italics

Definition:

A style of typeface in which letters are slanted to the right. This is printed in italics.

Etymology:

From the Latin, "Italy"

Guidelines for Using Italics:

1. As a general rule, italicize the titles of complete works:
   • books: Catch-22, by Joseph Heller
   • magazines and journals: Time
   • newspapers: The Times
   • plays: A Raisin in the Sun, by Lorraine Hansberry
   • movies: The Godfather
   • television programs: Doctor Who
   • works of art: Nighthawks, by Edward Hopper
   • albums and CDs: OK Computer, by Radiohead
   The titles of comparatively short works--songs, poems, short stories, essays, and episodes of TV programs--should be enclosed in quotation marks.



2. As a general rule, italicize the names of aircraft, ships, and trains; foreign words used in an English sentence; and words and letters discussed as words and letters:
   • "These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise."
     (title sequence of the original Star Trek TV series)
   
   
   
   • From 1925 to 1953, a passenger train named the Orange Blossom Special brought vacationers to sunny Florida from New York.
   
   
   
   • "There is no danger that Titanic will sink. The boat is unsinkable and nothing but inconvenience will be suffered by the passengers."
     (Phillip Franklin, Vice President of White Star Line)
   
   
   
   • "Come kiss me, and say goodbye like a man. No, not good-bye, au revoir."
     (William Graham, "Chats With Jane Clermont" 1893)
   
   
   
   • "Every word she writes is a lie, including and and the."
     (Mary McCarthy on Lillian Hellman)
   
   
   
3. As a general rule, use italics to emphasize words and phrases:
   "I don't even like old cars. I mean they don't even interest me. I'd rather have a goddam horse. A horse is at least human, for God's sake."
   (J. D. Salinger, The Catcher in the Rye)

Pronunciation: ih-TAL-iks