What is double spaced?

Double spacing refers to a text formatting style where the space between lines of text is twice the normal single spacing. Here's a breakdown of its key aspects:

• Appearance: Double-spaced text has significantly more vertical space between lines, making it easier to read, especially for longer documents. It provides more room for annotations or editing.

• Purpose: It's commonly required for academic papers, manuscripts submitted for publication, and other formal writing. This is largely for readability and to make editing and annotation easier for instructors or editors. The extra space allows for handwritten comments without obscuring the text.

• Measurement: While the exact measurement varies slightly depending on the font and software used, double spacing generally means that the vertical space between lines is approximately equal to the height of a single line of text.

• Implementation: Most word processing programs (like Microsoft Word, Google Docs, Pages) have built-in options to set double spacing. You usually find this setting in the "Paragraph" or "Line Spacing" options within the formatting tools.

• Alternatives: While double spacing is common, single spacing is also used, particularly for letters, emails, and less formal writing. There are also other line spacing options like 1.5 spacing, offering a compromise between single and double spacing.

In summary, double spacing is a formatting convention primarily used to enhance readability and facilitate editing, especially in formal academic and professional contexts.