2.14 Titles of office

Hyphenate compounds with the endings elect and designate:

• president-elect
• minister-designate

Hyphenate most titles beginning with the prefix vice or with then and the names of certain military and administrative positions in which a noun is followed by another noun, an adjective or a prepositional phrase:

• vice-president
• vice-chairman
• aide-de-camp
• then-Prime Minister
• secretary-general
• Commander-in-Chief
• Lieutenant-Governor
• sergeant-at-arms

There are, however, many common exceptions to this rule, e.g.:

• Governor General
• Governor in Council
• Judge Advocate General
• Solicitor General
• Receiver General for Canada
• Viceroy

Note that in Canadian usage the hyphen is used in compounds designating military ranks such as Lieutenant-General, Vice-Admiral and Rear-Admiral, whereas the American practice is to omit the hyphen. Similarly, the official title of the second-highest-ranking official of the United States is Vice President.

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