The Canadian Style has been archived and won’t be updated before it is permanently deleted.
For the most up-to-date content, please consult Writing Tips Plus, which combines content from Writing Tips and The Canadian Style. And don’t forget to update your bookmarks!
There is a vast array of technical and scientific abbreviations such as those for mathematical ratios and operations, physical quantities and constants or statistical formulas and notations. Most unabridged dictionaries list such abbreviations. People working in specific disciplines should consult the appropriate manuals in their field.1
In biology, the Latin name for a genus is not abbreviated if used alone. When used with the species name, it is abbreviated as of the second reference. The species name is not abbreviated:
In symbols for chemical elements, compounds and formulas, use subscript, not superscript, numerals, e.g. H2SO4, SO2.
_____________________
© Public Services and Procurement Canada, 2024
TERMIUM Plus®, the Government of Canada's terminology and linguistic data bank
Writing tools – The Canadian Style
A product of the Translation Bureau