xenophobe, xenophobia
Xmas must NOT be used instead of Christmas.
X-ray is an acceptable
abbreviation of X-ray examination.
It can also be used as a verb, to X-ray someone.
Yardies
(West Indian criminal gangs)
“yes”
vote, “no” vote
yeti (lower case), the abominable snowman
yoghurt
yoke (oxen)
yolk (egg)
NEVER confuse
youth courts, not juvenile courts, which no longer
exist.
Yugoslav
is the adjective from Yugoslavia (not Yugoslavian).
Write Yugoslav Army, not Serb Army.
yuletide (lower case)
yuppie, noun or adjective
Yves Saint Laurent (not St)
-ze
In almost all
cases use the -ise ending rather than the -ize.
Two of the main exceptions are capsize and synthesizer
Zeitgeist, means the spirit of the times
zeppelin (lower case for the airship)
zeros (prefer to zeroes as plural)
zigzag,
zigzagging
Zimmer frame is a trademark
zodiac, zodiacal (lower case, as in signs of the zodiac)
zoo capital as in London Zoo, Dudley Zoo; thereafter, the
zoo