural form, expressing the sense of "limits" or "boundaries": All of the options presented are within the design parameters. Possible substitutes, if you don't like the word parameter, are range, factor, and criterion. spelling... In Van Winkle's Return, Kenneth Wilson observes that "spelling is mostly a neuromuscular skill in the development of which practice helps, but for which certain innate equipment is the main requirement.• His point is that the aptitude for spelling is like that for any skill--practice will help anyone improve, but some people will always do better than others. That's why spelling bees always end up with a winner. "Correct" spelling is a product of the era of printing and dictionaries. It developed, as the Oxford Companion to the English Language notes, "by a social consensus and not through the recommendation of an Academy or other institution." It was not until the time of Shakespeare that anyone even thought about creating standard spelling rules. Printers in the 17th century began the trend toward consistency when varied spacing material made the need for justification less of a factor in the spelling of a word. The arrival of large dictionaries in the 18th century, according to Merriam-Webster, increased the trend toward uniformity.