Symbol/
Abbreviation |
Meaning |
ab |
Incorrect abbreviation |
agr |
Mistake in agreement:
sv, subject-verb,
pn, pronoun |
amb
(or ambig) |
Ambiguous
statement |
awk |
Awkward expression or
construction |
bib |
Incorrect bibliography entry |
cap |
Capitalization error |
cf (or ,/)
|
Comma fault |
cit/p |
Incorrect citation (using
parenthetical references) |
coh |
Revise sentence, sentences, or
paragraphs to make them coherent |
comb |
Combine |
comma
(or ,/) |
Insert or remove a
comma |
comp |
Incomplete comparison |
Coor |
Coordinate |
Coor/sub |
Work on coordination
and subcoordination |
cs |
Comma splice |
d |
Inappropriate level of diction |
def |
Define |
dev |
Work on development |
dg
(or dm) |
Dangling modifier |
euph |
Pretentious word or euphemism |
emph |
Strengthen emphasis of passage |
Essay-em |
Work on essay emphasis |
ev |
Specific evidence needed |
fal
(or log) |
Fallacy or unsound
argument |
fig |
Inappropriate use of
figurative language |
frag |
Sentence fragment |
fus |
Fused sentence(s) |
ital
(or und) |
Italics (underlining)
needed |
jarg |
Eliminate jargon |
lc |
Lower case letter needed, instead
of capital |
list |
Incorrect reference-list entry |
log
(or fal) |
Logic error or unsound
argument |
mech
(or p) |
Review mechanics and
punctuation |
mm |
Misplaced modifier |
mod |
Add or change modifiers |
ms |
Error in manuscript format |
no-¶ |
Paragraph break
unnecessary |
no no-¶ |
Delete punctuation |
num |
Mistake in the use of numbers |
org |
Organization unsatisfactory |
p
(or mech) |
Punctuation and/or
mechanics error |
pass
(or vo) |
Misuse of passive
voice |
pc
(or //) |
Create parallel
construction |
pn |
Review pronoun use |
pn agr |
Error in pronoun agreement |
pn ca |
Incorrect pronoun case |
pn ref |
Error in pronoun reference |
pred |
Faculty predication |
prep |
Change preposition, or position
of preposition |
pron |
Change the form of the pronoun |
ques
(or ?/) |
Question mark needed |
quot
(or " "/) |
Mistake in use of
quotation marks and quoting |
R
(or rev) |
Revise |
reas
(or log) |
Inadequate,
unconvincing
reasoning |
redun |
Redundant |
reif |
Reification error |
rep |
Revise to remove ineffective
repetition or words, meaning or sound |
rev
(or R) |
Revise |
s |
Correct the obvious fault in
the sentence |
semi
(or ;/) |
Semicolon needed |
shift |
Faulty tense shift |
sl |
Use sex-neutral language |
sp |
Incorrect spelling |
spec |
Specific details needed |
style |
Style needs invigorating |
sub |
Make the less important
statement subordinate to the more important |
sv agr
(or sv) |
Error in subject-verb
agreement |
t
(or tf) |
Incorrect tense form |
tgl |
Tangled sentence |
title |
Error in format of a title, or more appropriate title
needed |
tr |
Transpose order of elements for clarity or emphasis |
trans |
Transition needed |
trite |
Replace trite expression |
tu |
Incorrect use of tense |
und
(or ital) |
Underline to indicate
italics |
vag |
Vague word or passage |
vo |
Review verbs--active and passive
voice |
wdy |
Wordiness |
wo |
Revise word order for
emphasis, naturalness, or clarity |
ww
(or w) |
Wrong word choice |
X |
Careless mistake |
¶ |
Paragraph break needed |
¶-coh |
Paragraph lacks coherence or
internal transition |
¶-em |
Paragraph lacks emphasis |
¶-un |
Paragraph lacks unity |
//
(or pc) |
Faulty parallelism |
./ |
Period error |
(,) |
Superfluous comma |
?/
(or ques) |
Question mark error |
!/ |
Exclamation point error |
,/ |
Comma error |
;/
(or semi) |
Semicolon error |
:/ |
Colon error |
--/ |
Dash error |
( )/ |
Parentheses error |
[ ]/ |
Brackets error |
" "/
(or quot) |
Quotation marks or
quoting
error |
. . . / |
Ellipsis dots error |
/ |
Slash error |
-/ |
Hyphen error |
'/ |
Apostrophe error |
/\ |
Something omitted |
~ |
Transpose these two
elements |
# |
Add a space |
no # |
Remove space(s) |
+ eg |
Add examples |
| |
Eliminate (whatever the line with
the little "e" is drawn through) |
or nos |
Close space |