英语中，所有单独出版的作品如：书名、报刊名、戏剧名、电影名、计算机软件名及录音名称都用斜体表示。这包括歌剧名、CD名、艺术作品、单独出版的小册子、长诗名、连环漫画名称、电视和收音机节目名称、网址等。下面是第一种用法的举例。

1、标示书名、刊物名、报纸名等

（1）In his introduction to The Great Gatsby, Professor William Smith points out that “Fitzgerald wrote about himself and produced a narcissistic masterpiece.”

此句中 The Great Gatsby用斜体，为书名。威廉·史密斯教授在介绍《了不起的盖茨比》时指出： “菲茨杰拉德的这部自我陶醉的代表作描述的是他本人。”

又如：Alice Walker's novel The Color Purple has been both praised and criticized since 1982.

自1982年以来，人们对艾丽丝·沃克的《紫色》这部小说一直褒贬不一。

（2）When Newsweek published “Why Johnny Can't Write,” many schools began to reexamine their curricula in English.

此句中Newsweek 用斜体，为刊物名。当《新闻周刊》刊载了《为什么约翰尼不会写作》一文时，很多学校开始重新审视他们的英语课程。

又如：Good House-keeping is a popular magazine.

《好管家》属通俗类杂志。

（3）The New York Times is a serious daily newspaper read on a national scale, reporting on the arts, food, etc. as well as covering national and international news.

此句中The New York Times用斜体，为报纸名。《纽约时报》是全美范围的一份内容严肃报纸，它不仅报道国内外新闻，而且还刊载有关艺术、食物等方面的信息。

又如：The Daily Telegraph is read by the people who remember the country as it used to be.

怀念昔日大英帝国者读《每日电讯报》。