This article is a list of standard proofreader's marks used to indicate and correct problems in a text. Marks come in two varieties, abbreviations and abstract symbols. These are usually handwritten on the paper containing the text. Symbols are interleaved in the text, while abbreviations may be placed in a margin with an arrow pointing to the problematic text. Different languages use different proofreading marks and sometimes publishers have their own in-house proofreading marks.[1]
| Abbreviation | Meaning | Use | |
|---|---|---|---|
| sp | Spelling | Used to indicate misspelling | |
| spo | Spell out | Used to indicate that an abbreviation should be spelled out, such as in its first use | |
| stet | Let it stand | Indicates that proofreading marks should be ignored and the copy unchanged | |
| fl | Flush left | Align text flush with left margin | |
| fr | Flush right | Align text flush with right margin | |
| eq # | Equalize spacing | ||
| ls | Letterspace | Adjust letterspacing | |
| ital | Italics | Put in italics | |
| rom | Roman | Put in Roman (non-italic) font | |
| bf | Boldface | Put in boldface | |
| lc | Lower case | Put text in lower case | |
| caps | Capitalize | Put text in capital case | |
| sc | Small caps | Put text in small caps | |
| wf | Wrong font | Put text in correct font | |
| wc/ww | word choice/wrong word | Incorrect or awkward word choice | |
| hr # | Insert hair space | ||
| s/b | should be | Selection should be whatever edit follows this mark | |
| s/r | substitute/replace | Make the substitution | |
| tr | transpose | Transpose the two words selected | |
| vf | verb form | (Mostly used when translating) The version of the verb is used incorrectly | |
| e | ending | The ending of the word is incorrect / needs to be changed | |
| c | capitalization | Certain word needs to be capitalized |
| Symbol Name | Symbol(s) | Meaning | Example of Use |
|---|---|---|---|
| ₰ | Delete | ||
| Pilcrow (Unicode U+00B6) | ¶ | Begin new paragraph | |
| Pilcrow (Unicode U+00B6) | ¶ no | Remove paragraph break | |
| Caret (Unicode U+2038, 2041, 2380) | ‸ ⁁ ⎀ | Insert | |
| # | Insert space | ||
| Close up (Unicode U+2050) | ⁐ | Tie words together, eliminating a space | I was reading the news⁐paper this morning. |
| ] [</big> || Center text || |- | || <big>] | Move text right | ||
[</big> || Move text left ||
|-
| || M̲ || Insert [[em dash]] |||-| || N̲ || Insert en dash |||}ManuscriptsDepending on local conventions, underscores (underlines) may be used on manuscripts (and historically on typescripts) to indicate the special typefaces to be used:[2] [3]
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