sample essays to proofread

• Proofreading Resources

Writing Samples to Help You Practice Proofreading

• Jul 27, 2022
• Proofreading Tips

Share this article:

At Knowadays , we love to help you improve your proofreading skills. So today, we’re giving you three short passages of text to practice on. They are written in American English.

Just copy and paste each passage into a Microsoft Word document and make any changes you feel are necessary (focusing on clear errors rather than style, phrasing, etc., for this exercise). After that, you can compare the changes you made to our suggestions further down the page.

Sample 1: Excerpt from a Blog Post

Dream interpretation is a skill that any one can acquire. It is the art of divining knowledge that is buried in our sub-conscious. It can help us know our selves and solves problems. What more could you ask in a facility that’s freely to your disposal whenever you fell asleep. All you really need is a pen and a paper. Get as relaxed as you can before bed (some book recommend meditation, breathing exercises, or yoga), and then repeat to your self, “I will remember my dreams, and after each dream I will wake up and write them down.” Then, when you wake up, immediately write down your dream. When you come to interpret the dream, look at the events, objects, peoples, colors, and etc., and ask yourself what they do mean to you. This is your own sub-conscious, so your personal interpretation is vial. Once you have done this, you can consult a book or online database of dreams symbols.

Sample 2: Personal Statement

I am a highly driven Manager with over ten years experience. My hands-on approach has led to many significant contract wins. My out standing networking skills have secured several important clients, and my ability to develop professional relationships has resulted in a 22% percent increase in sales for my organization. I employed modernist management methods, tailored to insure maximum productivity. I was also directly involved in the development of strategies that enhanced work flows and reduced redundancy through the organization. I am currently seeking a new challenge that will benefit from my meticulous attention to detail, and and friendly professional manor.

Sample 3: Paragraph from an Essay

In the minds of many scholars and parents, the picture-book has long been soley for children It is well-known that children find images more immediately and naturally accessible than text. As is so often the case, though, it benefits the scholar (and, indeed, the parent) to have a healthy suspicion of so-called “well-known” facts. The statement has an element of truth inasmuch as picture of a tree should in some respects resemble a tree, where as the word “tree” is a purely arbitrary symbol; however, this should not lead us to assume a natural association between the iconic representation and the tree it self. The addressee – the child – must have some concept of the appearance of a tree. He must also understand, to some degree, how pictures work: that he is looking, not at lines and blocks of color, nor at a piece of paper, but at image intended to represent something seperate from the page. There are, therefore, less differences between words and images than one might except.

​​Dream interpretation is a skill that any one anyone can acquire. It is the art of divining knowledge that is buried in our sub-conscious. subconscious . It can help us know our selves, ourselves and solves solve problems. What more could you ask in from a facility that’s freely to at your disposal whenever you fell fall asleep . ? All you really need is a pen and a paper. Get as relaxed as you can before bed (some book books recommend meditation, breathing exercises, or yoga), and then repeat to your self yourself , “I will remember my dreams, and after each dream, I will wake up and write them down.” Then, when you wake up, immediately write down your dream. When you come to interpret the dream, look at the events, objects, peoples people , colors, and etc., and ask yourself what they do mean to you. This is your own sub-conscious subconscious , so your personal interpretation is vial vital . Once you have done this, you can consult a book or an online database of dream symbols.

Some of the errors in this passage suggest that the author’s first language may not be English. In some places, for example, the author has separated single words into two parts (e.g., any one ). There are also places where the noun and verb disagree (e.g., some book recommend ) and some misused prepositions (e.g., to your disposal ). These are common errors among writers who speak English as an additional language.

I am a highly driven Manager manager with over ten years years’ experience. My hands-on approach has led to many significant contract wins. My out standing outstanding networking skills have secured several important clients, and my ability to develop professional relationships has resulted in a 22% percent increase in sales for my organization. I employed modernist modern management methods, tailored to insure ensure maximum productivity. I was also directly involved in the development of strategies that enhanced work flows workflows and reduced redundancy through throughout the organization. I am currently seeking a new challenge that will benefit from my meticulous attention to detail , and and friendly professional manor manner .

Here, the author has cited their meticulous attention to detail, but they have also made some noticeable mistakes. These include using insure to mean ensure , redundancy (i.e., using the percent symbol and the word percent together), confusing the words modern (i.e., up to date) and modernist (i.e., related to modernism), a homophone-based error where manor and manner were mixed up, and an unnecessary comma plus repetition of and in the final sentence. Such errors would undermine the author’s message, so they will need to be corrected!

In the minds of many scholars and parents, the picture-book picture book has long been soley solely for children . It is well-known well known that children find images more immediately and naturally accessible than text. As is often the case, though, it benefits the scholar (and, indeed, the parent) to have a healthy suspicion of so-called “well-known” facts. The statement has an element of truth inasmuch as the picture of a tree should in some respects resemble a tree, where as whereas the word “tree” is a purely arbitrary symbol; however, this should not lead us to assume a natural association between the iconic representation and the tree it self itself . The addressee – – – the child – must have some concept of the appearance of a tree. They must also understand, to some degree, how pictures work: that they are looking not at lines and blocks of color, nor at a piece of paper, but at an image intended to represent something seperate separate from the page. There are, therefore, less fewer differences between words and images than one might except expect .

This passage misused hyphens in various places. One key issue is the hyphenation of well-known : this is fine when the word precedes the term it is modifying (i.e., “well-known” facts ). But this term is not hyphenated otherwise, so we have removed the hyphen when it is used in the sentence starting It is well known that children… in this passage.

Another interesting case is the use of less in place of fewer . This traditional “error” is now so widespread that it is considered acceptable in some situations (e.g., on signs for checkout lines saying 10 items or less ). But in formal writing, such as an essay, it would need correcting.

There were also some typos (e.g., misspelling solely as soley ; use of a hyphen in place of a parenthetical en dash; the misspelling of separate ; the confusion of except and expect ). And there were two sentences where articles were missing (e.g., inasmuch as picture and but at image ).

Becoming a Proofreader

How did you do? Did your edits match the ones we’ve provided above? Of course, in some cases, there are other changes that could have been made to address the issues in the text: e.g., rather than adding an apostrophe after years in ten years experience , we could have rephrased to say ten years of experienc e. But as long as you identified the problems and made relevant changes, you’ll have done the job required!

For more practice passages and a wealth of information about proofreading, try our Becoming A Proofreader course. With a free trial available, you can start learning today. See how Becoming A Proofreader could help you develop a rewarding career in proofreading!

Related posts:

Start your journey

Kick-start a flexible new career, time for a change.

Sign up for a Knowadays free trial – it’s your first step towards a new career.

Join the Conversation

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published.

Editing and Proofreading

What this handout is about.

This handout provides some tips and strategies for revising your writing. To give you a chance to practice proofreading, we have left seven errors (three spelling errors, two punctuation errors, and two grammatical errors) in the text of this handout. See if you can spot them!

Is editing the same thing as proofreading?

Not exactly. Although many people use the terms interchangeably, editing and proofreading are two different stages of the revision process. Both demand close and careful reading, but they focus on different aspects of the writing and employ different techniques.

Some tips that apply to both editing and proofreading

• Get some distance from the text! It’s hard to edit or proofread a paper that you’ve just finished writing—it’s still to familiar, and you tend to skip over a lot of errors. Put the paper aside for a few hours, days, or weeks. Go for a run. Take a trip to the beach. Clear your head of what you’ve written so you can take a fresh look at the paper and see what is really on the page. Better yet, give the paper to a friend—you can’t get much more distance than that. Someone who is reading the paper for the first time, comes to it with completely fresh eyes.
• Decide which medium lets you proofread most carefully. Some people like to work right at the computer, while others like to sit back with a printed copy that they can mark up as they read.
• Try changing the look of your document. Altering the size, spacing, color, or style of the text may trick your brain into thinking it’s seeing an unfamiliar document, and that can help you get a different perspective on what you’ve written.
• Find a quiet place to work. Don’t try to do your proofreading in front of the TV or while you’re chugging away on the treadmill. Find a place where you can concentrate and avoid distractions.
• If possible, do your editing and proofreading in several short blocks of time. Your concentration may start to wane if you try to proofread the entire text at one time.
• If you’re short on time, you may wish to prioritize. Make sure that you complete the most important editing and proofreading tasks.

Editing is what you begin doing as soon as you finish your first draft. You reread your draft to see, for example, whether the paper is well-organized, the transitions between paragraphs are smooth, and your evidence really backs up your argument. You can edit on several levels:

Have you done everything the assignment requires? Are the claims you make accurate? If it is required to do so, does your paper make an argument? Is the argument complete? Are all of your claims consistent? Have you supported each point with adequate evidence? Is all of the information in your paper relevant to the assignment and/or your overall writing goal? (For additional tips, see our handouts on understanding assignments and developing an argument .)

Overall structure

Does your paper have an appropriate introduction and conclusion? Is your thesis clearly stated in your introduction? Is it clear how each paragraph in the body of your paper is related to your thesis? Are the paragraphs arranged in a logical sequence? Have you made clear transitions between paragraphs? One way to check the structure of your paper is to make a reverse outline of the paper after you have written the first draft. (See our handouts on introductions , conclusions , thesis statements , and transitions .)

Structure within paragraphs

Does each paragraph have a clear topic sentence? Does each paragraph stick to one main idea? Are there any extraneous or missing sentences in any of your paragraphs? (See our handout on paragraph development .)

Have you defined any important terms that might be unclear to your reader? Is the meaning of each sentence clear? (One way to answer this question is to read your paper one sentence at a time, starting at the end and working backwards so that you will not unconsciously fill in content from previous sentences.) Is it clear what each pronoun (he, she, it, they, which, who, this, etc.) refers to? Have you chosen the proper words to express your ideas? Avoid using words you find in the thesaurus that aren’t part of your normal vocabulary; you may misuse them.

Have you used an appropriate tone (formal, informal, persuasive, etc.)? Is your use of gendered language (masculine and feminine pronouns like “he” or “she,” words like “fireman” that contain “man,” and words that some people incorrectly assume apply to only one gender—for example, some people assume “nurse” must refer to a woman) appropriate? Have you varied the length and structure of your sentences? Do you tends to use the passive voice too often? Does your writing contain a lot of unnecessary phrases like “there is,” “there are,” “due to the fact that,” etc.? Do you repeat a strong word (for example, a vivid main verb) unnecessarily? (For tips, see our handouts on style and gender-inclusive language .)

Have you appropriately cited quotes, paraphrases, and ideas you got from sources? Are your citations in the correct format? (See the UNC Libraries citation tutorial for more information.)

As you edit at all of these levels, you will usually make significant revisions to the content and wording of your paper. Keep an eye out for patterns of error; knowing what kinds of problems you tend to have will be helpful, especially if you are editing a large document like a thesis or dissertation. Once you have identified a pattern, you can develop techniques for spotting and correcting future instances of that pattern. For example, if you notice that you often discuss several distinct topics in each paragraph, you can go through your paper and underline the key words in each paragraph, then break the paragraphs up so that each one focuses on just one main idea.

Proofreading

Proofreading is the final stage of the editing process, focusing on surface errors such as misspellings and mistakes in grammar and punctuation. You should proofread only after you have finished all of your other editing revisions.

Why proofread? It’s the content that really matters, right?

Content is important. But like it or not, the way a paper looks affects the way others judge it. When you’ve worked hard to develop and present your ideas, you don’t want careless errors distracting your reader from what you have to say. It’s worth paying attention to the details that help you to make a good impression.

Most people devote only a few minutes to proofreading, hoping to catch any glaring errors that jump out from the page. But a quick and cursory reading, especially after you’ve been working long and hard on a paper, usually misses a lot. It’s better to work with a definite plan that helps you to search systematically for specific kinds of errors.

Sure, this takes a little extra time, but it pays off in the end. If you know that you have an effective way to catch errors when the paper is almost finished, you can worry less about editing while you are writing your first drafts. This makes the entire writing proccess more efficient.

Try to keep the editing and proofreading processes separate. When you are editing an early draft, you don’t want to be bothered with thinking about punctuation, grammar, and spelling. If your worrying about the spelling of a word or the placement of a comma, you’re not focusing on the more important task of developing and connecting ideas.

The proofreading process

You probably already use some of the strategies discussed below. Experiment with different tactics until you find a system that works well for you. The important thing is to make the process systematic and focused so that you catch as many errors as possible in the least amount of time.

• Don’t rely entirely on spelling checkers. These can be useful tools but they are far from foolproof. Spell checkers have a limited dictionary, so some words that show up as misspelled may really just not be in their memory. In addition, spell checkers will not catch misspellings that form another valid word. For example, if you type “your” instead of “you’re,” “to” instead of “too,” or “there” instead of “their,” the spell checker won’t catch the error.
• Grammar checkers can be even more problematic. These programs work with a limited number of rules, so they can’t identify every error and often make mistakes. They also fail to give thorough explanations to help you understand why a sentence should be revised. You may want to use a grammar checker to help you identify potential run-on sentences or too-frequent use of the passive voice, but you need to be able to evaluate the feedback it provides.
• Proofread for only one kind of error at a time. If you try to identify and revise too many things at once, you risk losing focus, and your proofreading will be less effective. It’s easier to catch grammar errors if you aren’t checking punctuation and spelling at the same time. In addition, some of the techniques that work well for spotting one kind of mistake won’t catch others.
• Read slow, and read every word. Try reading out loud , which forces you to say each word and also lets you hear how the words sound together. When you read silently or too quickly, you may skip over errors or make unconscious corrections.
• Separate the text into individual sentences. This is another technique to help you to read every sentence carefully. Simply press the return key after every period so that every line begins a new sentence. Then read each sentence separately, looking for grammar, punctuation, or spelling errors. If you’re working with a printed copy, try using an opaque object like a ruler or a piece of paper to isolate the line you’re working on.
• Circle every punctuation mark. This forces you to look at each one. As you circle, ask yourself if the punctuation is correct.
• Read the paper backwards. This technique is helpful for checking spelling. Start with the last word on the last page and work your way back to the beginning, reading each word separately. Because content, punctuation, and grammar won’t make any sense, your focus will be entirely on the spelling of each word. You can also read backwards sentence by sentence to check grammar; this will help you avoid becoming distracted by content issues.
• Proofreading is a learning process. You’re not just looking for errors that you recognize; you’re also learning to recognize and correct new errors. This is where handbooks and dictionaries come in. Keep the ones you find helpful close at hand as you proofread.
• Ignorance may be bliss, but it won’t make you a better proofreader. You’ll often find things that don’t seem quite right to you, but you may not be quite sure what’s wrong either. A word looks like it might be misspelled, but the spell checker didn’t catch it. You think you need a comma between two words, but you’re not sure why. Should you use “that” instead of “which”? If you’re not sure about something, look it up.
• The proofreading process becomes more efficient as you develop and practice a systematic strategy. You’ll learn to identify the specific areas of your own writing that need careful attention, and knowing that you have a sound method for finding errors will help you to focus more on developing your ideas while you are drafting the paper.

Think you’ve got it?

Then give it a try, if you haven’t already! This handout contains seven errors our proofreader should have caught: three spelling errors, two punctuation errors, and two grammatical errors. Try to find them, and then check a version of this page with the errors marked in red to see if you’re a proofreading star.

Works consulted

We consulted these works while writing this handout. This is not a comprehensive list of resources on the handout’s topic, and we encourage you to do your own research to find additional publications. Please do not use this list as a model for the format of your own reference list, as it may not match the citation style you are using. For guidance on formatting citations, please see the UNC Libraries citation tutorial . We revise these tips periodically and welcome feedback.

Especially for non-native speakers of English:

Ascher, Allen. 2006. Think About Editing: An ESL Guide for the Harbrace Handbooks . Boston: Wadsworth Cengage Learning.

Lane, Janet, and Ellen Lange. 2012. Writing Clearly: Grammar for Editing , 3rd ed. Boston: Heinle.

For everyone:

Einsohn, Amy. 2011. The Copyeditor’s Handbook: A Guide for Book Publishing and Corporate Communications , 3rd ed. Berkeley: University of California Press.

Lanham, Richard A. 2006. Revising Prose , 5th ed. New York: Pearson Longman.

Tarshis, Barry. 1998. How to Be Your Own Best Editor: The Toolkit for Everyone Who Writes . New York: Three Rivers Press.

You may reproduce it for non-commercial use if you use the entire handout and attribute the source: The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Make a Gift

• Link to facebook
• Link to linkedin
• Link to twitter
• Link to youtube

Free Proofreading Sample

Try our proofreading services for free.

Deciding to try a proofreading service can feel like a risk. After all, you may have put many hours and a lot of energy into your writing – you need to know the person proofreading it has an eye for detail and an understanding of how to make your writing shine.

That’s why we’ll proofread your first 500 words absolutely free – just enter the code 500FREE when you upload your first document. With this free sample, you’ll get a better idea of what our proofreading service involves, so you can decide if it’s right for you.

How The Free Sample Works

The 500FREE code can be used in two ways:

• You can upload a document of 500 words or less, redeem the code, and we’ll proofread your writing at no cost or obligation to you. 
• You can upload a document larger than 500 words, redeem the code, and the cost of 500 words will be discounted from the total price.

Simply pick the option that works best for you.

Choose The Perfect Proofreader

Browse our editor profiles to learn more about each proofreader’s education, experience, and areas of expertise. Once you’ve found the perfect proofreader for your work, you can make a request for them to proofread your free sample.

After you review the completed free sample, if you’re happy with the work, let us know. We’ll then ensure that the same proofreader works on all of your documents.

Make sure your writing is the best it can be with our expert English proofreading and editing

A Dedicated Team Of Expert Editors Working 24/7, 365 Days A Year

We pair you with the perfect editor based on your document type and subject matter. This means you’re always matched with an editor who understands how to optimise your writing.

Expert Editor

How We Work

Lightning-fast delivery.

You’ll never miss a deadline with our speedy services: our Next-Day Guarantee means we’ll return any document up to 8,000 words long within 24 hours.

And if you need a faster turnaround, simply select your desired delivery speed when you submit your document. We have three options:

We can also meet custom deadlines! Just let us know what you need. 

* For documents up to 8,000 words

** For documents up to 3,000 words

Great Pricing

Our pricing is affordable and transparent – the cost is based on the exact length of your document. Check out our pricing calculator for an instant quote, and rest assured that you’ll receive the highest quality proofreading and editing for the best value on the market.

All Major Formats

Our system supports over 15 document formats, making it easy to submit content for proofreading and editing. Click the link below to find out more about how we’ll work with your document.

Learn More About Formats

Subject-Matter Experts

Our team of over 750 professional editors includes experts on thousands of topics. As a result, we can pair you with the perfect proofreader for your writing, no matter the subject.

24-Hour Support

Our support team is available around the clock to address any concerns or questions you have about your order. This means you’ll never be left in the dark, no matter where you are or what time it is.

Select Your Profile

I need student proofreading services for my college or university work

• Dissertation
• Admission Essay
• Literature Review
• PhD Proposal
• Statement Of Purpose

I need proofreading and editing for my research or related writing

• Research Proposal
• Research Paper
• Journal Article
• Grant Proposal

My business has documents or content that needs proofreading and editing

• AI-Generated Content
• Website Content
• Presentation
• Business Plan

I need an editor or proofreader for my writing project

• Short Story

Professional

I need proofreading for a document related to my career or professional life

• Personal Statement
• Cover Letter

I need proofreading and editing for a piece of academic writing

English is a second language for me, and I need a proofreader to check my writing

• Translation

I have dyslexia and need a proofreader to check my writing

Instant Quote

You can also upload a document to get an instant quote

Drag & drop your file

or browse your computer

Browse from your device

Drop your file here!

Your file is being uploaded!

Looking For The Perfect Proofreader?

Let our expert editors show you what they can do.

• Walden University
• Faculty Portal

Writing a Paper: Proofreading

Introduction.

Proofreading involves reading your document to correct the smaller typographical, grammatical, and spelling errors. Proofreading is usually the very last step you take before sending off the final draft of your work for evaluation or publication. It comes after you have addressed larger matters such as style, content, citations, and organization during revising. Like revising, proofreading demands a close and careful reading of the text. Although quite tedious, it is a necessary and worthwhile exercise that ensures that your reader is not distracted by careless mistakes.

Tips for Proofreading

• Set aside the document for a few hours or even a few days before proofreading. Taking a bit of time off enables you to see the document anew. A document that might have seemed well written one day may not look the same when you review it a few days later. Taking a step back provides you with a fresh (and possibly more constructive) perspective.
• Make a conscious effort to proofread at a specific time of day (or night!) when you are most alert to spotting errors. If you are a morning person, try proofreading then. If you are a night owl, try proofreading at this time.
• Reviewing the document in a different format and having the ability to manually circle and underline errors can help you take the perspective of the reader, identifying issues that you might ordinarily miss. Additionally, a hard copy gives you a different visual format (away from your computer screen) to see the words anew.
• Although useful, programs like Word's spell-checker and Grammarly can misidentify or not catch errors. Although grammar checkers give relevant tips and recommendations, they are only helpful if you know how to apply the feedback they provide. Similarly, MS Word's spell checker may not catch words that are spelled correctly but used in the wrong context (e.g., differentiating between their, they're , and there ). Beyond that, sometimes a spell checker may mark a correct word as wrong simply because the word is not found in the spell checker's dictionary. To supplement tools such as these, be sure to use dictionaries and other grammar resources to check your work. You can also make appointments with our writing instructors for feedback concerning grammar and word choice, as well as other areas of your writing!
• Reading a text aloud allows you to identify errors that you might gloss over when reading silently. This technique is particularly useful for identifying run-on and other types of awkward sentences. If you can, read for an audience. Ask a friend or family member to listen to your work and provide feedback, checking for comprehension, organization, and flow.
• Hearing someone else read your work allows you to simply listen without having to focus on the written words yourself. You can be a more critical listener when you are engaged in only the audible words.
• By reading the document backwards, sentence by sentence, you are able to focus only on the words and sentences without paying attention to the context or content.
• Placing a ruler or a blank sheet of paper under each line as you read it will give your eyes a manageable amount of text to read.
• If you can identify one type of error that you struggle with (perhaps something that a faculty member has commented on in your previous work), go through the document and look specifically for these types of errors. Learn from your mistakes, too, by mastering the problem concept so that it does not appear in subsequent drafts.
• Related to the previous strategy of checking for familiar errors, you can proofread by focusing on one error at a time. For instance, if commas are your most frequent problem, go through the paper checking just that one problem. Then proofread again for the next most frequent problem.
• After you have finished making corrections, have someone else scan the document for errors. A different set of eyes and a mind that is detached from the writing can identify errors that you may have overlooked.
• Remember that proofreading is not just about errors. You want to polish your sentences, making them smooth, interesting, and clear. Watch for very long sentences, since they may be less clear than shorter, more direct sentences. Pay attention to the rhythm of your writing; try to use sentences of varying lengths and patterns. Look for unnecessary phrases, repetition, and awkward spots.

Download and print a copy of our proofreading bookmark to use as a reference as you write!

• Proofreading Bookmark Printable bookmark with tips on proofreading a document.

Proofreading for Grammar Video

Note that this video was created while APA 6 was the style guide edition in use. There may be some examples of writing that have not been updated to APA 7 guidelines.

• Mastering the Mechanics: Proofreading for Grammar (video transcript)

Related Webinar

• Previous Page: Revising for Writing Goals
• Next Page: Reflecting & Improving
• Office of Student Disability Services

Walden Resources

Departments.

• Academic Residencies
• Academic Skills
• Career Planning and Development
• Customer Care Team
• Field Experience
• Military Services
• Student Success Advising
• Writing Skills

Centers and Offices

• Center for Social Change
• Office of Academic Support and Instructional Services
• Office of Degree Acceleration
• Office of Research and Doctoral Services
• Office of Student Affairs

Student Resources

• Doctoral Writing Assessment
• Form & Style Review
• Quick Answers
• ScholarWorks
• SKIL Courses and Workshops
• Walden Bookstore
• Walden Catalog & Student Handbook
• Student Safety/Title IX
• Legal & Consumer Information
• Website Terms and Conditions
• Cookie Policy
• Accessibility
• Accreditation
• State Authorization
• Net Price Calculator
• Contact Walden

Walden University is a member of Adtalem Global Education, Inc. www.adtalem.com Walden University is certified to operate by SCHEV © 2024 Walden University LLC. All rights reserved.

• Readers Read
• Screenwriting
• Songwriting
• Writing Contests

Karlie Kloss to Relaunch Life Magazine at Bedford Media

NBF Expands National Book Awards Eligibility Criteria

Striking Writers and Actors March Together on Hollywood Streets

Vice Media Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy

Oprah Selects The Covenant of Water as 101st Book Club Pick

• Self-publishing
• Technical Writing
• Writing Prompts

• Quill Connect
• Quill Lessons
• Quill Diagnostic

Quill Proofreader

• Quill Grammar
• Quill Reading for Evidence

Proofreader teaches your students editing skills by having them proofread passages. Students edit passages and receive personalized exercises based on their results. With over 100 expository passages, Proofreader gives students the practice they need to spot common grammatical errors.

In Quill Proofreader, students are tasked with finding and correcting grammatical errors embedded within a passage. In this exercise on Ernest Shackleton, students have to find and correct 11 errors.

Students are provided instant feedback on their work once they’ve completed the proofreading. The errors the student missed are highlighted in red, while the errors the student caught are highlighted in green.

Teachers can use their scorebook report to quickly see which concepts the student mastered and which ones the student needs to practice.

Teachers may access, for free, over 100 expository passages.

Try Proofreader Yourself!

“Students are eager to use the program and are quick to celebrate getting a 'green square,' denoting that they have passed an assigned skill.”

Stephanie L. , Kipp D.C.

Sign up to start quill proofreader in your class today.

Purdue Online Writing Lab Purdue OWL® College of Liberal Arts

Finding Common Errors

Welcome to the Purdue OWL

This page is brought to you by the OWL at Purdue University. When printing this page, you must include the entire legal notice.

Copyright ©1995-2018 by The Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, reproduced, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our terms and conditions of fair use.

Here are some common proofreading issues that come up for many writers. For grammatical or spelling errors, try underlining or highlighting words that often trip you up. On a sentence level, take note of which errors you make frequently. Also make note of common sentence errors you have such as run-on sentences, comma splices, or sentence fragments—this will help you proofread more efficiently in the future.

• Do not solely rely on your computer's spell-check—it will not get everything!
• Trace a pencil carefully under each line of text to see words individually.
• Be especially careful of words that have tricky letter combinations, like "ei/ie.”
• Take special care of homonyms like your/you're, to/too/two, and there/their/they're, as spell check will not recognize these as errors.

Left-out and doubled words

Read the paper slowly aloud to make sure you haven't missed or repeated any words. Also, try reading your paper one sentence at a time in reverse—this will enable you to focus on the individual sentences.

Sentence Fragments

Sentence fragments are sections of a sentence that are not grammatically whole sentences. For example, “Ate a sandwich” is a sentence fragment because it lacks a subject.

Make sure each sentence has a subject:

• “Looked at the OWL website.” is a sentence fragment without a subject.
• “The students looked at the OWL website.” Adding the subject “students” makes it a complete sentence.

Make sure each sentence has a complete verb.

• “They trying to improve their writing skills.” is an incomplete sentence because “trying” is an incomplete verb.
• “They were trying to improve their writing skills.” In this sentence, “were” is necessary to make “trying” a complete verb.

See that each sentence has an independent clause. Remember that a dependent clause cannot stand on its own. In the following examples, green highlighting indicates dependent clauses while yellow indicates independent clauses.

• “ Which is why the students read all of the handouts carefully .” This is a dependent clause that needs an independent clause. As of right now, it is a sentence fragment.
• “ Students knew they were going to be tested on the handouts, which is why they read all of the handouts carefully .” The first part of the sentence, “Students knew they were going to be tested,” is an independent clause. Pairing it with a dependent clause makes this example a complete sentence.

Run-on Sentences

• Review each sentence to see whether it contains more than one independent clause.
• If there is more than one independent clause, check to make sure the clauses are separated by the appropriate punctuation.
• Sometimes, it is just as effective (or even more so) to simply break the sentence into two separate sentences instead of including punctuation to separate the clauses.
• Run on: “ I have to write a research paper for my class about extreme sports all I know about the subject is that I'm interested in it. ” These are two independent clauses without any punctuation or conjunctions separating the two.
• Edited version: " I have to write a research paper for my class about extreme sports, and all I know about the subject is that I'm interested in it ." The two highlighted portions are independent clauses. They are connected by the appropriate conjunction “and,” and a comma.
• Another edited version: “ I have to write a research paper for my class about extreme sports. All I know about the subject is that I'm interested in it .” In this case, these two independent clauses are separated into individual sentences separated by a period and capitalization.

Comma Splices

• Look closely at sentences that have commas.
• See if the sentence contains two independent clauses. Independent clauses are complete sentences.
• If there are two independent clauses, they should be connected with a comma and a conjunction (and, but, for, or, so, yet, nor). Commas are not needed for some subordinating conjunctions (because, for, since, while, etc.) because these conjunctions are used to combine dependent and independent clauses.
• Another option is to take out the comma and insert a semicolon instead.
• Comma Splice: “ I would like to write my paper about basketball , it's a topic I can talk about at length .” The highlighted portions are independent clauses. A comma alone is not enough to connect them.
• Edited version: “ I would like to write my paper about basketball because it's a topic I can talk about at length .” Here, the yellow highlighted portion is an independent clause while the green highlighted portion is a dependent clause. The subordinating conjunction “because” connects these two clauses.
• Edited version, using a semicolon: “ I would like to write my paper about basketball ; it’s a topic I can talk about at length .” Here, a semicolon connects two similar independent clauses.

Subject/Verb Agreement

• Find the subject of each sentence.
• Find the verb that goes with the subject.
• The subject and verb should match in number, meaning that if the subject is plural, the verb should be as well.
• An easy way to do this is to underline all subjects. Then, circle or highlight the verbs one at a time and see if they match.
• Incorrect subject verb agreement: “ Students at the university level usually is very busy.” Here, the subject “students” is plural, and the verb “is” is singular, so they don’t match.
• Edited version: “ Students at the university level usually are very busy.” “Are” is a plural verb that matches the plural noun, “students.”

Mixed Construction

Read through your sentences carefully to make sure that they do not start with one sentence structure and shift to another. A sentence that does this is called a mixed construction.

• “ Since I have a lot of work to do is why I can't go out tonight .” Both green highlighted sections of the sentence are dependent clauses. Two dependent clauses do not make a complete sentence.
• Edited version: “ Since I have a lot of work to do , I can't go out tonight .” The green highlighted portion is a dependent clause while the yellow is an independent clause. Thus, this example is a complete sentence.

Parallelism

Look through your paper for series of items, usually separated by commas. Also, make sure these items are in parallel form, meaning they all use a similar form.

• Example: “Being a good friend involves listening , to be considerate, and that you know how to have fun.” In this example, “listening” is in present tense, “to be” is in the infinitive form, and “that you know how to have fun” is a sentence fragment. These items in the series do not match up.
• Edited version: “Being a good friend involves listening , being considerate, and having fun.” In this example, “listening,” “being,” and “having” are all in the present continuous (-ing endings) tense. They are in parallel form.

Pronoun Reference/Agreement

• Skim your paper, searching for pronouns.
• Search for the noun that the pronoun replaces.
• If you can't find any nouns, insert one beforehand or change the pronoun to a noun.
• If you can find a noun, be sure it agrees in number and person with your pronoun.
• “ Sam had three waffles for breakfast. He wasn’t hungry again until lunch.” Here, it is clear that Sam is the “he” referred to in the second sentence. Thus, the singular third person pronoun, “he,” matches with Sam.
• “ Teresa and Ariel walked the dog. The dog bit her .” In this case, it is unclear who the dog bit because the pronoun, “her,” could refer to either Teresa or Ariel.
• “ Teresa and Ariel walked the dog. Later, it bit them .” Here, the third person plural pronoun, “them,” matches the nouns that precede it. It’s clear that the dog bit both people.
• “Teresa and Ariel walked the dog. Teresa unhooked the leash, and the dog bit her .” In these sentences, it is assumed that Teresa is the “her” in the second sentence because her name directly precedes the singular pronoun, “her.”

Apostrophes

• Skim your paper, stopping only at those words which end in "s." If the "s" is used to indicate possession, there should be an apostrophe, as in “Mary's book.”
• Look over the contractions, like “you're” for “you are,” “it's” for “it is,” etc. Each of these should include an apostrophe.
• Remember that apostrophes are not used to make words plural. When making a word plural, only an "s" is added, not an apostrophe and an "s."
• “ It’s a good day for a walk.” This sentence is correct because “it’s” can be replaced with “it is.”
• “A bird nests on that tree. See its eggs?” In this case, “its” is a pronoun describing the noun, “bird.” Because it is a pronoun, no apostrophe is needed.
• “Classes are cancelled today” is a correct sentence whereas “Class’s are cancelled today” is incorrect because the plural form of class simply adds an “-es” to the end of the word.
• “ Sandra’s markers don’t work.” Here, Sandra needs an apostrophe because the noun is a possessive one. The apostrophe tells the reader that Sandra owns the markers.

• Proofreading
• Primary Research
• Translation
• Editing & Writing

• Proofreading samples

Make your content error-free with proofreading! Proofreading is process of going through the final document to ensure that the content is free from any mistakes and typo-errors.

For guidance and learning purposes, proofreading samples can be read and reviewed. These proofreading samples help to learn how to go through the document, how to highlight the errors, and what type of errors are most likely to occur. The aim of the content defines how accurate the proofreading task must be conducted. The samples can help various ways how to pinpoint the errors and rectify them.

Make your creativity precise, exclusive and prominent with proofreading samples .

Proofreading samples for client web pages

Brochure Copy Editing Samples

Instant Quote

Tutorials Video

Payments powered by.

Let's work together! Email us your projects at [email protected]

Reason to choose us

• Customized Services: Proofreadexperts.com delivers custom based quality proofreading services for different writing styles and difficulty levels.
• Any Subject or Deadline: Proofreadexperts.com pays particular attention to assignments and deadlines, we value your time. All the material provided to you after the proofreading process is going to be original yet authentic with up to date and reliable sources.
• Experience at its Best: Being a specialist in the areas of business and academics, we have a lead in overall proofreading services. Proofreadexperts.com has certified staff that has ample knowledge and experience in providing translations and proofreading services with the relevant degrees in your respective languages. 
• Get into The Fast Lane: We have a team of well experienced proofreaders on board; your documents are proofread and delivered back to you in the short time span of 24hours. But for an easy to go process, we leave it to you to decide the required time scale
• Guarantee of Money Back: If our proofreading services are unable to satisfy you in the very first attempt and you don’t want to opt for any revisions, than you have the absolute right to ask for a refund. 
• Round the clock customer care: For any queries, connect with us on our hotline where our sales staff are available 24/7 for your assistance.
• 100% Satisfaction Level: If you are not satisfied from the proofread work that we provided to you whether at the initial or already revised level, let us know within 10 days and we will redo it to satisfy all your proofreading needs.
• We Are Safe: It is a guarantee that we will never misuse, share or sell any of the data that you share with us.  Your data will be kept confidential at all costs and in accordance with National data protection laws.
• Keep us informed: Depending upon all your documentation needs, you will know what the final text should look like. So, for an end to end satisfaction, you can express and share your ideas and suggestions with us before we check and draft your paper.

Proofreading Services

• Academic Proofreading
• Business Proofreading
• The Need For Editing and Online Proofreading
• Dissertation Proofreading and Editing Services
• Join as a Proofreader
• Document proofreading

Translation Services

• English to French Translation
• English to Spanish Translation
• English to Arabic Translation
• English to Chinese Translation
• Join as a Translator

Research Services

• Research Assistance
• Consumer Research
• Thesis Research: Thesis Proofreading and Thesis Editing Services
• Market Research
• Product Research
• Join as a Researcher

© Copyright 2013 Proofreadexpert.com All Rights Reserved

Free online proofreading and essay editor

A reliable proofreading tool and essay editor for any writer or student, a complete environment.

Typely is more than just a proofreading tool. It's a complete writing environment.

Thousands of checks

More than a thousand checks are being performed and we've only scratched the surface.

Inspired by the greatest writers

Gain access to humanity’s collective understanding about the craft of writing.

A proofreading tool that does not bark at every tree

Typely is precise. Existing tools for proofreading raise so many false alarms that their advice cannot be trusted. Instead, the writer must carefully consider whether to accept or reject each change.

We aim for a tool so precise that it becomes possible to unquestioningly adopt its recommendations and still come out ahead — with stronger, tighter prose. Better to be quiet and authoritative than loud and unreliable.

Relax, focus, write your next masterpiece...

Writing presumes more than simply laying out words on a paper. Typely helps you get in the mood and keeps you focused, immersed and ready to write your story.

Whether you need a distraction-free environment, some chill relaxing sounds or a pomodoro timer to manage your time we got you covered.

Got questions? We have answers.

No. Typely is completely free and we plan on keeping it that way. We are considering some advanced features however that might be available under a premium plan.

The only limit we have applied thus far is on the number of characters you can submit and that is being set at a maximum of 50,000.

In theory yes but that will require a lot of work and professionals dedicated for this job. We are considering a way of letting the community participate somehow.

Typely does not do grammar checking because it's hard and almost impossible to get right. The aim for Typely is to be precise and reliable.

• Advanced Skills
• Roots & Affixes
• Grammar Review
• Verb Tenses
• Common Idioms
• Learning English Plan
• Pronunciation
• TOEFL & IELTS Vocab.
• Vocab. Games
• Grammar Practice
• Comprehension & Fluency Practice
• Suggested Reading
• Lessons & Courses
• Lesson Plans & Ideas
• ESL Worksheets+
• What's New?

Proofreading Practice: Can You Find All 10 Errors?

Proofreading practice.

Get proofreading practice finding the mistakes in this cause and effect essay. It has been revised but still needs to be checked for punctuation and grammar errors. (You can use the proofreading checklist as a guide.)

See if you can find and  correct  all 10 mistakes. Look at capitalization, punctuation, and spellings. Then check for subject-verb agreement. Look for sentence fragments and run-on sentences. (Print this page or write the corrections on a piece of paper.)

When you finish proofreading, find & mark (or write down)

• the thesis statement, 
• at least three sentences that give details or examples supporting the thesis, 
• and the conclusion. 
• Underline or copy transition words.

Finally, write a short, one-paragraph summary of the most important points of the essay.

Unintended Consequences:  Hitler and the Bomb 

Hitler knew he wanted to “free” Germany from its Jews, including its Jewish scientists. However, he probably never imagined the far-reaching implications of that decision. It led to the United States getting the atomic bomb, and eventually to the nuclear arms race. 

One of the first laws Hitler's government passed when it came to power in Germany in 1933 forbade people with any Jewish grandparents from working for the civil service (government), including the universities. His party was proud of German science, and wanted to keep it “pure” from the strange thinking introduced by Einstein and others.

This law led to many brilliant scientists losing their university jobs. Many also realized that as Jews they were unwelcome and possibly at risk in Germany. Some left immediately for university positions in Great Britain or the U.S. others followed as they realized their danger. And as Germany invaded much of Europe.

Many of them had been working to understand the atom. They realized its terrible power if used for destruction—and knew that German scientists were also working on atomic fission. The thought that the Germans might develope an atomic bomb moved several of them, including Albert Einstein, to send a letter to the American president. They proposed the U.S. government should start urgent research to make a usable bomb before the Germans could.

After some time, the government agreed. It started a massive secret program they called the Manhattan Project. Thousands of American and British scientists worked on it. They were led by Robert Oppenheimer, an American of Jewish background who had studied physics in Germany in the 1920s. Nearly 30 top Jewish scientists who had fled German-controlled (or Fascist) Europe ended up there too, as well as many jewish-American scientists who also hated the ideology Hitler introduced and would do anything they could to opose it.

The bomb they developed was ready for final testing in July 1945. It far more destructive than they had even imagined. By this time the Nazis had been defeated, but the war with Japan continued. The American government decided to use their new weapon against Japan.

Many of the scientists who had worked on the Manhattan Project. had hoped the bomb would never be used. As the Cold War began, they strongly urged an end to atomic weapons.

However, the American government felt they needed the threat of atomic warfare to keep the Soviet Union (US.S.R.) from further aggression. Before long (partly due to secrets a very few of the Manhattan scientists had shared with the U.S.S.R. during the war, when it was still in theory an “ally”), it had developed an atomic bomb of its own. 

This led quickly to a nuclear “arms race.” Within a few years Great Britain, France, China, and several other nations. Had also made and tested such bombs. once scientists understood the principles. it proved impossible to keep the technology from spreading.

No one could have predicted all the consequences that followed from Hitler's hatred of the Jews or from the persecution of Jewish scientists.

Those scientists started out developing the atomic bomb in a race against time, since they knew Hitler’s scientists were working on the same project. They won that race, but ended up using the bomb anyway—and transforming the nature of war and the future of humanity.

Check Your Proofreading Practice 

Here are the  Proofreading practice answers . (The page also identifies the thesis statement, supporting details, and transitions. It gives a suggested summary, plus a bibliography of the online sources for the essay.)

How did you do? If this was difficult, see Learn to Write English , Proofreading Checklist , or Transition Words .  

Home >  Learn to  Writ e English  > Proofreading Practice.

P.S. I used a number of online sources for research while writing this essay. Several are no longer available. The complete list (of those still available online) is at the bottom of the Proofreading Practice Answers page above.

Didn't find what you needed? Explain what you want in the search box below. (For example, cognates, past tense practice, or 'get along with.') Click to see the related pages on EnglishHints.

New! Comments

Would you prefer to share this page with others by linking to it?

• Click on the HTML link code below.
• Copy and paste it, adding a note of your own, into your blog, a Web page, forums, a blog comment, your Facebook account, or anywhere that someone would find this page valuable.

What's New?-- site blog

Learn about new and updated pages on EnglishHints, with just enough information to decide if you want to read more.

Do you already use English in your profession or studies-- but realize you need more advanced English or communication skills in certain areas?

I can help-- with targeted suggestions & practice on EnglishHints or with coaching or specialized help for faster results. Let me know. I can suggest resources or we can arrange a call.

Vocabulary in Minutes a Month

Sign up for our free newsletter, English Detective .  In a few minutes twice a month you can: 

• Improve your reading fluency with  selected articles & talks on one subject (for repeated use of key words)
• Understand and practice those words using explanations, crosswords, and more 
• Feel more confident about your English reading and vocab. skills-- and more prepared for big tests & challenges

For information (and a free bonus), see Building Vocabulary 

Home  |  About me    |   Privacy Policy   |     Contact me   |  Affiliate Disclosure  

EnglishForEveryone.org

Paragraph correction worksheets terms of use, beginning level paragraph correction worksheets.

• Answer Key - This is the answer key to beginning level worksheets.
• Beginning Paragraph Correction Worksheet 1
• Beginning Paragraph Correction Worksheet 2
• Beginning Paragraph Correction Worksheet 3
• Beginning Paragraph Correction Worksheet 4
• Beginning Paragraph Correction Worksheet 5
• Beginning Paragraph Correction Worksheet 6
• Beginning Paragraph Correction Worksheet 7
• Beginning Paragraph Correction Worksheet 8
• Beginning Paragraph Correction Worksheet 9
• Beginning Paragraph Correction Worksheet 10
• Beginning Paragraph Correction Worksheet 11
• Beginning Paragraph Correction Worksheet 12
• Beginning Paragraph Correction Worksheet 13
• Beginning Paragraph Correction Worksheet 14
• Beginning Paragraph Correction Worksheet 15

Intermediate Level Paragraph Correction Worksheets

• Answer Key - This is the answer key to intermediate level worksheets.
• Intermediate Paragraph Correction Worksheet 1
• Intermediate Paragraph Correction Worksheet 2
• Intermediate Paragraph Correction Worksheet 3
• Intermediate Paragraph Correction Worksheet 4
• Intermediate Paragraph Correction Worksheet 5
• Intermediate Paragraph Correction Worksheet 6
• Intermediate Paragraph Correction Worksheet 7
• Intermediate Paragraph Correction Worksheet 8
• Intermediate Paragraph Correction Worksheet 9
• Intermediate Paragraph Correction Worksheet 10
• Intermediate Paragraph Correction Worksheet 11
• Intermediate Paragraph Correction Worksheet 12
• Intermediate Paragraph Correction Worksheet 13
• Intermediate Paragraph Correction Worksheet 14
• Intermediate Paragraph Correction Worksheet 15

Advanced Level Paragraph Correction Worksheets

• Answer Key - This is the answer key to advanced level worksheets.
• Advanced Paragraph Correction Worksheet 1
• Advanced Paragraph Correction Worksheet 2
• Advanced Paragraph Correction Worksheet 3
• Advanced Paragraph Correction Worksheet 4
• Advanced Paragraph Correction Worksheet 5
• Advanced Paragraph Correction Worksheet 6
• Advanced Paragraph Correction Worksheet 7
• Advanced Paragraph Correction Worksheet 8
• Advanced Paragraph Correction Worksheet 9
• Advanced Paragraph Correction Worksheet 10

Home | About | Privacy Policy | Terms of Use | Contact Us

Navigation Menu

Search code, repositories, users, issues, pull requests..., provide feedback.

We read every piece of feedback, and take your input very seriously.

Saved searches

Use saved searches to filter your results more quickly.

To see all available qualifiers, see our documentation .

• Notifications

Sample code for the Twitter API v2 endpoints

xdevplatform/Twitter-API-v2-sample-code

Folders and files, repository files navigation, twitter api v2 sample code.

Sample code for the Twitter API v2 endpoints. Individual API features have folders where you can find examples of usage in several coding languages (Java, Node.js, Python, R, and Ruby).

• Twitter API Documentation

Prerequisites

• Twitter API Essential Access ( sign up here )
• A Project and an App created in the dashboard

Using the code samples

In order to run the samples in this repository you will need to set up some environment variables. You can find your credentials and bearer token in the App inside of your Project in the dashboard of the developer portal .

For OAuth 1.0a samples, you will need to export your consumer key and secret in your terminal. Be sure to replace <your_consumer_key> and <your_consumer_secret> with your own credentials without the < > .

For samples which use bearer token authentication, you will need to export the bearer token. Be sure to replace <your_bearer_token> with your own bearer token without the < > .

Language-specific requirements

Java environment set up.

If you use Homebrew, you can install a Java runtime using:

You will also need to download the relevant JAR files referenced in the individual samples in order to build and run the code. If you use an IDE, it may be able to do this automatically for you.

JavaScript (Node.js) environment set up

You will need to have Node.js installed to run this code. All Node.js examples use needle as the HTTP client, which needs to be npm installed. For OAuth with user context requests, you'll need to install the got and oauth-1.0a packages.

Python environment set up

You will need to have Python 3 installed to run this code. The Python samples use requests==2.24.0 which uses requests-oauthlib==1.3.0 .

(Optionally) It is common and recommended not to install required package globally, but locally under project subfolder using venv :

You can install these packages as follows:

Ruby environment set up

You will need to have Ruby (recommended: >= 2.0.0) installed in order to run the code. The Ruby examples use typhoeus as the HTTP client, which needs to be gem installed. For OAuth with user context requests, you'll also need to install the oauth gem (see below).

Additional resources

We maintain a Postman Collection which you can use for exercising individual API endpoints.

• Using Postman with the Twitter API
• Twitter API v2 on the Postman website

For general questions related to the API and features, please use the v2 section of our developer community forums .

If there's an bug or issue with the sample code itself, please create a new issue here on GitHub.

Contributing

We welcome pull requests that add meaningful additions to these code samples, particularly for languages that are not yet represented here.

We feel that a welcoming community is important and we ask that you follow Twitter's Open Source Code of Conduct in all interactions with the community.

Copyright 2021 Twitter, Inc.

Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0: https://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0

Code of conduct

Contributors 21.

• JavaScript 32.6%
• Python 29.7%

• Election 2024
• Entertainment
• Newsletters
• Photography
• Personal Finance
• AP Investigations
• AP Buyline Personal Finance
• AP Buyline Shopping
• Press Releases
• Israel-Hamas War
• Russia-Ukraine War
• Global elections
• Asia Pacific
• Latin America
• Middle East
• Election Results
• Delegate Tracker
• AP & Elections
• Auto Racing
• 2024 Paris Olympic Games
• Movie reviews
• Book reviews
• Personal finance
• Financial Markets
• Business Highlights
• Financial wellness
• Artificial Intelligence
• Social Media

WADA stands by decision to clear Chinese swimmers for Tokyo Olympics, citing contaminated samples

FILE - A Chinese flag is unfurled on the podium of a swimming event final at the 2020 Summer Olympics, on July 29, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan. An Australian newspaper said Saturday, April 20, 2024, 23 Chinese swimmers were cleared to compete at the Tokyo Olympics despite testing positive to doping because world governing bodies agreed with Chinese authorities and ruled that the tests had been contaminated.(AP Photo/Charlie Riedel, File)

• Copy Link copied

GENEVA (AP) — The World Anti-Doping Agency said after reviewing various media reports that it stands by its decision to clear 23 Chinese swimmers who tested positive for a banned heart medication before the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.

WADA addressed questions at a news conference on Monday and acknowledged there would be skepticism about details of the case after the release on Sunday of a documentary by German broadcaster ARD.

In an earlier statement following initial newspaper reports led by the New York Times, WADA said it agreed with Chinese authorities and ruled the swimmers’ samples were contaminated.

The contamination was accepted to have come from spice containers in the kitchen of a hotel where some of the Chinese team stayed for a national meet in January 2021

Chinese authorities handling the case after testing the swimmers in January 2021 cleared them without any penalties and WADA accepted their conclusions. Sending independent investigators to China that year was not feasible during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We had no credible way to disprove the contamination theory,” WADA prosecutor Ross Wenzel told reporters in an online call on Monday, adding there was no political pressure to drop the case.

Wenzel detailed a timeline from January to June 2021 for the case to be resolved. That was just weeks before the Tokyo Olympics opened, and with the Beijing Winter Games approaching in February 2022 that was a personal project for Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Chinese swimmers went on to win three gold medals in Tokyo, where the United States took silver in two of those races and Britain was second in the other.

“Following WADA’s review of the documentary, the agency still stands firmly by the results of its scientific investigation and legal decision concerning the case,” WADA said in the statement before putting forward its senior managers up for questioning on Monday

WADA said based on available scientific evidence and intelligence, “which was gathered, assessed and tested by experts in the pharmacology of trimetazidine (TMZ); and, by anti-doping experts,” it had no basis under the global anti-doping code to challenge the Chinese agency’s findings of environmental contamination.

The drug at the center of this case was also the medication that led to the suspension of Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva at the Winter Olympics in Beijing in 2022.

In that case, WADA moved to appeal and sought sanctions for Valieva after Russian anti-doping authorities judged she was not to blame.

China’s star swimmer Sun Yang also tested positive for TMZ and served a three-month ban in 2014. That case also was kept quiet by Chinese and swim authorities and provoked criticism from opponents when he won at the world championships the next year. Sun was later banned for breaking doping rules in a high-profile case WADA did pursue.

Dismissing weekend suggestions WADA was “soft on Chinese athletes,” agency president Witold Bańka reminded reporters it had been “vigorously pursuing justice” in the Sun case. A ban of more than four years for three-time Olympic champion Sun expires next month.

WADA said its position in the latest Chinese case was also accepted by World Aquatics, which governs international swimming.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin on Monday described the media reports as “disinformation and a misrepresentation,” and affirmed WADA’s decision.

Wang said China’s anti-doping authorities investigated the incident and found the positive results were due to “the ingestion of contaminated food by the relevant athletes without knowledge of the contaminated food, and the Chinese swimmers involved were not at fault or negligent, which did not constitute a doping violation.”

However, anti-doping rules in Olympic sports do require a provisional suspension — which the Chinese swimmers avoided from their national anti-doping agency — when athletes test positive for TMZ, except if contamination is suspected.

“I want to emphasize,” Wang said, “that the Chinese government has maintained a firm stance of zero tolerance towards doping, strictly abides by the WADA code, resolutely safeguards the physical and mental health of athletes, maintains fair play in sports competitions, and contributes positively to the global efforts in the crackdown on doping.”

China has given almost $2 million to WADA in recent years above its expected payments as a national government.

The 30-member Chinese swim team won six medals in Tokyo, including three golds. Zhang Yufei won the women’s 200 meters butterfly ahead of Regan Smith of the United States, and silver in the 100 butterfly where American Torri Huske was out of the medals in fourth.

Zhang and Yang Junxuan were part of the 4x200 freestyle relay team that took gold, edging the Americans including seven-time Olympic champion Katie Ledecky. Canada was fourth.

“Doping can deprive clean athletes of hard-earned moments they deserve such as standing on the podium and the life-changing opportunities that may follow,” Swimming Canada said Sunday in a statement.

In the men’s 200 medley in Tokyo, Wang Shun beat silver medalist Duncan Scott, the British star who refused to share a medal podium with Sun Yang at the 2019 world championships.

Many of the athletes still compete for China and are expected to swim at the Paris Olympics that start in July.

WADA said it was given a tip by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency as early as 2020 — before this case arose — about allegations of doping cover-ups in China but the USADA never followed up with evidence.

USADA CEO Travis Tygart called the news of the Chinese positive tests “crushing.”

“It’s even more devastating to learn the World Anti-Doping Agency and the Chinese Anti-Doping Agency secretly, until now, swept these positives under the carpet by failing to fairly and evenly follow the global rules that apply to everyone else in the world,” Tygart said.

The case underscores what many view as a flaw in the global anti-doping system — that a country’s own anti-doping organization is often the first line of defense in catching drug cheats and those organizations have different levels of motivation to fulfil that role.

AP sports: https://apnews.com/sports