How to Write Vertical Lists (Ordered and Unordered)

Recently, we looked at how to write run-in lists, which are lists that appear inside sentences. In this tutorial, we’ll explore guidelines for how to write vertical lists. Vertical lists are set apart from the surrounding text and are usually prefaced with bullets or sequential numbers or letters.

Vertical lists can be ordered or unordered and can be introduced by complete or incomplete sentences, all of which affect how the individual list items are capitalized and punctuated.

How to Write Ordered Vertical Lists

Ordered vertical lists have, you guessed it, an order. That order can be based on rank (e.g., a list of most favorite to least favorite foods) or sequence (e.g., recipe instructions). Ordered lists can be introduced by a complete or incomplete sentence and are typically prefaced by numbers¹ or letters² followed by a period.

Ordered Vertical Lists Introduced by Complete Sentences

Complete sentences introducing ordered lists are traditionally punctuated with a colon.

Individual list items following a complete sentence are usually capitalized but appear without terminal punctuation (i.e., they don’t end in a period, comma, colon, or semicolon) if they are incomplete sentences, phrases, or single words.³

The book club members made a list of their favorite genres:

1. Mystery

2. Romance

3. True crime

Individual list items following a complete sentence that are themselves complete sentences are each punctuated with a period.⁴

The art instructor assigned three projects for the spring semester:

1. Draw a shoe.

2. Take a digital photo of a family member.

3. Sketch a nature scene.

Ordered Vertical Lists Introduced by Incomplete Sentences

Ordered lists that are part of an incomplete introductory sentence are lowercased and punctuated as if each item was inside the sentence.⁵

The animal shelter’s most generous donors were

1. members of the community;

2. local businesses, including the hardware store, grocery store, and coffee shop; and

3. other nonprofit organizations.

In the example above, the first two list items end with a semicolon because the second list item has internal commas.

How to Write Unordered Vertical Lists

Unordered lists are united by commonality rather than rank or sequence. Bullets normally preface unordered list items.⁷

Unordered lists occasionally appear without bullets.⁸ However, strongly consider using bullets whenever possible because bullet-less list items can be difficult to identify on mobile devices with responsive text layouts.

Important Note: If you follow The Associated Press Stylebook (AP style), see the Style Guide Alert at the bottom of this post for clarification on AP style’s recommendations for unordered lists, which differ from the general guidelines explained below.

Unordered Vertical Lists Introduced by Complete Sentences

Once again, complete sentences introducing unordered lists are traditionally punctuated with a colon.

The individual list items following the complete sentence are usually lowercased if they aren’t complete sentences themselves. They are also written without terminal punctuation (i.e., they don’t end in a period, comma, colon, or semicolon).⁹

Mr. Heckle and Mr. Jeckle enjoy several feline activities:

• avoiding Bart the shih tzu
• sleeping on the window sill
• demanding treats every time a human enters the kitchen

Unordered Vertical Lists Introduced by Incomplete Sentences

Like ordered lists, unordered lists that are part of an incomplete introductory sentence are lowercased and punctuated as if each item was inside the sentence.¹⁰

People who grew up in the 1980s watched a lot of television, including

• cartoons on Saturday morning,
• sitcoms in the evening, and
• movies rented from the video store.

For more information on bulleted lists, please visit my related post “Parallel Structure—The Secret to Beautiful Bullet Points.”

References

Important Note: The MLA Handbook from the Modern Language Association (MLA style) follows Chicago-style recommendations for ordered and unordered vertical lists. See The MLA Style Center for more information.

1. Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 7th ed. (Washington, DC: American Psychological Association, 2020), 6.51.
2. The Chicago Manual of Style, 17th ed. (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2017), 6.130.
3. The Chicago Manual of Style, 17th ed. (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2017), 6.130.
4. The Chicago Manual of Style, 17th ed. (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2017), 6.130; Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 7th ed. (Washington, DC: American Psychological Association, 2020), 6.51.
5. The Chicago Manual of Style, 17th ed. (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2017), 6.131;
6. Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 7th ed. (Washington, DC: American Psychological Association, 2020), 6.51.
7. The Chicago Manual of Style, 17th ed. (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2017), 6.130; Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 7th ed. (Washington, DC: American Psychological Association, 2020), 6.52.
8. The Chicago Manual of Style, 17th ed. (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2017), 6.130.
9. The Chicago Manual of Style, 17th ed. (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2017), 6.130; Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 7th ed. (Washington, DC: American Psychological Association, 2020), 6.52; Those who follow The Chicago Manual of Style should note that Chicago style allows list items to be capitalized if extra prominence is desired and then used consistently throughout the document.
10. The Chicago Manual of Style, 17th ed. (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2017), 6.131; Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 7th ed. (Washington, DC: American Psychological Association, 2020), 6.52.
11. The Associated Press Stylebook 2020–2022 (New York: Associated Press, 2020), 176–77.