Word list

Read this first

If you're wondering whether it's "check-out" or "checkout" or "check out," you're in good company. These words—along with opt-in, sign-up, and a bunch of other terms that seem to crop up with frequency—take different forms depending how they're used. (Neat, huh?)

Here's how to get it right... most of the time:

• If you're using the word as an adjective that precedes a noun, use a hyphen. This is known as a ✨compound modifier✨

  • The check-out process was quick and painless.

• If you're using the word as a verb, spell it out as two separate words.

  • "Check out now for an extra 10% off."

• If you're using the word as a noun, write it as one word (though it's probably best to refer to the word list below, as we're pretty loosey-goosey with this one).

  • "Last one to the checkout is a rotten egg!"

Canadian vs. American spellings

As a Canadian company operating in a US-centric industry/society, spelling can be... fraught. Does "favourite" take a "u"? Is it "organize" with an "s" or a "z"? And what about those double "l's" in travelling and cancelled and counsellor?

Here's our general MO: When writing content from the "perspective" of our company (as with a blog or social media post), we use Canadian/British spellings. When writing, shall we say, company-agnostic content (such as product copy and documentation), we use American spellings.

While we believe it is our patriotic duty to be ourselves and spell things the way they really ought to be spelled—it isn't "speled," is it?—we will concede that the majority of our customers are American, and we wouldn't want to confuse or alienate them with our highbrow Canadian spellings.

Onto the words!

• add-on (noun, adjective), add on (verb)

• alt text

• a.m. and p.m.

• analog (not analogue)

• back end (noun), back-end (adjective)

• backup (noun, adjective), back up (verb)

• benchmark

• best-selling, best-seller

• beta

• breadcrumb (as in breadcrumb navigation)

• breakpoint

• built-in (adjective)

• B2B (business-to-business, spell out on first reference)

• B2C (business-to-consumer, spell out on first reference)

• BigCommerce

• Black Friday Cyber Monday (BFCM in subsequent references)

• case-sensitive

• catalog (not catalogue)

• callout (noun, adjective), call out (verb)

• cellphone (but mobile phone is two words)

• checkbox

• checklist

• checkpoint

• check-in (noun, adjective), check in (verb)

• checkout (noun), check out (verb), check-out (adjective)

• clean-up (noun, adjective), clean up (verb)

• conversion

• CRM (customer relationship management, spell out on first reference)

• demo (as in "demo store")

• dot-com

• double-check

• double-click

• drag-and-drop

• dropdown (noun), drop down (verb), drop-down (adjective)

• dropshipping

• ebook

• ecommerce (never capitalize—or heaven forbid CamelCase—unless it begins a sentence)

• email

• etc. (always abbreviate and use a period at the end)

• follow-up (noun, adjective), follow up (verb)

• front end (noun), front-end (adjective)

• fulfill/fulfillment

• full-time

• home page

• how-to

• ID (acceptable substitute for "identification")

• in-depth (adjective), in depth (adverb)

• JavaScript

• internet (never capitalize unless it begins a sentence)

• kanban

• laptop

• left-hand, left-handed, left-align, left-aligned

• login (noun, adjective), log in (verb)

• log out (verb)

• lower case

• mega navigation

• meta description

• meta field

• midmarket

• mini cart

• mobile

• multimedia, multipart, multiplatform, multiuser, multivendor

• OK

• onboarding

• on-demand

• online/offline (one word, not hyphenated)

• open source

• opt-in (noun, adjective), opt in (verb)

• output

• percent (one word, though we tend to prefer the % symbol)

• pickup (noun), pick up (verb)

• Pixelpop

• plugin

• popup (noun, adjective), pop up (verb)

• pop-up (adjective, as in pop-up shop)

• prerequisite

• reinstall/reinstallation

• real-time (adjective), real time (noun)

• screenshot

• SEO

• setup (noun, adjective), set up (verb)

• Shopify admin

• shortcut

• shoutout

• signup (noun); sign-up (adjective); sign up (verb)

• startup (as in a newly-formed business, not to be confused with our Shopify theme, Startup)

• store (we assume that this means "online store." Specify "brick and mortar" if not.)

• subheading

• third party (noun), third-party (adjective)

• time zone, time frame, time stamp

• timeout (noun, adjective), time out (verb)

• to do (noun), to-do (adjective, as in "to-do list")

• tooltip

• tweet/retweet

• uninstall/uninstallation (not deinstall)

• UK (as in, the United Kingdom)

• upmarket

• upper case

• URL

• US (as in, the United States of America)

• username

• variant

• walkthrough

• website, webpage (one word, not two)

• white space

• wifi

• WordPress