Dates
Dates and Ordinal Numbers
Do not use the ordinal designators (st, nd, rd, th) when writing dates if both month and day are given. Prefer writing Jan. 12, not Jan. 12th. However, if the date comes before the month, use the ordinal designator.
Reports are due by Jan. 15.
Please have your report filed by the 15th of the month.
Abreviating months
When a month is used with a specific date, abbreviate only the following months: Jan., Feb., Aug., Sep., Oct., Nov., and Dec. Spell out March, April, May, June, and July. In addition, spell out all names of months when using the month alone or with a year alone.In February, we will have our divisional contest, but by March 1998, we will discontinue divisional contests completely.
Punctuating dates
When a phrase lists only a month and a year, do not separate the year by commas. When a phrase refers to a month, day, and year, set off the year by commas.
January 1992 was a bitterly cold month.
Jan. 2 was the coldest day of the year.
Her birthday is May 15.
April 14, 1996, is the target date.
Do not use the contracted form for years ('94; '20s) unless each is a part of a specific title or phrase. Using an apostrophe and the two digits saves only one space. Always write out year dates in full (1994; 1920s).
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