A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
R
racecourse, racehorse
rack and ruin
racked
with pain, not wracked
radius
plural radii
raft
something you float on; do not say “a raft of measures”, which has very rapidly become a cliche (particularly in political reporting)
Range Rover
no hyphen
rarefy, rarefied
rateable
re/re-
Use re- (with hyphen) when followed by the vowels e or u (not pronounced as “yu”): eg re-entry, re-examine, re-urge. Use re (no hyphen) when followed by the vowels a, i, o or u (pronounced as “yu”), or any consonant: eg rearm, rearrange, reassemble, reiterate, reorder, reuse, rebuild, reconsider. Exceptions: re-read; or where confusion with another word would arise: re-cover/recover, re-form/reform, re-creation/recreation, re-sign/resign
recent
avoid: if the date is relevant, use it
referendum
plural referendums
re-form
to form again reform to change for the better; we should not take initiators' use of the word at its face value, particularly in cases where the paper believes no improvement is likely
refute
use this much-abused word only when an argument is disproved; otherwise contest, deny, rebut
repellant
noun repellent adjective: you fight repellent insects with an insect repellant
repertoire
an individual's range of skills or roles repertory a selection of works that a theatre or dance company might perform
replaceable
report
the Lawrence report, etc; use report on or inquiry into but not report into, ie not “a report into health problems”
reported speech
When a comment in the present tense is reported, use past tense: ‘She said:‘I like chocolate’ ‘ (present tense) becomes in reported speech “she said she liked chocolate” (not “she said she likes chocolate”).
When a comment in the past tense is reported, use “had” (past perfect tense): “She said: ‘I ate too much chocolate’ ” (past tense) becomes in reported speech “she said she had eaten too much chocolate” (not “she said she ate too much chocolate”).
Once it has been established who is speaking, there is no need to keep attributing, so long as you stick to the past tense: “Anne said she would vote Labour. There was no alternative. It was the only truly progressive party”, etc
retail price index (RPI) normally no need to spell it out
roadside
rob
you rob a person or a bank, using force or the threat of violence; but you steal a car or a bag of money
rollercoaster
one word
Rolls-Royce
rack and ruin
racked
with pain, not wracked
radius
plural radii
raft
something you float on; do not say “a raft of measures”, which has very rapidly become a cliche (particularly in political reporting)
Range Rover
no hyphen
rarefy, rarefied
rateable
re/re-
Use re- (with hyphen) when followed by the vowels e or u (not pronounced as “yu”): eg re-entry, re-examine, re-urge. Use re (no hyphen) when followed by the vowels a, i, o or u (pronounced as “yu”), or any consonant: eg rearm, rearrange, reassemble, reiterate, reorder, reuse, rebuild, reconsider. Exceptions: re-read; or where confusion with another word would arise: re-cover/recover, re-form/reform, re-creation/recreation, re-sign/resign
recent
avoid: if the date is relevant, use it
referendum
plural referendums
re-form
to form again reform to change for the better; we should not take initiators' use of the word at its face value, particularly in cases where the paper believes no improvement is likely
refute
use this much-abused word only when an argument is disproved; otherwise contest, deny, rebut
repellant
noun repellent adjective: you fight repellent insects with an insect repellant
repertoire
an individual's range of skills or roles repertory a selection of works that a theatre or dance company might perform
replaceable
report
the Lawrence report, etc; use report on or inquiry into but not report into, ie not “a report into health problems”
reported speech
When a comment in the present tense is reported, use past tense: ‘She said:‘I like chocolate’ ‘ (present tense) becomes in reported speech “she said she liked chocolate” (not “she said she likes chocolate”).
When a comment in the past tense is reported, use “had” (past perfect tense): “She said: ‘I ate too much chocolate’ ” (past tense) becomes in reported speech “she said she had eaten too much chocolate” (not “she said she ate too much chocolate”).
Once it has been established who is speaking, there is no need to keep attributing, so long as you stick to the past tense: “Anne said she would vote Labour. There was no alternative. It was the only truly progressive party”, etc
retail price index (RPI) normally no need to spell it out
roadside
rob
you rob a person or a bank, using force or the threat of violence; but you steal a car or a bag of money
rollercoaster
one word
Rolls-Royce
