Proofreading Archives

Misplaced Modifiers: What Are They and How to Avoid Them

What are misplaced modifiers? Let’s start from the top. Modifiers hold a lot of power—they can change, clarify, or limit a particular word in a sentence. You can use them to add explanation or emphasis. They provide the extra details that make a subject interesting.… continue reading

Active Voice vs. Passive Voice in Business Writing

People love to tell others what to do with their voice: “Lower your voice,” or “Save your voice.” And one suggestion that causes a lot of confusion is: “When faced with active voice vs. passive voice in your writing, use your active voice when possible.”… continue reading

How To Correct Syntax From Other Writers

Understanding why correct syntax matters will help you develop your editing skills when you’re proofreading someone else’s work. In business writing, “syntax” is a set of rules that explain how you should put words together to make a sentence. YourDictionary.com explains that syntax includes “word choice, matching… continue reading

Proofreading

Google, You’ve Gone Too Far

Certainly we can admire Google for its growth, global reach, inventiveness, and the brilliance of its teams. But they’ve gone too far. Cleverness has its limits. Analyze, yes. Optimize, yes. Publicize, yes–those are all things online content providers want to do. But troubleshootize? No, Google,… continue reading

Proofreading

Do I Capitalize Words Followed by Numbers or Letters?

I received a good question by email today. A reader wanted to know my views on capitalizing words that are followed by numbers or letters, for example, Step 1 vs. step 1, Section A vs. section A, and Line 2 vs. line 2. How would… continue reading

Proofreading

Proofreaders, Follow the Rules!

As someone who designed the course Proofread Like a Pro, I pay attention when a competitor offers a training program on proofreading. Today my inbox included an invitation to a session. Below is the graphic with the program title. Proofreaders, do you see anything wrong?… continue reading

Find the Errors and Win the Prize

Warm up by finding one concisely spelled error in this sign. When you find it, go on to the next challenge. This dumpster sign has three punctuation errors, along with some funny commentary. Don’t quit until you find everything. Thank you to Eric W.,… continue reading

Who/Whom, Whoever/Whomever: Test Yourself

The other day a friend told me he was concerned about having taken on a copy editing job because he didn’t yet feel confident of who/whom and whoever/whomever. How about you? Are you confident about where to use those pronouns? Take the test below to… continue reading

Proofreading

Signs That Need Your Proofreader’s Eye

Even when I am on vacation, I can’t turn off my proofreading eyes. The three signs below, which I spotted in Charleston, South Carolina, and Charlotte, North Carolina, got my attention. Can you recognize why? Each sign has at least one error. Sign 1 in… continue reading

Three More “Error Quests” for You

Test your error-finding skills in each of the three short passages below. Each passage has just one error. Passage 1: The purpose of the conversation is to recognize the common ground between members of the Republican Party and the Democrat Party in our state. We… continue reading