copy editing
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What’s a Colloquialism?
What’s a Colloquialism?
Published Nov 21, 2022
Last Updated Apr 11, 2024A colloquialism is an informal word or phrase commonly used in everyday conversation and often specific to a geographic region. For example, the word “y’all” (you all) is commonly used in the southern US, but not necessarily elsewhere in the world. Sometimes, a colloquialism’s popularity is a bit more widespread, like “head over heels” (falling […]
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The Bad Big Wolf? A Proofreader’s Guide to Adjective Order
The Bad Big Wolf? A Proofreader’s Guide to Adjective Order
Published Oct 08, 2022
Last Updated Nov 26, 2024If the phrases “black little dress” and “red dry wine” sound strange in your head, you have intrinsic knowledge of English adjective order. When we use multiple adjectives to modify a noun or nouns, they don’t fall into a random sequence. Rather, they follow a pattern based on their function. In fact, most native English […]
Narrative Structure: The Hero’s Journey
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A Guide to Countable and Uncountable Nouns
Published Aug 04, 2022
Last Updated Feb 04, 2025Common nouns can be either countable or uncountable. But what does this mean in practice? And what does a proofreader need to know about countable and uncountable nouns? In this post, we set out the basics of how these noun types work and some common errors to look out for. What Are Countable Nouns? Countable […]
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5 Questions to Ask When Editing a Listicle
Published Aug 03, 2022
Last Updated Dec 15, 2023If you edit articles or blog posts for business clients, at some point you’ll probably need to edit one of the most popular formats out there nowadays – the listicle. As the name suggests, a listicle is a piece of writing that organizes its sections as a numbered list – just like this post, in […]
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Is or Are? A Guide to Collective Nouns
Published Jul 20, 2022
Last Updated Nov 28, 2024Collective nouns are nouns that refer to a group of people or objects, including words like team, family, and crowd. But are they singular or plural? And how do you use collective nouns in a sentence? These are things you need to know as a proofreader. Read on to find out more. Collective Nouns and […]
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Copy Editing vs. Proofreading: What You Need to Know
Published Feb 06, 2020
Last Updated Mar 25, 2025Copy editing and proofreading are both types of editing that take place toward the end of the writing process to get a text ready for publication. But while these terms are often used interchangeably, they aren’t quite the same thing. To make matters even more confusing, many freelance editors offer a blend of both services. […]
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What’s a Colloquialism?
What’s a Colloquialism?
Published Nov 21, 2022
Last Updated Apr 11, 2024A colloquialism is an informal word or phrase commonly used in everyday conversation and often specific to a geographic region. For example, the word “y’all” (you all) is commonly used in the southern US, but not necessarily elsewhere in the world. Sometimes, a colloquialism’s popularity is a bit more widespread, like “head over heels” (falling […]
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The Bad Big Wolf? A Proofreader’s Guide to Adjective Order
The Bad Big Wolf? A Proofreader’s Guide to Adjective Order
Published Oct 08, 2022
Last Updated Nov 26, 2024If the phrases “black little dress” and “red dry wine” sound strange in your head, you have intrinsic knowledge of English adjective order. When we use multiple adjectives to modify a noun or nouns, they don’t fall into a random sequence. Rather, they follow a pattern based on their function. In fact, most native English […]
