Q. When abbreviations are used only in appendix A of a book, and the list of abbreviations is placed before the appendixes, how is it designated in the table of contents? Is it designated Appendix A so that the other appendixes become B and C?
A. There are various ways to handle this. A short abbreviations list could be incorporated into appendix A under a subhead “Abbreviations” and not be listed in the contents at all. A longer list could appear as its own back-matter section called “Abbreviations” just before the appendixes. (It would not itself be an appendix to the main text.) In this case, the contents page would list Abbreviations, then Appendix A (with title), then Appendix B (with title). Alternatively, you could condense the contents listing to Abbreviations, then Appendixes.