2022
CPUT Style Guide
billion
One thousand million
Blackboard
Proper noun, starts with upper case in reference to the online teaching resource If in reference to the classroom writing aid, “blackboard” is written in lower case
bored, boring
“Bored”, adjective, means to feel weary and impatient because one is unoccupied or lacks interest in one’s current activity. The normal construction for bored is “bored by” or “bored with”. “Boring”, adjective, means something or someone is not interesting or exciting
borrow, lend
You borrow from a person You lend to a person
bullet point
A bullet point is a punctuation mark that is used to create bulleted lists. Note spelling of “bulleted”. See 3.7 Lists: Bulleted; Numbered
burnt
“Burnt”, verb, past tense of “burn”, used in British English, as opposed to “burned” (American English)
bus
Plural is “buses”
calendar
Note spelling
campus
Plural is “campuses” See also note to CPUT campuses on page 3 of this Guide
can, may
“Can” is a statement of a person’s innate/physical ability, e.g. “I can write the exam today.” “May” means that permission has been granted for something to be done, e.g. “I may write the exam because I have completed all the required modules.” “May” is also used to express possibility, e.g. “They may write the exam on Tuesday if the lecturer is back from leave by then.”
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