Hello folks! Over the next week, my dear fellow-editors will be taking over Editor’s Corner. Donna, Jackie, and Laura have some verbal delights and nifty nuggets that are sure to please you!
A few questions came in about numbers this week. Here are the questions and answers for you.
· Question: What is the proper way to write third party? 3rd party? Third-party? One party to the right of the second party?
· Answer: It depends how you are using the word.
o First, don’t use the ordinal—spell out third.
o Second, if you are using the entire term third-party as an adjective, it is hyphenated:
§ Third-party software
§ Third-party interface
o Third, when you are using the adjective third to modify the noun party, then it is not hyphenated:
§ A third party was involved to mediate between the two sides.
§ That was the third party I went to Saturday night.
· Question: Which way should the single quote mark be facing when using it before the abbreviation of a decade?
· Answer: It should actually be an apostrophe, but if you aren’t careful, Word will “fix” it for you and turn it into a single, opening quote mark. So, it should look like it does below, not like yesterday’s email.
o In the ’70s and early ’80s, I rocked several pairs of gauchos and corduroy OshKoshes®.
There’s one more question, but it is a bit more involved, so I’ll save it for another day.
Gauchos a-go-go!
Kara Church
Technical Editor, Advisory
Editor's Corner 
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