W
- wait cursor
See spinning wait cursor.
- Walkie-Talkie
A watchOS app. Don’t use as a verb; say use Walkie-Talkie, have a Walkie-Talkie conversation, or similar.
- WAN
Acronym for wide area network. Note no hyphen in the spelled-out version. For guidelines about spelling out acronyms, see abbreviations and acronyms.
- want
Make sure that an object follows the verb want.
Correct: Make a copy if you want a duplicate. [The word duplicate is the object.]
Correct: Sign up if you want to attend. [The infinitive, to attend, is the object.]
You can often avoid the issue entirely. For example, If you want to introduce alternative methods can be changed to To introduce alternative methods.
- warm start (n.), warm-start (adj.)
Note hyphenation of adjective.
- Warning
Use a Warning notice when the reader needs to know that an action may cause bodily injury, damage to hardware or software, or loss of data.
Use warnings and other notices sparingly. They lose their effectiveness if they appear too often. Don’t use a Warning notice immediately before or after a note, an Important notice, or another Warning notice, or immediately after a text heading.
- watch face
Use to refer to what you see when Apple Watch is displaying a watch. Don’t shorten to face.
Correct: With the watch face showing, press the display.
Incorrect: You can add stock info to the face.
In most cases, don’t say touch and hold the watch face; you touch and hold the display while viewing the watch face. See also display (n.).
- watchlist
One word when referring to the list of stocks in the Stocks app.
- watchOS
The operating system for Apple Watch.
- waveform (n., adj.)
One word.
- wavelength (n.)
One word.
- we
Don’t use first person; rewrite in terms of the reader or the product.
Correct: For best results, the image should be at least 600 x 600 pixels.
Incorrect: We recommend that the image be at least 600 x 600 pixels.
See also recommend.
- web
Short for World Wide Web. You go to, visit, or view pages on the web. Note the treatment of terms beginning with web:
webcam, webcast, webinar, webmail, webpage, website
web app, web browser, web developer, web server
Don’t use web and internet interchangeably; the web is just one part of the global internet.
See also internet addresses; World Wide Web.
- web addresses
See internet addresses; URL; webpage.
- web clip
Capitalize when referring to the Dashboard widget; otherwise, use lowercase.
- webpage
One word. A self-contained document that can be viewed on a website. A single website can contain many webpages. You connect to (or go to) a page; you’re then at that page. Text, graphics, and links, however, are on the page.
Don’t use website and webpage interchangeably.
See also homepage; internet addresses; website.
- website
Refers to a collection of webpages stored in a particular location.
A website may be organized into several parts, sections, or areas, each of which may contain more than one page. Use part, section, or area to refer to such an entity. Use page to refer to a single webpage. Use website to refer to the entire collection.
You can browse, visit, or go to a website, but don’t use such phrases as point your browser at the website and surf the website.
- well-behaved
Don’t use to describe software; use compatible, well-constructed, and the like.
- wellbeing
One word (exception to Merriam-Webster).
- wheelchair user
OK to use to describe a person in a wheelchair; also OK to say a person in a wheelchair or a person who uses a wheelchair. Don’t use wheelchair-bound, confined to a wheelchair, or handicapped. See also Writing about disability.
- whether
See if, whether.
- which
Use only to introduce a nonrestrictive clause; clauses beginning with which are always set off with commas.
The newest computer in the lab, which is a Mac Pro, is also the students’ favorite. [There’s only one newest computer; the phrase which is a Mac Pro, although it provides more information, doesn’t restrict the subject of the sentence.]
This is the computer that has network access. [There are many computers; the phrase that has network access restricts—narrows the meaning of—the subject of the sentence to one computer.]
See also that.
- while, although, whereas
While means during the time that and implies concurrent activities. Use although to mean in spite of the fact that. Use whereas to mean it being the fact that or while on the contrary.
Correct: Although the clip won’t play back at 1x (normal) speed, every frame plays back, with no frames dropped.
Incorrect: While the clip won’t play back at 1x (normal) speed, every frame plays back, with no frames dropped.
Correct: SD video uses interlaced scanning, whereas HD formats may use either interlaced or progressive scanning.
Incorrect: SD video uses interlaced scanning, while HD formats may use either interlaced or progressive scanning.
- whir
Not whirr. But whirring.
The disk drive whirs, and in a moment the startup screen appears.
- whitelist
Don’t use. See also blacklist/whitelist (n., v.).
- who, whom
Who should always be used as the subject of a verb or as a subject complement. Whom should always be used as the object of a verb or preposition.
Who is the new system administrator?
This manual is intended for the person who manages the network.
Be selective about the people to whom you give network access.
- wide
Use a hyphen in compound adjectives beginning with wide.
wide-angle viewing, wide-format screen
Exception: widescreen
Close up words that end with wide.
companywide, enterprisewide, industrywide, systemwide, worldwide
If part of the compound is a proper noun, use a hyphen: Apple-wide.
- wide area network
See WAN.
- wide color gamut (n.), wide-color-gamut (adj.)
A video color space capable of reproducing a broader palette of colors than legacy (standard color gamut) color spaces. OK to shorten to wide gamut (n.) and wide-gamut (adj.) if the context is clear.
- widescreen (adj.)
One word.
- widget
Capitalize the names of widgets.
To customize the Weather widget…
To add a Stocks widget to Notification Center…
- Wi-Fi
Not wifi, wi-fi, or WiFi.
- wiggle
Don’t use to describe the movement of icons on a screen; use jiggle. See also jiggle.
- wiki
A collaborative website that can be modified by members of a group.
- window
In user materials, use window to refer to the interface elements described below.
macOS and visionOS: Use window for main app windows, document windows, and windows with controls or options that affect the active document or selection, such as the Fonts window.
All macOS windows have a functional close button in the title bar.
iPadOS: Use window for app windows that are visible at the same time—for example, when someone is multitasking using Split View or Slide Over.
You can open two windows from the same app in Split View.
You can also use window to refer to a Picture in Picture window. See also Picture in Picture (n., adj.), picture-in-picture (adj.).
Don’t use window to refer to a popover. See also popover.
Except for the Picture in Picture window, don’t use window to refer to interface elements in iOS. Instead of naming an element, in most cases you can simply describe what the user must select or do. If necessary, you can usually use alternative words such as list.
Correct: To see more table styles, scroll left or right.
Incorrect: To see more table styles, scroll left or right in the Tables window.
Correct: Tap an item in the search results list.
Incorrect: Tap an item in the search results window.
- window bar
In visionOS, the horizontal bar at the bottom of a window that lets you move the window.
- window controls
Standard controls for windows include the close button, the minimize button, and the maximize button.
- Windows
See Microsoft Windows.
- Windows-based (adj.), Windows based (pred. adj.)
Refers to computers that use Microsoft Windows. See also Microsoft Windows; PC.
- window titles
When you refer to a window by name, use the exact words in the title bar of the window (the Mail window, the About This Mac window). Use lowercase for window (unless it’s included in the window title and capitalized).
- wired
Equipped with or connected by wires or cables. Related terms include wired connections, wired keyboard, wired mouse, wired networking, wired remote, and so on.
- wireless-enabled
Not wirelessly-enabled.
- wish
Don’t use; use want. See also want.
- word processing (n.), word-processing (adj.)
Note hyphenation of adjective.
- words as words
Italicize a word when it’s used as a word. Use an apostrophe and an s to form the plural, but don’t italicize the apostrophe or the s.
He had too many and’s in the sentence.
See also letters as letters.
- word wrap
Not wraparound or word wraparound. In documentation written for new users, however, you may want to mention the term wraparound or include it in a glossary because users may see it elsewhere.
- work
Close up the following words beginning with work:
workflow, workforce, workgroup, workplace, workshop, workspace, workstation
- workflow
One word.
- workspace
Don’t use as a synonym for desktop or Finder.
- workstation (n., adj.)
Don’t use when you mean desktop computer. OK to use when you discuss network administration.
- Worldwide Developers Conference
See WWDC.
- World Wide Web
In most cases, just use the web. When you do use World Wide Web, don’t abbreviate as WWW. See also internet, Internet; web.
- wraparound (n.)
Don’t use; use word wrap. See also word wrap.
- write
Avoid using as a verb in user materials; use copy or burn. In developer or server materials, the following are acceptable: write to a disk, write to disk, write on a disk. Don’t use write a disk.
User materials: Copy the files to your computer.
Developer materials: The app needs to write to the disk.
Server materials: Give the user permission to write to the disk.
See also burn.
- Writing Tools
An Apple Intelligence feature. Use a plural verb with Writing Tools.
Writing Tools are available nearly everywhere you write.
- WWDC
Abbreviation for Worldwide Developers Conference. For guidelines about spelling out abbreviations, see abbreviations and acronyms.
- WWW
Don’t use as an abbreviation for World Wide Web. Use web instead.