Editing Encyclopedia:Manual of Style (section)

===Opportunities for commonality===
{{shortcut|MOS:COMMONALITY}}

For an international encyclopedia, using vocabulary common to all varieties of English is preferable.
*Use universally accepted terms rather than those less widely distributed, especially in titles. For example, [[Glasses|{{xt|glasses}}]] is preferred to the national varieties {{!xt|spectacles}} ([[British English]]) and {{!xt|eyeglasses}} ([[American English]]); [[Ten million|{{xt|ten million}}]] is preferable to [[crore|{{!xt|one crore}}]] ([[Indian English]]).
*If a variant spelling appears in a title, make a [[Wikipedia:Redirect|redirect]] page to accommodate the others, as with [[artefact]] and [[artifact]], so that all variants can be used in searches and linking.
*Terms that differ between varieties of English, or that have divergent meanings, may be [[Gloss (annotation)#In linguistics|glossed]] to prevent confusion, for example, {{xt|the trunk (American English) or boot (British English) of a car&nbsp;...}}.
*Use a commonly understood word or phrase in preference to one that has a different meaning because of national differences (rather than {{!xt|alternate}}, use {{xt|alternative}} or {{xt|alternating}}, as appropriate), except in technical contexts where such substitution would be inappropriate ({{xt|alternate leaves}}; {{xt|alternate law}}).
*When more than one variant spelling exists within a national variety of English, the most commonly used current variant should usually be preferred, except where the less common spelling has a specific usage in a specialized context, e.g., ''connexion'' in [[Connexionalism|Methodist connexionalism]].

{{crossref|pw=y|For assistance with specific terms, see {{section link|Comparison of American and British English|Vocabulary}}, and [[American and British English spelling differences]]; most dictionaries also indicate regional terms.}}