What does deleing mean?
Deleing is the act of marking text for deletion during proofreading. It derives from 'dele,' a proofreading term taken directly from the Latin imperative of 'delere,' meaning 'to destroy' or 'to erase.' In traditional print workflows, a proofreader who spots unwanted words or passages writes the symbol ℮ together with the word 'dele' in the margin, thereby instructing the compositor to remove the marked material from the final version. By extension, the term can describe simply deleting text from any document, though this broader use remains informal and rare. Deleing belongs firmly to the specialist vocabulary of editing, typesetting, and publishing, where it pairs naturally with its opposite instruction, 'stet' — Latin for 'let it stand' — which cancels a marked deletion. Though largely displaced by on-screen track-changes tools in modern publishing, the term survives among traditionalists and offers a vivid reminder of how much editorial practice owes to Latin.
verb (present participle and gerund of 'dele')The act of marking written or printed text for deletion, especially in proofreading, using the symbol 'dele' (℮); by extension, deleting text from a document.
- To mark text for deletion with the proofreader's symbol ℮ ('dele'), indicating it should be removed in print.
- More generally, to delete or remove text from a document.
"She spent the afternoon deleing redundant phrases from the manuscript before sending proofs to press."
"The proofreader was busy deleing duplicated lines throughout the galley proofs."
"He kept deleing whole paragraphs, convinced the article would read better shorter."
That odd little proofreading symbol ℮ has its own verb: when editors talk about 'deleing,' they're using an instruction straight from Latin that printers have shouted across centuries of typesetting.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of deleing
Deleing comes from the verb 'dele,' which entered English from the Latin imperative 'dēlē,' meaning 'delete!' or 'destroy!,' formed on the verb 'delēre' (to blot out, efface). It arose in the specialized jargon of printing houses and proofreading, where marginal instructions to compositors were traditionally given in Latin abbreviations such as 'dele' and 'stet.' The verb 'dele' later yielded ordinary inflected forms including 'deled' and 'deleing,' and it shares the same Latin root as 'delete,' 'deletion,' 'indelible,' and 'delible.'
Related word forms
How deleing is actually used
A technical term used almost exclusively in printing, typesetting, and editorial circles; unfamiliar outside these trades. The corresponding instruction is 'stet' (let it stand), which cancels a deletion.
Easily confused with deleing
'Dealing' means distributing or engaging in transactions, while 'deleing' refers specifically to marking text for deletion in proofreading.