Writing Wizards

Newman
Editing symbols practice

1. cap = capitalize this. Write cap and draw two or three lines under the letter that should be
in upper case.

Example: Jasmine found out how cold it is in maine compared to life in california.

2. no cap or lc = not capitalized or lower case. You have a letter in capitals that should
actually be lower case. Write lc (or no cap) and draw a diagonal line (slash) through the letter
too.

Example: At the Theater on Saturday, Alex noticed a Man who was very Tense.

3. sp = spelling error. You have a word that does not show up in the dictionary. Check its
spelling. Circle the word or the part of the word in which the error occurs. Write sp next to it.

Example: When Rani wuz a little babby, she cryed every nite.

4. p = punctuation error. You have either used incorrect punctuation, or you need some that
is not there, or you have used some when none should be used. Circle the wrong punctuation or
the spot where some should be, and write p nearby.

Example: Rishi decided, to become an attorney so she started law school last fall?”

5. t = verb tense. You have put a verb in that has the wrong tense, past, present or future.
Underline it and write t above it.

Example: Back in 1960, no one realized that I am a teacher someday. I do not realize anything,
actually, as I will not yet be born until 1961.

6. gr = grammatical error. This is a general category for anything that is grammatically

incorrect, and I use it mostly for situations when your pronoun is in the wrong case.

Example: The gifts he brought back from Jakarta were for the girls and I.

7. wd ch = word choice error. The word used does not have the correct meaning for this
situation.

Example: When Diane received the Pulitzer Prize for Literature, she accepted the honor with
deep recognition.

8. ¶ = the word paragraph. Also means switch to a new paragraph OR indent the paragraph.

1
9. r-o = run-on sentence of some type. There are three main kinds:
•fused sentence (run-together; head-on collision): Two separate independent clauses
fused together without even a comma.
• comma-splice run-on: Two separate sentences joined by a comma, which is not adequate.
• run-on + on + on: This type is too long and wordy. It just runs on and on and on.

Examples: •fused sentence: Katie loves chocolate she eats it every day.
•comma-splice: Cynthia loves chocolate, she eats it every day.
•run-on+on+on: I love chocolate, which, of course, is a type of candy, and it is so satisfying to
let a piece melt on my tongue that I like to have some whenever I do my homework, so that I
can enjoy even one of the most unpleasant of experiences, which, to me, homework is.
Note: The way a run-on is marked helps identify what type it is. If someone circles a comma and writes
r-o above it, it’s a comma splice. If a space between words is circled and marked as a r-o, it’s a fused
sentence. If a sentence has brackets around it and r-o is written in the margin, it’s probably a runs-on-
and-on type.

10. frag = fragment of a sentence, not a complete one. Be careful to identify your independent
clause. Long-looking clauses can seem deceptively complete but actually be dependent, and
therefore not able to stand alone.

Example: Although the teachers had many ideas about where to go on the field trip, and they
tried to describe them to the students.

11. n.c. = not clear. What you have written is not understandable. It may be smooth and well-
written, but its meaning is murky.

Example: Here is one situation when people must be certain of what they are trying to
accomplish during this new era of increased security in America.

12. awk = awkward wording. The phrase or sentence you’ve written is understandable but not
smooth. Check to see if a few words are out of order or are just unnecessary.

Ex. When Leeza went to get a Slurpee yesterday at 7-ll she could not choose what the flavor she
wanted was.

13. agr = agreement error. Two parts of your sentence are not in agreement, in terms of singular
and plural forms. There are two main areas where AGR comes up:

•The subject and verb are not both singular or both plural. THEY MUST BE!

No one from any of the schools want to end the division tournament before the winner is
decided.

2
•A noun and its pronoun referent (coming later) are not both singular or both plural. THEY
MUST BE! (Could be with two related pronouns too.)

Everyone must take their books home tonight to study for the math test.

14. red = redundant. What you have written has the same exact idea as what you wrote before,
even though the wording is different.

Ex. We must come together to unite.

15. rep = repetitive. The wording you have used includes repetitions of specific words (or forms
of the same word), or phrases, or sentence constructions. These are usually to be avoided as
they are distracting and uninteresting.

Ex.: In Switzerland, where most Swiss people speak English as well as German, the Swiss-born
people are bilingual. (This is not quite true!).

16. ref = reference error. You have used a pronoun that does not clearly connect back to an
earlier noun or pronoun in the sentence (or the previous sentence).

Ex: Nick asked Mrs. Kerr and Mrs. Newman for advice, and she told him what to do.

17. wd msg = word missing. You have left out a word (or a few words) that are necessary to the
sentence.

Ex. Every time I hear that song Maroon Five, I sing it for rest of the day.

18. tr = transition word needed. You must use a word or phrase that helps to smooth the
sentences out and connect one idea to the next. Use with the caret.

Ex. Mrs. Newman loves chocolate. She hates milk chocolate.

19. = switch around. You have words, punctuation, or even letters in the wrong
order.

Ex. Yesterday, Tani and Olivia to went shop for new CDs.

“Yikes”, James siad to Arthur, who had just given him a paper cut. “What made you do that”?

20. ^ = caret. Insert something that is missing here.

Ex. Kelly a big breakfast today because she hungry

3
21. sing. = singular. You have written a word in its singular form. Could be used for noun,
pronoun, or verb. This is not necessarily wrong, all by itself, but a problem exists if this word is
connected to another word marked pl. (See below.) Probably they are not in agreement, and
you have an AGR error.

22. pl = plural. You have written a word in its plural form. Could be used for noun, pronoun, or
verb.

23. col = colloquial language. You used a word or phrase that is too casual, too slangy, or too
regional to be acceptable for formal expository prose.

Ex. Mrs. Newman rocks! She is my favorite teach, and once when a student was getting up in
her grill, she’s all, “Dude! Chill!”

24. can not = squish together. These two words (or parts of a word) belong together.

Ex. One of Moll y’s favorite pastimes is playing base ball.

25. = delete this. Something here is unneeded, and you should just remove it.

Ex. When I sometimes go on occasion to Valley Fair, I frequently buy clothes at those times.

26. # = a space. Use with ^ to indicate “insert a space,” or with to indicate “remove a
space.”

Ex. When Mr. Morgensen was a little boy, if he was indeed ever young, he must have
worried his mother.

27. X-out = a Nasty No-No needs to be removed or replaced.

Ex. You probably have a lot of fun stuff in your room because you’re a kid.