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| Foreword | |
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| Introduction | |
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| Elementary Rules of Usage | |
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| Form the possessive singular of nouns by adding 's | |
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| In a series of three or more terms with a single conjunction, use a comma after each term except the last | |
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| Enclose parenthetic expressions between commas | |
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| Place a comma before a conjunction introducing an independent clause | |
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| Do not join independent clauses with a comma | |
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| Do not break sentences in two | |
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| Use a colon after an independent clause to introduce a list of particulars, an appositive, an amplification, or an illustrative quotation | |
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| Use a dash to set off an abrupt break or interruption and to announce a long appositive or summary | |
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| The number of the subject determines the number of the verb | |
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| Use the proper case of pronoun | |
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| A participial phrase at the beginning of a sentence must refer to the grammatical subject | |
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| Elementary Principles of Composition | |
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| Choose a suitable design and hold to it | |
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| Make the paragraph the unit of composition | |
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| Use the active voice | |
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| Put statements in positive form | |
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| Use definite, specific, concrete language | |
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| Omit needless words | |
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| Avoid a succession of loose sentences | |
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| Express coordinate ideas in similar form | |
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| Keep related words together | |
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| In summaries, keep to one tense | |
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| Place the emphatic words of a sentence at the end | |
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| A Few Matters of Form | |
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| Words and Expressions Commonly Misused | |
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| An Approach to Style (With a List of Reminders) | |
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| Place yourself in the background | |
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| Write in a way that comes naturally | |
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| Work from a suitable design | |
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| Write with nouns and verbs | |
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| Revise and rewrite | |
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| Do not overwrite | |
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| Do not overstate | |
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| Avoid the use of qualifiers | |
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| Do not affect a breezy manner | |
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| Use orthodox spelling | |
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| Do not explain too much | |
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| Do not construct awkward adverbs | |
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| Make sure the reader knows who is speaking | |
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| Avoid fancy words | |
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| Do not use dialect unless your ear is good | |
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| Be clear | |
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| Do not inject opinion | |
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| Use figures of speech sparingly | |
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| Do not take shortcuts at the cost of clarity | |
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| Avoid foreign languages | |
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| Prefer the standard to the offbeat | |
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| Afterword | |
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| Glossary | |
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| Index | |