This is an information page.

It is not one of Wikipedia's policies or guidelines, but rather intends to describe some aspect(s) of Wikipedia's norms, customs, technicalities, or practices. It may reflect varying levels of consensus and vetting.

This page in a nutshell: Add template messages to inform readers and editors of specific problems with articles or sections, but do not use them as a badge of shame.

Template messages (maintenance tags, cleanup tags, cleanup messages) may be added to articles needing cleanup. Their purposes are to foster improvement of the encyclopedia by alerting editors to changes that need to be made. Cleanup tags are meant to be temporary notices that lead to an effort to fix the problem, not a permanent badge of shame to show that you disagree with an article, or a method of warning readers about an article.

Unless otherwise noted, cleanup messages should be placed at the top of the page, before other templates, images, or infoboxes, but after hatnotes (see Wikipedia:Hatnote § Placement). Cleanup messages should be placed directly on the article or file, not on its talk page. Certain tags can be placed at the beginning of an individual section, and others can be placed within the text itself (inline).

A date parameter is added by a bot, or you can add it yourself with |date=September 2023.

Before you tag an article, please remember the following:

Don't tag an article if you can easily and confidently fix the problem.: The goal is an improved article, not a tagged article.
Do some research to attempt to solve the problem before tagging.: Don't put the burden of doing so on another editor if you are capable of fixing the problem yourself with a simple search or consulting a reference work.
Don't do "drive-by" tagging.: Tags must be accompanied by either a comment on the article's talk page explaining the problem and beginning a discussion on how to fix it or, for simpler and more obvious problems, a remark using the reason parameter (available in all templates, regardless of whether it appears in the documentation) as shown below. At the very least, tagging editors must be willing to follow through with substantive discussion.
Don't do "drive-by" de-tagging.: Likewise, please provide a similar rationale for removing a template, unless your preceding edits have clearly fixed the announced problem. See also when not to remove a template.
Don't insert tags that are similar or redundant.: For example, most articles that read like essays have an inappropriate tone, and in fact they end up being automatically grouped in the same category, so it is unnecessary to tag with both ((tone)) and ((essay-like)).
If an article has many problems, tag only the highest priority issues.: A lengthy list is often less helpful than a shorter one. (See also: Wikipedia:Tag bombing and Wikipedia:Tagging pages for problems § Over-tagging)
Don't add tags for trivial or minor problems, especially if an article needs a lot of work.: For example, there is little point in noting grammatical problems for a section that needs to be completely re-written to comply with content policies. Focus on the biggest one, two, or three problems.

Does the article meet inclusion requirements?

Before placing templates on a page it is worthwhile to cast a critical eye over the page to determine whether indeed it should be included in Wikipedia. Some articles can be tagged for speedy deletion or nominated for a deletion discussion at Wikipedia:Articles for deletion.

Best practices in obscure or unpopular articles

On pages that have received little attention from editors or readers, cleanup templates can be used as a way to call attention to problems that need to be addressed by editors. Editors who want to help address these problems should look through the various cleanup categories such as maintenance and articles with content issues and try to address the problems so that the templates can be removed. Editors who frequently tag articles should also address the backlogs.

Best practices in heavily monitored articles

On pages that are being edited by a number of users, cleanup templates are used to inform readers and editors of ongoing discussions and attempts to fix the problems on the page. Such templates can be used to attract uninvolved users to discussions and cleanup efforts, and they can also serve as a warning to casual readers that the article may have problems and be subject to noticeable changes. In general, an editor who places a template message to indicate a problem like this should explain their rationale fully on the talk page of the article. If the consensus of the other editors is that there is a problem or an editorial dispute that deserves such a clean-up template, then the editors should work to fix the problem as quickly and cleanly as possible so the template message can be removed. If the consensus is that there is no problem, then the message can be removed immediately. For heavily monitored articles, please do not add or remove template messages of this sort without using the talk page.

Use in sections

Many of these cleanup tags require you to place |article as the first parameter when you use the tag at the top of an article. When you want the template to refer to just one section, however, you replace |article with |section (where the | is a pipe key | found on most keyboards as a shift-backslash ⇧ Shift+\. See the specific template below to determine if such "section use" is supported and appropriate.

Tag consolidation

If too many tags are put at the top of an article, the article can become eclipsed by the tags, especially with short or stub articles. Consider consolidating the tags into ((multiple issues)).

Cleanup

Overarching copyright issues

Tag	Text that will be shown (and usage notes)
((copypaste)) category links talk edit	This article may have been copied and pasted from another location, possibly in violation of Wikipedia's copyright policy. Please review the source and remedy this by editing this article to remove any non-free copyrighted content and attributing free content correctly, or flagging the content for deletion. Please be sure that the supposed source of the copyright violation is not itself a Wikipedia mirror.

Combined message boxes

Do not use this as the only message box on the article or section; it should be used with at least two other message boxes sandwiched inside it.

Tag	Text that will be shown (and usage notes) — multiple issues (top of article)
((multiple issues)) links talk edit	This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page. (Learn how and when to remove these template messages) The neutrality of this article is disputed. Relevant discussion may be found on the talk page. Please do not remove this message until conditions to do so are met. (May 2009) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) This article includes a list of references, related reading, or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (Aug 2010) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) This article may contain excessive or inappropriate references to self-published sources. Please help improve it by removing references to unreliable sources where they are used inappropriately. (March 2011) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) This biography of a living person needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately from the article and its talk page, especially if potentially libelous.Find sources: "Cleanup" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (March 2012) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

Tag	Text that will be shown (and usage notes) — multiple issues (section)
((multiple issues\|section=yes)) links talk edit	This section has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page. (Learn how and when to remove these template messages) This section does not cite any sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (January 2008) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) This section's factual accuracy is disputed. Relevant discussion may be found on Wikipedia talk:Template index/Cleanup. Please help to ensure that disputed statements are reliably sourced. (June 2009) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) This section needs expansion with: examples and additional citations. You can help by adding to it. (June 2012) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

General cleanup

Use one of these general tags when none of the more specific tags fits.

Tag

Text that will be shown (and usage notes)

((cleanup))
category links talk edit

This article may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. No cleanup reason has been specified. Please help improve this article if you can; the talk page may contain suggestions.

This applies to general problems not addressed by other tags.
Please consider using specific cleanup tags first, as specific tags help other editors to easily identify problems in an article.
Use the reason parameter: cleanup|reason= to specify issues identified (it may be a link to comments on the talk page).

((cleanup AfD))
category links talk edit

This article was considered for deletion, and requires cleanup according to the discussion. Please improve this article if you can; the deletion discussion may suggest necessary improvements. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

Use this tag where an AFD discussion closes with a consensus of "keep and cleanup."

((cleanup rewrite))
category links talk edit

This article may need to be rewritten to comply with Wikipedia's quality standards. You can help. The talk page may contain suggestions.

Use this tag where the whole article needs extensive revision.

((section rewrite))
category links talk edit

This section may need to be rewritten to comply with Wikipedia's quality standards. You can help. The talk page may contain suggestions.

Use this tag where a section needs extensive revision.
(This is the same cleanup rewrite tag with section parameter enabled)

((cleanup section))
category links talk edit

This section may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. No cleanup reason has been specified. Please help improve this section if you can; the talk page may contain suggestions.

Use this tag where the remaining sections of an article need cleanup.

Copy editing

Some articles just need someone with a good grasp of editing technique to give them a once-over.

Tag	Text that will be shown (and usage notes)
((copy edit)) category links talk edit	This article may require copy editing for grammar, style, cohesion, tone, or spelling. You can assist by editing it. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((copy edit section)) category links talk edit	This section may require copy editing. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((verify spelling)) category links talk edit	^[spelling?]

Inline with article text

Tag	Text that will be shown (and usage notes)
((Copy edit inline)) category links talk edit	^{[needs copy edit]} This template tags a statement for basic copyediting, and should be placed after the statement.

Cleanup of specific subjects

These templates are all "general cleanup" templates, but tie into a specific subject matter or WikiProjects.

Tag	Text that will be shown (and usage notes)
((CIA World Factbook only)) category links talk edit	This article was imported from the CIA World Factbook and may require rewriting and/or reformatting to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. Please discuss this issue on the talk page. Editing help is available. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((cleanup book)) category links talk edit	This book-related article contains very little context, or is unclear to readers who know little about the book. To comply with the Wikipedia quality standards, this article may require cleanup. See this article's talk page for more details.
((cleanup Congress bio)) category links talk edit	This article was imported in part or in full from the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress and may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. Editing help is available. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((cleanup film)) category links talk edit	This film-related article contains very little context or is unclear to readers who know little about the film. To comply with the Wikipedia quality standards, this article may require cleanup. See this article's talk page for more details.
((cleanup school)) category links talk edit	This school-related article may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. More verifiable information on this school is needed. Advice and editing help are available.
((cleanup higher education)) category links talk edit	This higher education article may require cleanup to meet the Wikipedia advice for college and university articles. Please improve this article if you can.
((game guide)) category links talk edit	This article may contain material discouraged by the manual of style for video game subjects. Please help by removing content such as lists of minutiae or a detailed description of how to play a game, and rewriting the article in an encyclopedic style.
((game trivia)) category links talk edit	This article may contain excessive or off-topic gaming-related detail. Please help by removing purely indiscriminate information, relocating encyclopedic material to more appropriate pages, and adding relevant information written in an encyclopedic style.
((localist)) category links talk edit	This article on a place of local interest appears to contain only a small amount of verifiable information, may not be notable, or may overly focus on local-interest trivia. Please expand the article, citing sources, using these suggestions as a guide. If this article is not expanded, consider merging this article into the article on the parent community. For further guidance, please consult Wikipedia:Places of local interest. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((metricate)) category links talk edit	This article uses non-SI units of measurement without an SI conversion. Please help improve this article by adding international units, preferably from the references cited in the article.
((USRD-wrongdir)) category links talk edit	This article needs to be rewritten in a south-to-north and west-to-east direction to meet Wikipedia’s quality standards for U.S. road articles. Please improve this article if you can.

Fiction

Tag	Text that will be shown (and usage notes)
((all plot)) category links talk edit	This article consists almost entirely of a plot summary. It should be expanded to provide more balanced coverage that includes real-world context. Please edit the article to focus on discussing the work rather than merely reiterating the plot. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((fiction)) category links talk edit	This article may fail to make a clear distinction between fact and fiction. Please help improve this article so that it meets Wikipedia's fiction guidelines and quality standards. (Learn how and when to remove this template message) This is not for factual or accuracy disputes.
((in-universe)) category links talk edit	This article describes a work or element of fiction in a primarily in-universe style. Please help rewrite it to explain the fiction more clearly and provide non-fictional perspective. (Learn how and when to remove this template message) See template documentation for list of topic-specific sub-templates.
((long plot)) category links talk edit	This article's plot summary may be too long or excessively detailed. Please help improve it by removing unnecessary details and making it more concise. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((more plot)) category links talk edit	This article needs an improved plot summary. You can provide one by editing this article. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((no plot)) category links talk edit	This article needs a plot summary. Please add one in your own words. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

Inline with article text

Tag	Text that will be shown (and usage notes)
((needs IPA)) category links talk edit	^{[needs IPA]}

Style of writing

Tag	Text that will be shown (and usage notes)
((abbreviations)) category links talk edit	This article uses abbreviations that may be confusing or ambiguous. There might be a discussion about this on the talk page. Please improve this article if you can. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((advert)) category links talk edit	This article contains content that is written like an advertisement. Please help improve it by removing promotional content and inappropriate external links, and by adding encyclopedic content written from a neutral point of view. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((buzzword)) category links talk edit	This article appears to contain a large number of buzzwords. There might be a discussion about this on the talk page. Please help improve this article if you can.
((cleanup-PR)) category links talk edit	This article reads like a press release or a news article and may be largely based on routine coverage. Please expand this article with properly sourced content to meet Wikipedia's quality standards, event notability guideline, or encyclopedic content policy.
((cleanup tense)) category links talk edit	This article does not follow Wikipedia's guidelines on the use of different tenses. Please consider copy editing to use past tense if historic, present tense if not time-based (e.g. fiction), or future tense if upcoming. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((debate)) category links talk edit	This article is written in the style of a debate rather than an encyclopedic summary. It may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards and make it more accessible to a general audience. Please discuss this issue on the talk page. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((essay-like)) category links talk edit	This article is written like a personal reflection, personal essay, or argumentative essay that states a Wikipedia editor's personal feelings or presents an original argument about a topic. Please help improve it by rewriting it in an encyclopedic style. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((excessive examples)) category links talk edit	This article may contain indiscriminate, excessive, or irrelevant examples. Please improve the article by adding more descriptive text and removing less pertinent examples. See Wikipedia's guide to writing better articles for further suggestions.
((how-to)) category links talk edit	This article contains instructions, advice, or how-to content. The purpose of Wikipedia is to present facts, not to train. Please help improve this article either by rewriting the how-to content or by moving it to Wikiversity, Wikibooks or Wikivoyage.
((inappropriate person)) category links talk edit	This article uses first-person ("I"; "we") or second-person ("you") inappropriately. Please rewrite it to use a more formal, encyclopedic tone. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((like resume)) category links talk edit	This biographical article is written like a résumé. Please help improve it by revising it to be neutral and encyclopedic.
((manual)) category links talk edit	This article is written like a manual or guidebook. Please help rewrite this article from a descriptive, neutral point of view, and remove advice or instruction. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((obituary)) category links talk edit	This article reads like an obituary. Wikipedia is not a memorial site and articles should have a neutral point of view. Please help edit it to help achieve neutrality, or discuss changes on the talk page. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((over-quotation)) category links talk edit	This article contains too many or overly lengthy quotations for an encyclopedic entry. Please help improve the article by presenting facts as a neutrally worded summary with appropriate citations. Consider transferring direct quotations to Wikiquote or, for entire works, to Wikisource.
((peacock)) category links talk edit	This article contains wording that promotes the subject in a subjective manner without imparting real information. Please remove or replace such wording and instead of making proclamations about a subject's importance, use facts and attribution to demonstrate that importance. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((pro and con list)) category links talk edit	This article contains a pro and con list, which is sometimes inappropriate. Please help improve it by integrating both sides into a more neutral presentation if this helps improve article flow.
((repetition)) category links talk edit	This article may contain too much repetition or redundant language. Please help improve it by merging similar text or removing repeated statements. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((research paper)) category links talk edit	This article is written like a research paper or scientific journal that may use overly technical terms or may not be written like an encyclopedic article. Please help improve it by rewriting it in an encyclopedic style. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((review)) category links talk edit	This article reads like a review rather than an encyclopedic description of the subject. Please help improve this article to make it neutral in tone and meet Wikipedia's quality standards.
((speculation)) category links talk edit	This article possibly contains unsourced predictions, speculative material, or accounts of events that might not occur. Information must be verifiable and based on reliable published sources. Please help improve it by removing unsourced speculative content. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((story)) category links talk edit	This article reads more like a story than an encyclopedia entry. Please help to introduce a more formal style and remove any personally invested tone so that this article meets Wikipedia's quality standards and conforms to the neutral point of view policy.
((technical)) category links talk edit	This article may be too technical for most readers to understand. Please help improve it to make it understandable to non-experts, without removing the technical details. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((tone)) category links talk edit	This article's tone or style may not reflect the encyclopedic tone used on Wikipedia. See Wikipedia's guide to writing better articles for suggestions. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((travel guide)) category links talk edit	This article is written like a travel guide rather than an encyclopedic description of the subject. Please help improve it by rewriting it in an encyclopedic style. If a travel guide is intended, use of Wikivoyage is strongly suggested.
((verbosity)) category links talk edit	This article's text uses more words than are necessary. Please help improve this article by using fewer words whilst keeping the content of the article.

Structure, formatting and sections

Tag	Text that will be shown (and usage notes)
((cleanup reorganize)) category links talk edit	This article may be in need of reorganization to comply with Wikipedia's layout guidelines. Please help by editing the article to make improvements to the overall structure. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((copy edit)) category links talk edit	This article may require copy editing for grammar, style, cohesion, tone, or spelling. You can assist by editing it. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((duplication)) category links talk edit	This article duplicates the scope of other articles. Please discuss this issue on the talk page and edit it to conform with Wikipedia's Manual of Style.
((importance section)) category links talk edit	This section contains information of unclear or questionable importance or relevance to the article's subject. Please help improve this section by clarifying or removing indiscriminate details. Non-important content should likely be moved to another article or removed. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((organize section)) category links talk edit	This section may be in need of reorganization to comply with Wikipedia's layout guidelines. Please help by editing the article to make improvements to the overall structure. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((overcolored)) category links talk edit	This article may overuse or misuse color, making it hard to understand for color-blind users. Please remove or fix instances of distracting or hard-to-read colors or remove colored links that may impede user ability to distinguish links from regular text, or color links for purely aesthetic reasons. See the guides to editing for accessibility at contrast and colors.
((overcoloured)) category links talk edit	This article may overuse or misuse colour, making it hard to understand for colour-blind users. Please remove or fix instances of distracting or hard-to-read colours or remove coloured links that may impede user ability to distinguish links from regular text, or colour links for purely aesthetic reasons. See the guides to editing for accessibility at contrast and colours.
((sections)) category links talk edit	This article should be divided into sections by topic, to make it more accessible. Please help by adding section headings in accordance with Wikipedia's Manual of Style.
((summarize section)) category links talk edit	‹ The template below (Summarize section) is being considered for merging. See templates for discussion to help reach a consensus. › This section may be too long and excessively detailed. Please consider summarizing the material.
((Too many sections)) category links talk edit	This article may have too many section headers dividing up its content. Please help improve the article by merging similar sections and removing unneeded subheaders. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((too many see alsos)) category links talk edit	This "see also" section may contain an excessive number of suggestions. Please ensure that only the most relevant links are given, that they are not red links, and that any links are not already in this article. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((trivia)) category links talk edit	This article contains a list of miscellaneous information. Please relocate any relevant information into other sections or articles.
((very long)) category links talk edit	This page may be too long to read and navigate comfortably. Please consider splitting content into sub-articles, condensing it, or adding subheadings. Please discuss this issue on the article's talk page.

Introduction

Tag	Text that will be shown (and usage notes)
((Improve lead)) category links talk edit	This article's lead section may not adequately summarize its contents. To comply with Wikipedia's lead section guidelines, please consider modifying the lead to provide an accessible overview of the article's key points in such a way that it can stand on its own as a concise version of the article.
((lead extra info)) category links talk edit	This article's lead section contains information that is not included elsewhere in the article. If the information is appropriate for the lead of the article, this information should also be included in the body of the article. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((lead missing)) category links talk edit	This article has no lead section. Please help by adding a lead section that introduces the topic and concisely summarizes the body. Please discuss this issue on the article's talk page. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((lead rewrite)) category links talk edit	The lead section of this article may need to be rewritten. Use the lead layout guide to ensure the section follows Wikipedia's norms and is inclusive of all essential details. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((lead too long)) category links talk edit	This article's lead section may be too long for the length of the article. Please help by moving some material from it into the body of the article. Please read the layout guide and lead section guidelines to ensure the section will still be inclusive of all essential details. Please discuss this issue on the article's talk page.
((lead too short)) category links talk edit	This article's lead section may be too short to adequately summarize the key points. Please consider expanding the lead to provide an accessible overview of all important aspects of the article.
((POV lead)) category links talk edit	The neutrality of this article's introduction is disputed. Relevant discussion may be found on the talk page. Please do not remove this message until conditions to do so are met. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

Potentially unwanted content

Message boxes

Tag	Text that will be shown (and usage notes)
((AI generated)) category links talk edit	This article or section seems to incorporate text from a large language model like ChatGPT. It may include false claims or fake references. Please remove claims that are unverifiable and copyright violations. See the project page about this.
((cleanup list)) category links talk edit	This article or section contains embedded lists that may be poorly defined, unverified or indiscriminate. Please help this article to clean it up to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. Where appropriate, incorporate items into the main body of the article. For use in articles or sections where potentially unwanted lists need to be salvaged before being deleted
((cleanup red links)) category links talk edit	This article or section's use of red links may not follow Wikipedia's guidelines. Please help improve this article by removing excessive and inappropriate red links while leaving those that help interlink articles and encourage growth.
((close paraphrasing)) category links talk edit	This article contains close paraphrasing of one or more non-free copyrighted sources. Relevant discussion may be found on the talk page. Please improve this article by re-writing it in your own words. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((copypaste)) category links talk edit	This article may have been copied and pasted from another location, possibly in violation of Wikipedia's copyright policy. Please review the source and remedy this by editing this article to remove any non-free copyrighted content and attributing free content correctly, or flagging the content for deletion. Please be sure that the supposed source of the copyright violation is not itself a Wikipedia mirror.
((criticism section)) category links talk edit	This article's Criticism or Controversy section may compromise the article's neutrality by separating out potentially negative information. Please integrate the section's contents into the article as a whole, or rewrite the material.
((external links)) category links talk edit	This article's use of external links may not follow Wikipedia's policies or guidelines. Please improve this article by removing excessive or inappropriate external links, and converting useful links where appropriate into footnote references. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((further reading cleanup)) category links talk edit	This further reading section may contain inappropriate or excessive suggestions that may not follow Wikipedia's guidelines. Please ensure that only a reasonable number of balanced, topical, reliable, and notable further reading suggestions are given; removing less relevant or redundant publications with the same point of view where appropriate. Consider utilising appropriate texts as inline sources or creating a separate bibliography article. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((in popular culture)) category links talk edit	This article appears to contain trivial, minor, or unrelated references to popular culture. Please reorganize this content to explain the subject's impact on popular culture, providing citations to reliable, secondary sources, rather than simply listing appearances. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.
((MOS)) category links talk edit	This article needs editing for compliance with Wikipedia's Manual of Style. Please help improve it if you can. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((non-free)) category links talk edit	This article may contain excessive or improper use of non-free material. Please review the use of non-free content according to policy and guidelines and correct any violations. The talk page may have details. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((overlinked)) category links talk edit	This article may have too many links to other articles, and could require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. Per the Wikipedia style guidelines, please remove duplicate links, and any links that are not relevant to the context. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((schedule)) category links talk edit	This article or section contains a current television or radio schedule. Wikipedia articles should not list current broadcast schedules. Additionally, schedules which have been copied and pasted from an external source may possibly be in violation of copyright. Please help rewrite this information as prose. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((trivia)) category links talk edit	This article contains a list of miscellaneous information. Please relocate any relevant information into other sections or articles.

Inline with article text

Tag	Text that will be shown (and usage notes)
((peacock term)) category links talk edit	^{[peacock prose]} See also: WP:PEACOCK
((spam link)) category links talk edit	^{[spam link?]}
((weasel inline)) category links talk edit	^{[weasel words]}

Context, statistics and detail

Tag	Text that will be shown (and usage notes)
((context)) category links talk edit	This article provides insufficient context for those unfamiliar with the subject. Please help improve the article by providing more context for the reader. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((generalize)) category links talk edit	This article describes only one highly specialized aspect of its associated subject. Please help improve this article by adding more general information. The talk page may contain suggestions.
((human-centric)) category links talk edit	This article may be written from an excessively human-centric perspective. Please improve this article so that it appropriately covers non-human species, or discuss this issue on the talk page. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((overly detailed)) category links talk edit	This article may contain an excessive amount of intricate detail that may interest only a particular audience. Please help by spinning off or relocating any relevant information, and removing excessive detail that may be against Wikipedia's inclusion policy. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((Too many charts)) category links talk edit	This article contains too many charts, tables or uncontextualized data for its overall length. Stand alone statistics lacking context or explanation can reduce readability and may be confusing. Relevant discussion may be found on the talk page. Please help to improve this article by providing encyclopedic value in prose text with explanations referenced to independent sources. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((specific)) category links talk edit	This article focuses too much on specific examples without explaining their importance to its main subject. Please help improve this article by citing reliable, secondary sources that evaluate and synthesize these or similar examples within a broader context.
((time-context)) category links talk edit	This article is about an event or subject that may not be current but does not specify a time period. Please help improve it to include this information. The talk page may contain suggestions.

Off-topic

Articles occasionally contain content which is otherwise valid, but appears unrelated to the nominal topic of the article.

Tag	Text that will be shown (and usage notes)
((off topic)) category links talk edit	This section may contain material unrelated or insufficiently related to the topic of the article. Please help improve this section or discuss this issue on the talk page. (Learn how and when to remove this template message) Also takes "other article" parameter

Expand and add

Tag	Text that will be shown (and usage notes)
((biblio)) category links talk edit	The citations in this article lack sufficient bibliographical information (e.g. author, title, date of publication, publisher, ISBN, OCLC number, pages cited, etc). Specific concerns can be found on the talk page. See Help:Referencing for beginners with citation templates for guidance about writing citations. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
((cleanup biography)) category links talk edit	This biographical article needs more biographical information on the subject. Statistical information, such as date and place of birth, information on historical significance, and information on accomplishments is desired. Please remove this message when done. See this article's talk page for more information.
((expand section)) category links talk edit	This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. When calling this template, you may pass it a parameter. A template call like `((expand section\|examples and additional citations))` generates: "This section requires expansion with: examples and additional citations."
((formula missing descriptions)) category links talk edit	Some or all of the formulas presented in this article have missing or incomplete descriptions of their variables, symbols or constants which may create ambiguity or prevent full interpretation. Please assist in recruiting an expert or improve this article yourself. See the talk page for details.
((kmposts)) category links talk edit	This section contains a table that is missing kilometre posts for one or more junctions. Please help by adding the missing kilometre posts. Place above road junction lists that do not contain kilometreposts.
((lacking ISBN)) category links talk edit	This article lacks ISBNs for the books listed in it. Please make it easier to conduct research by listing ISBNs. If the ((Cite book)) or ((Citation)) templates are in use, you may add ISBNs automatically, or discuss this issue on the talk page. Place `((lacking ISBN\|date=September 2023))` at the head of the relevant section(s). Remember that books published before 1974 may not have ISBNs (though more recent editions should).
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Expert needed

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Time-sensitive

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This Wikipedia page needs to be updated. Please help update this Wikipedia page to reflect recent events or newly available information. Relevant discussion may be found on the talk page.

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((as of)) category links talk edit	Used within prose to attribute a specific time to potentially outdated statements. As of (({1))}^[update]

Contradiction and confusion

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Content forks

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Importance and notability

See also: Wikipedia:What Wikipedia is not (importance conveyed by sources) and Wikipedia:Notability (coverage by sources).

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Neutrality and factual accuracy

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((unbalanced opinion)) category links talk edit	^{[unbalanced opinion?]}
((undue weight inline)) category links talk edit	^{[undue weight? – discuss]}
((when)) category links talk edit	For ambiguous or vague time references of various kinds. ^[when?]
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Verifiability and sources

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Individual message boxes: Issues with citations and sources

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Note list

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((better source needed example)) links talk edit	^{[better source needed]} Links to self-sourcing examples
((by whom)) links talk edit	^{[by whom?]}
((chronology citation needed)) links talk edit	^{[chronology citation needed]}
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((citation needed)) links talk edit	^{[citation needed]}
((citation needed span)) links talk edit	The sun is hot.^{[citation needed]}
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((disputed inline)) links talk edit	^{[disputed – discuss]}
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Images and other media

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It is requested that an image or photograph be included in this article to improve its quality. Please replace this template with a more specific media request template where possible.
The Free Image Search Tool or Creative Commons Search may be able to locate suitable images on Flickr and other web sites.

Upload

This template should be used on talk pages. Please add one or more subject categories into the template.
Use of= to add detailed information on the request.
Use in= to define locations.

((map requested))
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Map needed

It is requested that a map or maps be included in this article to improve its quality.

This template should be used on talk pages.

((too many photos))
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This article contains too many pictures that are sandwiching text or an indiscriminate collection of image galleries for its overall length. Relevant discussion may be found on the talk page. Please help to improve this article by removing or adjusting images in accordance with the Manual of Style on use of images. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

Lists

Tag	Text that will be shown (and usage notes)
((cleanup list)) category links talk edit	This article or section contains embedded lists that may be poorly defined, unverified or indiscriminate. Please help this article to clean it up to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. Where appropriate, incorporate items into the main body of the article. For use in non-list articles or sections where potentially unwanted lists need to be salvaged before being deleted
((create list)) category links talk edit	This article may be better presented in list format to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. Please help improve this article by converting it into a stand-alone or embedded list. Use this tag where an article needs to be changed into list format.
((disputed list)) category links talk edit	The inclusion of certain items in this list is currently being disputed. Please see the relevant discussion on the article's talk page. To identify a list on Wikipedia that has content whose truth, factual nature, and/or relevance to the topic is in dispute.
((example farm)) category links talk edit	This article may contain indiscriminate, excessive, or irrelevant examples. Please improve the article by adding more descriptive text and removing less pertinent examples. See Wikipedia's guide to writing better articles for further suggestions. For use in non-list articles where too much of the content is composed of "examples", "references in popular culture", and the like.
((famous)) category links talk edit	This list of "famous" or "notable" people has no clear inclusion or exclusion criteria. Please help to define clear inclusion criteria and edit the list to contain only subjects that fit those criteria. (Learn how and when to remove this template message) For use in articles with unclear criteria for a list of "famous" or "notable" persons.
((fiction trivia)) category links talk edit	This article may contain minor, trivial or unrelated fictional references. Trivia or references unimportant to the overall plot of a work of fiction should be edited to explain their importance or deleted. For use in fiction-specific articles that have way too many trivial examples. (Ex.: For an article specifically about famous fictional horses that mentions the fact that Sesame Street once told kids how to spell "horse", or that one of the animals you can kill in an online game is a horse.)
((in popular culture)) category links talk edit	This article appears to contain trivial, minor, or unrelated references to popular culture. Please reorganize this content to explain the subject's impact on popular culture, providing citations to reliable, secondary sources, rather than simply listing appearances. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. For use when a nonfiction article has become overcrowded with too many references to fiction or other pop culture. (Ex.: Article on horses having a long section of TV shows, movies, video games, etc. that have "horse" in the name or feature horses in some way.)
((list entry too long)) category links talk edit	^{[List entry too long]} For use when a list item is excessively large due to indiscriminate trivia or a need to merge or split
((list scope)) category links talk edit	This list contains entries that may be out of scope and need to be evaluated for removal. Please help to clean it up by removing items that do not meet the inclusion criteria agreed upon on the talk page. To identify a list on Wikipedia that has entries that may be out of scope.
((list to table)) category links talk edit	This list (which may have dates, numbers, etc.) may be better in a sortable table format. Please help improve this list or discuss it on the talk page. For use where lists could be better presented as tables.
((MOSLOW)) category links talk edit	This article contains a list that has not been sorted. See Help:Sorting for more information. Please improve this article if you can. Use this tag where a list of works is in reverse-chronological order or otherwise contravenes the Wikipedia:Manual of Style (lists of works).
((prose)) category links talk edit	This article is in list format but may read better as prose. You can help by converting this article, if appropriate. Editing help is available. Use this tag where a list needs cleanup.

Wiki tech

Most of these issues are covered in the main Manual of Style.

Tag

Text that will be shown (and usage notes)

((cleanup HTML))
category links talk edit

This article uses HTML markup. Please help by changing HTML markup to wiki markup where appropriate. For help finding or replacing the problematic tags, see instructions.

If the article needs HTML changed into wiki-markup

((cleanup lang))
category links talk edit

This article or section should specify the language of its non-English content, using ((lang)), ((transliteration)) for transliterated languages, and ((IPA)) for phonetic transcriptions, with an appropriate ISO 639 code. Wikipedia's multilingual support templates may also be used. See why.

If the article has non-English text but lacks ((Lang)), ((transl)) or other multilingual support templates.

((dablinks))
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This article currently links to a large number of disambiguation pages (or back to itself). Please help direct these ambiguous links to articles dealing with the specific meaning intended. Read the FAQ.

Use this on a page that links to a large number of disambiguation pages.
This template is sometimes placed automatically by DPL bot.

((dead end))
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This article has no links to other Wikipedia articles. Please help improve this article by adding links that are relevant to the context within the existing text.

Use this to mark articles or sections that completely lack internal links.

((disambiguation cleanup))
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This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title.
If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.
Note: This page may need to be cleaned up to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. Further information might be found on the talk page.

Use this for disambiguation pages not written according to the style in Wikipedia:Manual of Style (disambiguation pages).
Replace ((disambiguation)) with this.

((incoming links))
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This disambiguation page is currently linked from a large number of articles. Please help direct these ambiguous links to articles dealing with the specific meaning intended. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

Use this on a page with general links that should be more specific.

((orphan))
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This article is an orphan, as no other articles link to it. Please introduce links to this page from related articles; try the Find link tool for suggestions.

Use this for articles that aren't linked to from any other pages.

((uncategorized))
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This page has not been added to any categories. Please help out by adding categories to it so that it can be listed with similar pages.

Place this at the bottom of an uncategorized article/category if you are unsure of which categories apply.

((underlinked))
category links talk edit

This article needs more links to other articles to help integrate it into the encyclopedia. Please help improve this article by adding links that are relevant to the context within the existing text. (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

Use this to mark articles or sections with too few internal links.

Infobox needed

Tag

Text that will be shown (and usage notes)

((infobox requested))
category links talk edit

This article lacks an infobox. You may wish to add one, so that the article resembles the standard display for this subject. This talk page may contain the banner of a relevant project, that provides the standardized infobox for this type of article. See also Category:Infobox templates, and Wikipedia:WikiProject Infoboxes.

This template should be used on talk pages.
Also has functionality to indicate that only a section in a page needs one. See the template page for more info.

((new infobox))
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This article has a deprecated, substituted or incorrect infobox and needs a new one. Please consult the relevant WikiProject or Infobox templates category to find an appropriate replacement.

This template should be used on talk pages.

((single infobox request))
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An ((Infobox song)) has been requested for this article. Please select the appropriate infobox and format it according to the guidelines.

This template should be used on talk pages.

Infobox cleanup needed

Tag	Text that will be shown (and usage notes)
((cleanup infobox)) category links talk edit	This page's infobox may require expansion, verification, or otherwise need cleanup. Please make sure that the infobox meets Wikipedia's guidelines for infoboxes. There might be relevant comments on the talk page. You may also want to view the infobox template page to view the full parameter list and read guidance on usage of that infobox.

Open tasks

Wikipedia backlog by category

((subst:Anchor|Wikipedia backlog by category)) Wikipedia:Backlog lists tasks that should be done to improve Wikipedia (assuming the cleanup templates were placed correctly). Helping reduce backlogs is an important issue, so please feel free to help out.

Click any linked number for that category's articles prioritized by their number of incoming links.

Backlog categories

Lacking references

Fix one!

Accuracy

Content

Copied and pasted: 190
Needs context: 2,775
Needs coordinates: 93,973
Too technical: 3,256
Uses improper non-free content: 107
Uses in-universe perspective: 1,251
Plot summary needs attention: 6,091
Has trivia sections: 344
Of unclear notability: 58,849
Popular low quality articles (top 5000 by pageviews with low ORES class predictions)

Links

Has dead external links: 273,811
Needs external links cleanup: 2,405

Layout

Style

File description

Copy to Wikimedia Commons: 107,602
Needs author: 6,864

File quality

Has inappropriate JPEG compression: 2,494
Logos that should be in SVG format: 3,162
Should be in PNG format: 254
Has watermarks: 38

Non-free file use

File licensing

Has disputed copyright information: 640

Meta

Biographies without "living" parameter: 42

Quality content

Other

New articles

Articles for creation: 3,845

(refresh)

v t e Wikipedia templates
Main namespace	General Cleanup Verifiability and sources Disputes Hatnotes Infoboxes Links External link templates Linking country articles Lists Main page Section Sources of articles Quick reference Standard boxes Stub types Translation
Other namespaces	Compact TOC Category File Talk Template User Userboxes User talk Wikipedia WikiProject banners
All namespaces	Deletion (Speedy) Formatting Maintenance Merging Moving Requested Navigation Redirect pages Functional index Language codes Splitting Wikimedia sister projects
Navboxes with templates	Archive Articles for deletion Birth, death and age Button Category header Citation and verifiability Citation Style 1 Deletion review Editnotice Hatnotes Help desk Inline cleanup Introduction cleanup IPA Math Notice and warnings Organization infoboxes Proposed article mergers Protection Quotation Redirects Search Semantics Speedy deletion Notices String-handling Sup and sub-related Top icon Transwiki maintenance Unicode User talk pages User noticeboard notices Userboxes User rights Userspace linking Userspace Disclaimers Wikibreak WikiLove
Inline images	Wikipedia icons Discussion icons Comment icons Emoji
Related topics	Template documentation Examples of templates Maintenance template removal Requested templates WikiProject Templates Template help Template namespace
Search
Category

Does the article meet inclusion requirements?

Best practices in obscure or unpopular articles

Best practices in heavily monitored articles

Use in sections

Tag consolidation

Cleanup

Overarching copyright issues

Combined message boxes

General cleanup

Copy editing

Inline with article text

Cleanup of specific subjects

Fiction

Inline with article text

Style of writing

Structure, formatting and sections

Introduction

Potentially unwanted content

Message boxes

Inline with article text

Context, statistics and detail

Off-topic

Expand and add

Expert needed

Time-sensitive

Inline with article text

Contradiction and confusion

Inline with article text

Content forks

Importance and notability

Neutrality and factual accuracy

Message boxes

Inline with superimposed text

Verifiability and sources

Message boxes

Individual message boxes: Biographies of living persons

Individual message boxes: Issues with citations and sources

Individual message boxes: Issues with style or format

Tags inline with article text

Links for search

Categories

Images and other media

Lists

Wiki tech

Infobox needed

Infobox cleanup needed

Other article tags

Open tasks

See also