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The two-part system of textual and marginal marks used to correct a printed proof.
Also known as: Proofreading marks, Proofreaders' marks, Editing symbols, Marks on a proof
Every correction on a proof is made twice: a mark in the text showing where, and a mark in the margin showing what. Understanding that one convention lets a reader follow a marked proof without recognising most of the individual symbols.
A system of marks for correcting typeset proofs, in which each correction is indicated twice: a textual mark at the point of error and a corresponding marginal mark stating what to do.
The two-part convention is what makes a marked proof legible. Corrections are made in the margin because a typesetter scanning the page needs to find them without reading the text, and the textual mark ties each marginal instruction to its place.
British practice under BS 5261 traditionally uses two colours — red for the printer's errors and blue or black for the author's changes — which allocates the cost of each correction. American practice generally does not make that distinction.
A working distinction about who pays, not a stylistic one.
United Kingdom
Largely displaced in professional practice by digital annotation and tracked changes, so a reader is now most likely to meet these marks on an archived proof rather than in current use.
Not a single symbol but a system: small strokes, loops and letters written in the text of a proof with matching marks in the margin beside the line.