There are times when it seems appropriate to use a list, or when it is common practice to do so in your context, but what do you do if there is only one item to be listed?
When I wrote about numbered lists the other day, I mentioned that one item doesn’t make a list so something like the following looks a little silly:
Our product comes in these colours:
- blue
In this case, you have two real options – incorporate the item into a sentence or use a non-numbered list.
For the above example, sentence form will work much better:
Our product comes in blue.
In other situations, it may be required to use a list format even if there is only one item. A bullet point or em-dash is better than using a numbering system. This may apply, for example, making a point within a list…
Our product has the following specifications:
- 1m wide
- made of stainless steel
- suitable for domestic use
- 10 year guarantee void in business settings - 50kg when constructed