Proofreaders' Marks

Proofreaders’ marks are universal symbols originally used by journalists and publishers. Now they are more widely used and can be found anywhere from the classroom to the boardroom. Using the correct proofreaders’ marks facilitates the editing process by ensuring that the writer and the editor understand each other. Even if you are doing your own editing, using the correct proofreaders’ marks will help you edit more quickly. It takes a lot less time to underline a word three times than it does to write out the words “upper case”! Symbol Example Description Indent for a new paragraph. Begin a new paragraph. Insert a letter, word, phrase, or sentence. Insert a comma. Insert quotation marks. Insert a period. Insert an apostrophe. Insert a hyphen. Insert a dash. Insert a space between letters. Close the space between letters. Delete a letter, then close the space between the letters. Insert a space between lines. Delete a letter, word, phrase, or sentence. Change a lower case letter to an upper case letter. Change an upper case letter to a lower case letter. Check the spelling of a word. Reconsider word choice. Abbreviate a word. Spell out an abbreviation or a number. Transpose letters, words, or groups of words. Adjust in the center. Adjust flush left. Adjust flush right. No paragraph. Ignore the correction