11. Reference works

Consistency in spelling and the presentation of the text is essential, and great efforts should be made to ensure that the basic rules for composition of a text, as laid down in New Hart’s Rules, are followed.

As a general rule, the first spelling given on the Oxford Dictionaries Premium website (subscription required), or on the Oxford Learner’s Dictionaries website, should be followed (making sure in each case that the British English dictionary is selected).

Owing to the interinstitutional nature of the Publications Office’s role it is desirable to formulate a standard style of presentation for EU works. With this in view, the Office refers to the latest editions of the following publications when treating English-language texts:

• Oxford Dictionaries Premium website (subscription required) or Oxford Learner’s Dictionaries website should be followed (making sure in each case that the British English dictionary is selected);

• Butcher’s Copy-editing – The Cambridge handbook for editors, copy-editors and proofreaders (Cambridge University Press);

• Claire’s Clear Writing Tips¹ (European Commission Directorate-General for Translation);

• Concise Oxford Dictionary (Oxford University Press);

• English Style Guide (European Commission Directorate-General for Translation);

• European Communities Glossary – Phrases and terminology (Council of the European Union);

• Fowler’s Modern English Usage (Oxford University Press);

• How to write clearly (European Commission Directorate-General for Translation);

• Multilingual Glossary of Abbreviations (Council of the European Union);

• New Hart’s Rules (Oxford University Press);

• New Oxford Dictionary for Writers and Editors (Oxford University Press);

• New Oxford Spelling Dictionary – The writers’ and editors’ guide to spelling and word division (Oxford University Press);

• UNTERM – The United Nations terminology database (names of countries and adjectives of nationality).