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Amusing verses that shine a light on mostly medical and grammatical topics

​When proofreading with an eye to perfection, there really is no substitute for good research. While one is always guided by the client's stated preferences regarding style, there is also a baseline understanding that serves as the foundation against which required differences are compared.

I will be offering some home-grown verses here that may be helpful for keeping certain basics in mind while adapting to the guidelines of a specific project, whether under the umbrella of CMOS, AP, APA, MLA, or other guidance.

They are not intended to be comprehensive regarding any particular issue. Rather, the purpose is to draw attention to identifiable aspects that are worth noting and make them memorable.

I think of these verses tongue in cheek as "Grammar Grist." Others that you find here will be more along the lines of "Medical Musings"; some might even qualify as a combination of the two.

It'll be fun. So, let's do it. Share the cheer everywhere.


© 2022 - 2026 Medillumina 
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​To properly transcribe numbers in legal documents, proofreaders are guided by two simple rules and some related exceptions. Among the latter is the presentation of phone numbers, addresses, and years as figures only when they are located at the beginning of sentences.


When legal transcripts deal with numbers 
The basic rules are only two.
Exceptions, though, expand the counting,
And tell that two can barely do.

Think first of ten and down to zero,
Expecting there to spell them out.
Eleven then and up to heaven,
Sketch rising numbers, draw them out.

Exceptions force a switch to digits
For money, measures, dates, percent.
Aside from "One," the same with houses--
And figures that from nouns extend.

Not all exceptions favor digits,
Example being sentence starts;
When numbers get the ball a-rolling,
It’s mostly time for spelling arts.