K

“Business writing is often dull, stilted, uninspired. We try to improve ours with the active voice and accurate wording, trimming the fat whenever we can.”

– Linda Wootton, proofreader Progress Energy

K Use K (capitalized) as an abbreviation for thousand, especially in headlines and headings to save space. The new process will save the company $400K. Do not put a space between K and the number. K is also an abbreviation for kilobyte, as in 128K. Use the K for all references.

karat Measures the fineness of gold. Do not confuse this term with carat, which is a unit of weight for gemstones. Her future husband gave her a 14-karat gold ring with a 2-carat diamond. A caret (^) is a mark used by editors and proofreaders.

ketchup This spelling is preferred ...

Get The Business Style Handbook, Second Edition: An A-to-Z Guide for Effective Writing on the Job, 2nd Edition now with the O’Reilly learning platform.

O’Reilly members experience books, live events, courses curated by job role, and more from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers.