Punctuation Review

LS-C2a Year 2

J. Denman

• Full stop / period .• Apostrophe ’• Colon :• Brackets / Parentheses ( )• Hyphen -• Dash ──• Ellipsis …• Exclamation mark !• Semi-colon ;• Comma ,• Interrobang ?!

Full stop / period

Examples:Some people have everything their hearts desire, while others have next to nothing.The refugees were unable to carry cumbersome things such as clothes, bedding, and furniture. (note that the second clause cannot stand alone as a sentence!)

Apostrophe

Tricky for some people: what is the possessive form of:women children geese Prince Charles

Colon

Examples:"Grammar Girl has two favorite hobbies: watching clouds and seeing how long she can stand on one foot."

Note that a colon may only come after a complete sentence, not a sentence fragment! For more on sentence fragments:http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/fragments.htm

http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/colon-grammar.aspx

Brackets / Parentheses

Examples:Mary won the competition (who could have imagined it?). It's sunny outside (thank goodness for that!).

Hyphen

Examples: They were in a long-term relationship. (In that sentence, long-term is hyphenated because it comes before the noun relationship. Long-term is a compound adjective that modifies the word relationship.) Their relationship was long term. (No hyphen. long term isn’t hyphenated because it comes after the noun.) http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/grammar-hyphens.aspx

Dash

A dash interrupts the flow of the sentence and tells the reader to get ready for some important or dramatic statement. Example:

Just wait, guys, till you see Jon’s hair ─ it’s green!

Ellipsis

The Chicago Manual of Style states, “Ellipsis points suggest faltering or fragmented speech accompanied by confusion, insecurity, distress, or uncertainty.”But if you must: “I cannot help it . . . I love her against all reason.”

Exclamation mark (point)

The exclamation point is greatly overused! One could even say it is frequently abused! In advertising copy, it repeatedly resounds!

And in breathless prose, it literally abounds! The poorer the writer, the more frequently the case!

The exclamation point, they readily embrace!

NEVER use two or more exclamation marks together in anything but very informal writing!

Semi-colon

Examples:It was below zero; Squiggly wondered if he would freeze to death.

This week's book winners are Herbie in Milligan College, Tennessee; Matt in Irvine, California; and Jan in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/semicolons.aspx

Comma

Examples:Despite the presence of hundreds of riot squads, there was considerable damage done to private property in Haren last week.

The three-ring circus tents, which were to have attracted a record number of tourists to this sleepy town, were ripped from the ground and carried away in this morning’s tornadoes.

Comma questions

• Do I need to put a comma after the second thing in a list of three? (this is called a serial comma, because it separates things in a series.)

To succeed in Hollywood you need beauty, connections, and luck.To succeed in Hollywood you need beauty, connections and luck.

• In general: BrE: no serial comma, AmE uses the serial comma Except for Oxford University Press (hence the “Oxford comma”)

Exception in BrE: use it when the list could cause confusion without a comma

I was thrilled when my parents, the Pope and Mother Theresa came to my graduation.

While in London, I saw my friend Zach, an officer and a gentleman.

Just for fun: the Interrobang

Task 1: Error AnalysisFind the punctuation mistakes, correct them, and give the rules.

1. He loves psychology. Because he is fascinated with understanding how personality is formed.

2. In it’s recent report, the agency revealed major flaws in: logistics and infrastructure.

3. What I really don’t understand, is why he never called me.

4. Thank you so much for offering me this job interview!!!!!

5. Teachers have been complaining for years about punctuation errors; especially in academic writing.

6. I’ve invited my grandmother, a magician and an exotic dancer to my birthday party.

Task 2: Add the punctuation1. Whenever I hear her voice I feel giddy feverish and sweaty it must be

love

2. However there are many reasons why students choose not to go on a gap year its not for everyone

3. Pithaya papaya pinapple passion fruit these are some of the most vitamin-rich foods

4. Though only a poor student with only babysitting earnings I dreamt of getting a ticket for Radiohead in the Ziggo Dome on October 14 2012

5. Dont worry if you are bald fat or ugly these makeovers are guaranteed to produce dramatic results and theyre free

Sources• http://www.lc.unsw.edu.au/onlib/pdf/puct.pdf• http://www.uis.edu/ctl/writing/documents/Comm

asColonsSemicolons.pdf• http://languagearts.pppst.com/punctuation.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MiGgnpUrP98