radio button
Use radio button only in in developer documentation and for a technical audience.
In general, emphasize on the task to be accomplished, rather than how the user should interact with the UIUI UI is an acronym for User Interface – the layout of the page the user interacts with. Think ‘how are they doing that’ and less about what they are doing. element. Refer to a radio button by its label. If you have to use a descriptor, use option or option button.
For more information, see UI elements.
RAM
Acronym for random-access memory. Use uppercase.
For more information about spelling out abbreviations, see Abbreviations.
See also memory.
RDF
Initialism for Resource Description Framework. Use uppercase.
For more information about spelling out abbreviations, see Abbreviations.
See also RSS.
re-
In general, don’t hyphenate words beginning with re- such as reinstall and reenter unless re- is followed by a proper noun or it is absolutely necessary to avoid confusion.
For more information, see Hyphens.
For word usage of specific terms, see The American Heritage Dictionary.
read-only
Hyphenate.
read/write
Capitalize both read and write if read is capitalized.
Not read-write.
real time, real-time
Two words. Hyphenate as an adjective.
reboot
Avoid using. Instead, use restart and refer to the context of restarting the device.
See also restart.
recommend
Don’t use we recommend or WordPress recommends. Instead, use recommended.
Examples
Not recommended: We recommend to use PHPPHP PHP (recursive acronym for PHP: Hypertext Preprocessor) is a widely-used open source general-purpose scripting language that is especially suited for web development and can be embedded into HTML. https://www.php.net/manual/en/preface.php. version 7.4 or greater.
Don’t use recommend when something is required.
reference
Don’t use as a verb. Instead, use refer to.
refresh
Use to describe updating a webpage.
Don’t use refresh to describe an image being restored on the screen or data being updated. Instead, use update.
See also update.
reinitialize
Don’t use to mean restart.
See also initialize, start, restart.
remote
It’s OK to use remote as an adjective. Don’t use remote as a verb.
remove
It’s OK to use remove as an verb. Don’t use to mean delete.
See also clear, delete, uninstall, load.
replace
Don’t use as a noun.
See also find and replace.
repo
Use repository instead of repo whenever possible.
reset
Don’t use as a noun.
REST API
Abbreviation for RESTful Application Program Interface. Use uppercase.
For more information about spelling out abbreviations, see Abbreviations.
resolution
Use a lowercase x between the numerals in the dimensions, with no space between the numerals and the x. You can also use the multiplication sign (×). Use a space before and after the multiplication sign.
For more information, see Dimensions.
restart
Use to describe closing and reopening a program or app or turning a device off and then immediately back on. Refer to the context of restarting the device.
Don’t use as a noun.
See also start, restart.
restore
Use as a verb to describe restoring an item or condition to its previous state.
Don’t use as a noun.
required
See must.
right, rightmost, right-hand
Don’t use right as a directional term by itself. Instead, use a term such as upper right, lower right, rightmost, or on the right side of. When you use right to modify a noun, insert a hyphen, as in upper-right corner.
Don’t use right-hand as a modifier.
In general, avoid using directional language such as left, right, up, down in instructions to locate UI elements or other content. Directional language proves to be difficult for accessibility or for localization. People with cognitive impairments, as well as people using assistive technologies such as screen-reading software and might have difficulty interpreting directional language. If a particular UI element or other content is difficult to convey, include a screenshot or illustration.
For more information, see Procedures and instructions.
right align, right-aligned
Use to refer to text that’s aligned at the right margin. Hyphenate right-aligned.
Don’t use right-justified.
See also justify, justified, left align, left-aligned.
right justify, right-justified
Don’t use. Instead, use right-aligned.
See also right align, right-aligned.
robots.txt
Use code font.
For more information, see Filenames.
ROM
Acronym for read-only memory. Use uppercase.
For more information about spelling out abbreviations, see Abbreviations.
See also memory.
Roman
Don’t use to describe type that’s neither bold nor italic. Instead, use regular type.
root, root directory
OK to use in developer documentation and for a technical audience. Use root directory, not home directory
Describe the root of the file system by a leading slash (/).
RSS
Initialism for Really Simple Syndication. Use uppercase.
For more information about spelling out abbreviations, see Abbreviations.
RTF
Initialism for Rich Text Format. Use uppercase.
Don’t use a filename extension to refer to a type of file. For example, use RTF file rather than .rtf file.
For more information, see Referring to file types.
RTL
Initialism for right-to-left. Use uppercase.
For more information, see Writing documentation for a global audience.
For more information about spelling out abbreviations, see Abbreviations.
run
OK to use in developer documentation and for a technical audience. Avoid using in user documentation and for a general audience.
runtime
One word. Not run time or run-time.
