When to Use Italics for Non-English Words

In English-language writing, words from other languages are often presented in italics. As a proofreader, you may therefore need to check that such words are presented correctly. But what are the rules about italicising foreign words in English writing?

In this post, we look at what a proofreader needs to know on this subject.

When to Use Italics for Non-English Words

In broad terms, unfamiliar foreign words or phrases should be italicised in English writing. This is common when referring to technical terms used by non-English writers. For instance:

Heidegger’s concept of Dasein is fundamental to his philosophy.

Here, the German word ‘Dasein’ could have been translated to English as ‘being’. But the author has preserved the original term because it has a technical use in Heidegger’s work. And to show that this term is borrowed from another language, it is written in italics.

By comparison, there is no need to italicise foreign words or phrases that have an established use in English. For example, most English speakers are familiar with the term ‘déjà vu’ and the experience it describes. Thus, even though this is a French term, it would not need to be italicised. Likewise, common Latin abbreviations such as ‘e.g.’ or ‘etc.’ are not usually italicised.

In general, then, when deciding whether a term should be italicised, the two key factors are:

1. Does it have an entry in an authoritative English-language dictionary (e.g. the OED for British English or Merriam-Webster for American English)? If so, it has an established used in English and does not need to be italicised when used in English writing.
2. Will your client’s audience be familiar with the term? If not, it may be best to italicise it even if it has an established use, as it may still be new to the target reader(s).

Beyond this, the most important thing is making sure that your client uses a consistent approach to italicising non-English words in their work.

However, if your client is using a style guide, you should check it for advice. We will look at what some of the major style guides say about italicising non-English words below.

Style Guides on Italicising Foreign Words

Most major style guides offer advice on when to italicise foreign words. These include:

• AMA Style – In AMA style, writers should italicise words and phrases from other languages that do not have a standard use in English, as well as giving a definition if required for clarity. However, this is not necessary for non-English street, building, or organisation names.
• APA Style – Requires italics for non-English words, phrases, and abbreviations if they may be unfamiliar to readers, but only on the first use. If the same word, phrase, or abbreviation is used later in the same document, it should be written without italics.
• Chicago Style – Italicises isolated words and phrases from non-English languages unless they are proper nouns or they appear in a standard dictionary for the relevant dialect. If a non-English word is used frequently, only the first instance needs to be italicised.
• MHRA Style – Words and short phrases from other languages, except direct quotations, should be italicised if they do not have a standard usage in English. If in doubt over whether a word has a use in English, MHRA style suggests using roman type.
• MLA Style – Suggests italicising non-English words except for full quotes in other languages, non-English titles of articles and other short works (which are placed in quotation marks instead), proper nouns, and words with an established use in English.

These variations between systems mean it is important to check your client’s style guide.

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