Abbreviations

Q. I am writing a Q&A document with 75 questions and answers. Can I abbreviate common phrases (e.g., mental health [MH]) throughout the document, or should each Q&A be treated as independent with no abbreviations in the document?

A. You are in the best position to decide this. Think about whether readers will read all the Q&As straight through or merely browse. Think about whether they are likely to know what an abbreviation means if they click on a question that doesn’t explain it. Make your decision based on how much help most of your readers are likely to need. If it’s feasible for a list of abbreviations to accompany the document, that’s sometimes a good solution.