diff --git a/doc/api/prev_api_changes/api_changes_2.2.0.rst b/doc/api/prev_api_changes/api_changes_2.2.0.rst
index 83369b66f8ab..404d0ca3ba38 100644
--- a/doc/api/prev_api_changes/api_changes_2.2.0.rst
+++ b/doc/api/prev_api_changes/api_changes_2.2.0.rst
@@ -61,7 +61,7 @@ the future, only broadcasting (1 column to *n* columns) will be performed.
 rcparams
 ~~~~~~~~
 
-The :rc:`backend.qt4` and :rc:`backend.qt5` rcParams were deprecated
+The ``backend.qt4`` and ``backend.qt5`` rcParams were deprecated
 in version 2.2.  In order to force the use of a specific Qt binding,
 either import that binding first, or set the ``QT_API`` environment
 variable.
diff --git a/doc/api/prev_api_changes/api_changes_3.1.0.rst b/doc/api/prev_api_changes/api_changes_3.1.0.rst
index 5b06af781938..365476f54e3c 100644
--- a/doc/api/prev_api_changes/api_changes_3.1.0.rst
+++ b/doc/api/prev_api_changes/api_changes_3.1.0.rst
@@ -743,8 +743,8 @@ The following signature related behaviours are deprecated:
   `.Axes.annotate()` instead.
 - Passing (n, 1)-shaped error arrays to `.Axes.errorbar()`, which was not
   documented and did not work for ``n = 2``. Pass a 1D array instead.
-- The *frameon* kwarg to `~.Figure.savefig` and the :rc:`savefig.frameon` rcParam.
-  To emulate ``frameon = False``, set *facecolor* to fully
+- The *frameon* keyword argument to `~.Figure.savefig` and the ``savefig.frameon``
+  rcParam. To emulate ``frameon = False``, set *facecolor* to fully
   transparent (``"none"``, or ``(0, 0, 0, 0)``).
 - Passing a non-1D (typically, (n, 1)-shaped) input to `.Axes.pie`.
   Pass a 1D array instead.
diff --git a/doc/api/prev_api_changes/api_changes_3.2.0/removals.rst b/doc/api/prev_api_changes/api_changes_3.2.0/removals.rst
index 8e4c1e81f9ec..53d76d667509 100644
--- a/doc/api/prev_api_changes/api_changes_3.2.0/removals.rst
+++ b/doc/api/prev_api_changes/api_changes_3.2.0/removals.rst
@@ -61,7 +61,7 @@ The following API elements have been removed:
 - passing ``(verts, 0)`` or ``(..., 3)`` when specifying a marker to specify a
   path or a circle, respectively (instead, use ``verts`` or ``"o"``,
   respectively)
-- :rc:`examples.directory`
+- the ``examples.directory`` rcParam
 
 The following members of ``matplotlib.backends.backend_pdf.PdfFile`` were removed:
 
diff --git a/doc/api/prev_api_changes/api_changes_3.3.0/deprecations.rst b/doc/api/prev_api_changes/api_changes_3.3.0/deprecations.rst
index 256c33ed762f..76c43b12aaaa 100644
--- a/doc/api/prev_api_changes/api_changes_3.3.0/deprecations.rst
+++ b/doc/api/prev_api_changes/api_changes_3.3.0/deprecations.rst
@@ -83,8 +83,8 @@ Passing both singular and plural *colors*, *linewidths*, *linestyles* to `.Axes.
 Passing e.g. both *linewidth* and *linewidths* will raise a TypeError in the
 future.
 
-Setting :rc:`text.latex.preamble` or :rc:`pdf.preamble` to non-strings
-~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
+Setting ``text.latex.preamble`` or ``pdf.preamble`` rcParams to non-strings
+~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 These rcParams should be set to string values.  Support for None (meaning the
 empty string) and lists of strings (implicitly joined with newlines) is
 deprecated.
@@ -311,7 +311,7 @@ JPEG options
 ~~~~~~~~~~~~
 The *quality*, *optimize*, and *progressive* keyword arguments to
 `~.Figure.savefig`, which were only used when saving to JPEG, are deprecated.
-:rc:`savefig.jpeg_quality` is likewise deprecated.
+The ``savefig.jpeg_quality`` rcParam is likewise deprecated.
 
 Such options should now be directly passed to Pillow using
 ``savefig(..., pil_kwargs={"quality": ..., "optimize": ..., "progressive": ...})``.
diff --git a/doc/api/prev_api_changes/api_changes_3.5.0/removals.rst b/doc/api/prev_api_changes/api_changes_3.5.0/removals.rst
index 0dcf76cbbe7a..3acab92c3577 100644
--- a/doc/api/prev_api_changes/api_changes_3.5.0/removals.rst
+++ b/doc/api/prev_api_changes/api_changes_3.5.0/removals.rst
@@ -359,7 +359,6 @@ rcParams
 
   - :rc:`axes.axisbelow` no longer accepts strings starting with "line"
     (case-insensitive) as "line"; use "line" (case-sensitive) instead.
-  - :rc:`text.latex.preamble` and :rc:`pdf.preamble` no longer accept
-    non-string values.
+  - :rc:`text.latex.preamble` and ``pdf.preamble`` no longer accept non-string values.
   - All ``*.linestyle`` rcParams no longer accept ``offset = None``; set the
     offset to 0 instead.
diff --git a/doc/api/prev_api_changes/api_changes_3.8.0/behaviour.rst b/doc/api/prev_api_changes/api_changes_3.8.0/behaviour.rst
index 3476a05394df..0b598723e26c 100644
--- a/doc/api/prev_api_changes/api_changes_3.8.0/behaviour.rst
+++ b/doc/api/prev_api_changes/api_changes_3.8.0/behaviour.rst
@@ -159,10 +159,10 @@ Passing ``None`` as ``rotation_mode`` to `.Text` (the default value) or passing
 `.Text.set_rotation_mode` will make `.Text.get_rotation_mode` return ``"default"``
 instead of ``None``. The behaviour otherwise is the same.
 
-PostScript paper type adds option to use figure size
+PostScript paper size adds option to use figure size
 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 
-The :rc:`ps.papertype` rcParam can now be set to ``'figure'``, which will use
+The :rc:`ps.papersize` rcParam can now be set to ``'figure'``, which will use
 a paper size that corresponds exactly with the size of the figure that is being
 saved.
 
diff --git a/doc/devel/MEP/MEP23.rst b/doc/devel/MEP/MEP23.rst
index d6b342877959..ec56f362c867 100644
--- a/doc/devel/MEP/MEP23.rst
+++ b/doc/devel/MEP/MEP23.rst
@@ -38,8 +38,8 @@ desirable to be able to group these under the same window. See :ghpull:`2194`.
 
 
 The proposed solution modifies `.FigureManagerBase` to contain and manage more
-than one ``Canvas``. The settings parameter :rc:`backend.multifigure` control
-when the **MultiFigure** behaviour is desired.
+than one ``Canvas``. The ``backend.multifigure`` rcParam controls when the
+**MultiFigure** behaviour is desired.
 
 **Note**
 
diff --git a/doc/users/prev_whats_new/whats_new_1.3.rst b/doc/users/prev_whats_new/whats_new_1.3.rst
index 10811632c5c4..af40f37f92b7 100644
--- a/doc/users/prev_whats_new/whats_new_1.3.rst
+++ b/doc/users/prev_whats_new/whats_new_1.3.rst
@@ -292,9 +292,9 @@ rcParam has been set, and will not retroactively affect already
 existing text objects.  This brings their behavior in line with most
 other rcParams.
 
-Added :rc:`savefig.jpeg_quality`
-````````````````````````````````
-rcParam value :rc:`savefig.jpeg_quality` was added so that the user can
+Added ``savefig.jpeg_quality`` rcParam
+``````````````````````````````````````
+The ``savefig.jpeg_quality`` rcParam was added so that the user can
 configure the default quality used when a figure is written as a JPEG.
 The default quality is 95; previously, the default quality was 75.
 This change minimizes the artifacting inherent in JPEG images,
diff --git a/doc/users/prev_whats_new/whats_new_1.5.rst b/doc/users/prev_whats_new/whats_new_1.5.rst
index 039f65e2eba6..5bb4d4b9b5e9 100644
--- a/doc/users/prev_whats_new/whats_new_1.5.rst
+++ b/doc/users/prev_whats_new/whats_new_1.5.rst
@@ -190,8 +190,8 @@ Some parameters have been added, others have been improved.
 +---------------------------+--------------------------------------------------+
 | Parameter                 | Description                                      |
 +===========================+==================================================+
-|:rc:`xaxis.labelpad`,      | mplot3d now respects these parameters            |
-|:rc:`yaxis.labelpad`       |                                                  |
+|``xaxis.labelpad``,        | mplot3d now respects these attributes, which     |
+|``yaxis.labelpad``         | default to :rc:`axes.labelpad`                   |
 +---------------------------+--------------------------------------------------+
 |:rc:`axes.labelpad`        | Default space between the axis and the label     |
 +---------------------------+--------------------------------------------------+
diff --git a/doc/users/prev_whats_new/whats_new_3.1.0.rst b/doc/users/prev_whats_new/whats_new_3.1.0.rst
index 3d63768f9c7a..9f53435b89f6 100644
--- a/doc/users/prev_whats_new/whats_new_3.1.0.rst
+++ b/doc/users/prev_whats_new/whats_new_3.1.0.rst
@@ -260,8 +260,7 @@ Default minor tick spacing was changed from 0.625 to 0.5 for major ticks spaced
 
 A public API has been added to `.EngFormatter` to control how the numbers in
 the ticklabels will be rendered. By default, *useMathText* evaluates to
-:rc:`axes.formatter.use_mathtext'` and *usetex* evaluates to
-:rc:`'text.usetex'`.
+:rc:`axes.formatter.use_mathtext` and *usetex* evaluates to :rc:`text.usetex`.
 
 If either is `True` then the numbers will be encapsulated by ``$``
 signs.  When using ``TeX`` this implies that the numbers will be shown
diff --git a/doc/users/prev_whats_new/whats_new_3.3.0.rst b/doc/users/prev_whats_new/whats_new_3.3.0.rst
index 00ea10620d14..94914bcc75db 100644
--- a/doc/users/prev_whats_new/whats_new_3.3.0.rst
+++ b/doc/users/prev_whats_new/whats_new_3.3.0.rst
@@ -292,8 +292,8 @@ positioning. For the xlabel, the supported values are 'left', 'center', or
 'right'. For the ylabel, the supported values are 'bottom', 'center', or
 'top'.
 
-The default is controlled via :rc:`xaxis.labelposition` and
-:rc:`yaxis.labelposition`; the Colorbar label takes the rcParam based on its
+The default is controlled via :rc:`xaxis.labellocation` and
+:rc:`yaxis.labellocation`; the Colorbar label takes the rcParam based on its
 orientation.
 
 .. plot::
diff --git a/doc/users/prev_whats_new/whats_new_3.6.0.rst b/doc/users/prev_whats_new/whats_new_3.6.0.rst
index 859bbb47e354..9fcf8cebfc6f 100644
--- a/doc/users/prev_whats_new/whats_new_3.6.0.rst
+++ b/doc/users/prev_whats_new/whats_new_3.6.0.rst
@@ -217,7 +217,7 @@ Linestyles for negative contours may be set individually
 
 The line style of negative contours may be set by passing the
 *negative_linestyles* argument to `.Axes.contour`. Previously, this style could
-only be set globally via :rc:`contour.negative_linestyles`.
+only be set globally via :rc:`contour.negative_linestyle`.
 
 .. plot::
     :alt: Two contour plots, each showing two positive and two negative contours. The positive contours are shown in solid black lines in both plots. In one plot the negative contours are shown in dashed lines, which is the current styling. In the other plot they're shown in dotted lines, which is one of the new options.
diff --git a/doc/users/prev_whats_new/whats_new_3.8.0.rst b/doc/users/prev_whats_new/whats_new_3.8.0.rst
index 8c34252098db..88f987172adb 100644
--- a/doc/users/prev_whats_new/whats_new_3.8.0.rst
+++ b/doc/users/prev_whats_new/whats_new_3.8.0.rst
@@ -496,7 +496,7 @@ Other improvements
 macosx: New figures can be opened in either windows or tabs
 -----------------------------------------------------------
 
-There is a new :rc:`macosx.window_mode`` rcParam to control how
+There is a new :rc:`macosx.window_mode` rcParam to control how
 new figures are opened with the macosx backend. The default is
 **system** which uses the system settings, or one can specify either
 **tab** or **window** to explicitly choose the mode used to open new figures.
diff --git a/lib/matplotlib/axis.py b/lib/matplotlib/axis.py
index d4d032af75fb..8e612bd8c702 100644
--- a/lib/matplotlib/axis.py
+++ b/lib/matplotlib/axis.py
@@ -574,7 +574,7 @@ class Axis(martist.Artist):
         The axis label.
     labelpad : float
         The distance between the axis label and the tick labels.
-        Defaults to :rc:`axes.labelpad` = 4.
+        Defaults to :rc:`axes.labelpad`.
     offsetText : `~matplotlib.text.Text`
         A `.Text` object containing the data offset of the ticks (if any).
     pickradius : float
diff --git a/lib/matplotlib/collections.py b/lib/matplotlib/collections.py
index ef333d396101..397e4c12557d 100644
--- a/lib/matplotlib/collections.py
+++ b/lib/matplotlib/collections.py
@@ -113,10 +113,10 @@ def __init__(self, *,
             where *onoffseq* is an even length tuple of on and off ink lengths
             in points. For examples, see
             :doc:`/gallery/lines_bars_and_markers/linestyles`.
-        capstyle : `.CapStyle`-like, default: :rc:`patch.capstyle`
+        capstyle : `.CapStyle`-like, default: 'butt'
             Style to use for capping lines for all paths in the collection.
             Allowed values are %(CapStyle)s.
-        joinstyle : `.JoinStyle`-like, default: :rc:`patch.joinstyle`
+        joinstyle : `.JoinStyle`-like, default: 'round'
             Style to use for joining lines for all paths in the collection.
             Allowed values are %(JoinStyle)s.
         antialiaseds : bool or list of bool, default: :rc:`patch.antialiased`
diff --git a/lib/matplotlib/contour.py b/lib/matplotlib/contour.py
index 2bfd32690297..05fbedef2c68 100644
--- a/lib/matplotlib/contour.py
+++ b/lib/matplotlib/contour.py
@@ -1643,7 +1643,7 @@ def _initialize_x_y(self, z):
     specifies the line style for negative contours.
 
     If *negative_linestyles* is *None*, the default is taken from
-    :rc:`contour.negative_linestyles`.
+    :rc:`contour.negative_linestyle`.
 
     *negative_linestyles* can also be an iterable of the above strings
     specifying a set of linestyles to be used. If this iterable is shorter than
diff --git a/lib/matplotlib/dates.py b/lib/matplotlib/dates.py
index 15de61f69df7..511e1c6df6cc 100644
--- a/lib/matplotlib/dates.py
+++ b/lib/matplotlib/dates.py
@@ -37,7 +37,7 @@
 is achievable for (approximately) 70 years on either side of the epoch, and
 20 microseconds for the rest of the allowable range of dates (year 0001 to
 9999). The epoch can be changed at import time via `.dates.set_epoch` or
-:rc:`dates.epoch` to other dates if necessary; see
+:rc:`date.epoch` to other dates if necessary; see
 :doc:`/gallery/ticks/date_precision_and_epochs` for a discussion.
 
 .. note::
@@ -267,7 +267,7 @@ def set_epoch(epoch):
     """
     Set the epoch (origin for dates) for datetime calculations.
 
-    The default epoch is :rc:`dates.epoch` (by default 1970-01-01T00:00).
+    The default epoch is :rc:`date.epoch`.
 
     If microsecond accuracy is desired, the date being plotted needs to be
     within approximately 70 years of the epoch. Matplotlib internally