UW Engineering proofreading list

Whether you are editing your content or someone else’s, use this guide to catch typos and mechanical errors.

Spelling, word use and capitalization

Use correct spelling
Make sure that proper nouns, including names, are properly spelled
Avoid gendered language; use gender-neutral language instead
Define abbreviations and acronyms, if using, on first use
Correct any misused homophone (your/you’re, lead/led, there/they’re/their, etc.)
Spell out numbers one through nine; use numerals for numbers 10 and up
Use proper capitalization following a colon
Remember that UW style follows sentence case for titles, headings and subheads

Make sure there isn’t any missing, duplicated or misplaced punctuation
Remember that UW style does not use a serial (Oxford) comma
Use apostrophes for possessives or missing letters only, not to make words plural
Make sure that apostrophes and quotation marks are curly (not straight) and face the correct way
Parentheses, brackets and quotation marks should appear in pairs (opening and closing)
Use em dashes, en dashes and hyphens appropriately
Divide words correctly, and be mindful of end-of-line hyphenation
Make sure the spacing around em dashes and ellipses is consistent
Make sure that words are separated by one space only
End punctuation and commas should be followed by one space only

Make sure there isn’t any missing or repeated text
Review sentences with more than one comma or clause. Especially watch for those with more than two commas or clauses. Consider breaking them into two or more sentences to help with readability.
Define terms that could be unfamiliar to readers, or consider rewording to use simpler language.
Once formatted, avoid single words as the last line of a paragraph and single lines of text at the beginning or end of a column or page (these are known as “widows and orphans”)
Catch any awkward breaks or sentences hyphenated across pages once formatted
Once formatted, correct any tight and/or loose lines (tight lines have too little space between words; loose lines have too much)

Remember that UW style follows sentence case for titles, headings and subheads
Make sure that, when using a colon in a title, heading or subhead, the first letter of the first word after the colon is capitalized
Make sure that the alignment and spacing above and below them is consistent once formatted

Ensure that the numerical sequence is consecutive for pages, figures and sections
Ensure that numerical form (Arabic or Roman) is consistent

Confirm that images match surrounding text
Use high resolution images
Make sure that images include caption and credit information, if applicable
Confirm that tables, graphs and charts are logical, easy to read, and don’t have typos