This is the first time when you get back an essay from a teacher and see some strange notes and symbols on the margins. What is that supposed to mean? What do you have to do now? How should these weird symbols be deciphered?
Well, what you see on the margins are essay correction symbols. Places where you see such essay correction symbols have some kind of mistake. What mistakes? Actually, every paper correction symbol that you see can explain what mistake you have made.
Oh, you do not know the meaning of paper correction symbols! Then, let us help you decipher some major symbols.
- c.s. – this essay correction symbol simply means you have missed a comma in a sentence. Re-read it and put a comma where necessary.
- Frag – this essay correction symbol means “sentence fragment”. Your mistake again boils down to the wrong punctuation, particularly comma use, which made the sentence incorrect.
- Sp – this stands for “spelling”. Have you ever tried to use an essay spell checker?
- Ss – this essay correction symbol tells you have problems with sentence structure. Do not forget that in English a complete and correct sentence should have a subject and a verb.
- [ ] – this is another essay correction symbol that means something is wrong with your sentences, and a teacher wants you to paraphrase them.
These are just a few essay paper correction symbols, and it is better to learn more about others if you want to stop making mistakes. With the help of such symbols, you can easily figure out your weak sides and make necessary improvements.
Finally, if you want to see less correction symbols in your papers, never skip editing and proofreading, and we are glad to explain you how to edit essays.