1 .. -*- coding: utf-8 -*-

     2 

     3 ===========================

     4  English Punctuation Guide

     5 ===========================

     6 .. contents::

     7    :local:

     8 

     9 Punctuation symbol

    10 ==================

    11 

    12 ``.`` full stop (period USA)

    13 

    14 ``?`` question mark

    15 

    16 ``!`` exclamation mark

    17 

    18 ``""`` single quotation marks

    19 

    20 ``''`` double quotation marks

    21 

    22 ````` apostrophe

    23 

    24 ``-`` hyphen

    25 

    26 ``,`` comma

    27 

    28 ``:`` colon

    29 

    30 ``;`` semicolon

    31 

    32 ``...`` ellipsis

    33 

    34 General rules

    35 =============

    36 

    37  * Put end-of-sentence punctuation inside quotation marks.

    38  * Put commas and other sentence punctuation outside of parentheses.

    39  * Put a comma (plus a space) before conjunction.

    40  * The semicolon ``;`` is not widely used in English.

    41 

    42 Capital letter

    43 ==============

    44 

    45  1. A capital is used for the first letter of a new sentence, of quoted

    46     speech or proper nouns.

    47  2. The first letter of a sentence does not need to be capitalized if it

    48     is included in parenthesis within another sentence.

    49  3. A capital letter is always used for the first person singular

    50     subjective personal pronoun I.

    51  4. A capital is used for the first letter of key words in headings and

    52     titles. If such titles are hyphenated then both components are given

    53     capitalized first letters.

    54  5. A capital is used for the first letter of key words in historical

    55     events.

    56  6. A capital is used for the first letter of religions and many other

    57     religious words.

    58  7. A capital is used for the first letter of names of months and days of

    59     the week, but not of seasons.

    60  8. Holidays should also be capitalized.

    61 

    62 Examples::

    63 

    64   [3] My boss and I agreed that I should make up for the time I  had lost.

    65   [4] The Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries

    66   [4] The Centers for Disease Control

    67   [4] Vice-President Dick Cheney

    68   [5] The Battle of Waterloo

    69   [5] The Great Fire of London

    70   [6] Devout Christians do daily Bible study.

    71   [7] After a long, hot summer she married him on a sultry Saturday in September.

    72   [8] January 1 is New Year's Day.

    73 

    74 Spaces

    75 ======

    76 

    77  * Put one space after punctuation.

    78  * Put no spaces before punctuation, but always put a space between words.

    79  * Put no spaces after periods inside abbreviations.

    80  * Put no space before or after an apostrophe.

    81  * Put no space on the "inside" of quotation marks (often called "quotes").

    82  * Put no space on the "inside" of parentheses.

    83 

    84 Exclamation mark, ``!``

    85 =======================

    86 

    87 * Exclamation marks act as a full stop.

    88 * An exclamation mark is most often used to show shock, surprise, horror or

    89   pleasure.

    90 * Put space after an exclamation mark, not before.

    91 

    92 Examples::

    93 

    94   Oh! Wow! Brilliant!

    95   It was shocking!

    96 

    97 Apostrophe, ``'``

    98 =================

    99 

   100  * Apostrophes next to the letter ('s) indicate possession or belonging.

   101  * They are also used to show missing letters in shortened words, especially in

   102    informal writing.

   103  * No space is needed before or after the apostrophe.

   104 

   105 Examples::

   106 

   107   This is Lynne's web site.

   108   It's a nice day today, isn't it? I've got an idea. Let's go out.

   109 

   110 Comma, ``,``

   111 ============

   112 

   113  1. Separate items in long lists.

   114  2. Commas point out brief pauses in a complex sentence or a long

   115     prepositional phrase.

   116  3. Comma is included before the conjunction 'and' which comes before

   117     the final element of a list (for purists).

   118  4. Introduce a direct quote.

   119  5. Separate appositives (a noun, or noun phrase) or non-defining

   120     relative clauses.

   121  6. Use a comma if your subject has two or more adjectives describing it.

   122  7. You do not put a space before a comma, but you do need a space after one.

   123  8. We don't usually put a comma before the word 'and'.

   124 

   125 Examples::

   126 

   127   [1] There were a lot of people in the room, teachers, students and parents.

   128   [2] The teachers were sitting, the students were listening and the parents

   129       were just worrying.

   130   [2] Although he wanted to come, he wasn't able to attend the course.

   131   [3] I like reading, listening to music, and visiting with my friends.

   132   [4] The boy said, "My father is often away during the week on business trips."

   133   [4] His doctor replied, "If you don't stop smoking, you run the risk of a

   134       heart attack."

   135   [5] Bill Gates, the richest man in the world, comes from Seattle.

   136   [5] My only sister, who is a fantastic tennis player, is in great shape.

   137   [6] The powerful, resonating sound caught our attention.

   138 

   139 Colon, ``:``

   140 ============

   141 

   142  1. Colons precede a list, an explanation or an example.

   143  2. The colon is used to separate two main clauses where the first is an

   144     introduction to the second.

   145  3. To introduce a direct quote (a comma can also be used in this

   146     situation).

   147  4. You do not put a space before a colon, but you do need a space after

   148     one.

   149 

   150 Examples::

   151 

   152   [1] There are two main shopping areas in Nottingham: Broadmarsh Centre and

   153       Victoria Centre.

   154   [2] The pilot had an awful realization: he had forgotten to turn off the gas

   155       at breakfast time.

   156   [3] He announced to his friends: "I'm getting married!"

   157 

   158 Full stop (period), ``.``

   159 =========================

   160 

   161  1. Full stops (periods in the USA) go at the end of sentences that are

   162     statements.

   163  2. They are also used to mark abbreviations. If such an abbreviation occurs at

   164     the very end of a sentence, the final dot is not written twice.

   165  3. You do not put a space before a full stop, but after one.

   166 

   167 Examples::

   168 

   169   [1] My name is Lynn. I am a teacher.

   170   [2] An overhead projector is often referred to as an O.H.P.

   171 

   172 Hyphen, ``-``

   173 =============

   174 

   175 * Hyphens are used to connect words or syllables, or to divide words into parts.

   176 * You don't use a space on either side of a hyphen.

   177 

   178 Examples::

   179 

   180   There were ninety-nine red balloons.

   181 

   182 Question mark, ``?``

   183 ====================

   184 

   185  1. Question marks go at the end of sentences that are questions.

   186  2. You need a question mark at the end of tag questions.

   187  3. For quotes within quotes, use single quotes.

   188  4. You do not put a space before a question mark, but after one.

   189 

   190 Examples::

   191 

   192   [1] Is my name Lynn? Of course it is.

   193   [2] It's a nice day, isn't it?

   194 

   195 Semicolon, ``;``

   196 ================

   197 

   198  1. Semicolons are used to separate two sentences that would otherwise

   199     be joined with a word such as 'and', 'because', 'since', 'unless' or

   200     'while'. 2 To separate groups of words that are themselves separated

   201     by commas.

   202  2. You do not put a space before a semicolon, but you do need a space

   203     after one.

   204 

   205 Examples::

   206 

   207   [1] I'm looking forward to our next lesson; I'm sure it will be a lot of fun.

   208   [2] They plan to study German, for their travels; chemistry, for their work;

   209   and literature, for their own enjoyment.

   210 

   211 Quotation mark (speech mark), ``""``, ``''``

   212 ============================================

   213 

   214 Double quotes ``""``, single quotes ``''``.

   215 

   216  * Quotation marks (single or double) are used to show words that are

   217    directly spoken (direct speech).

   218  * Only the words actually being quoted are enclosed by speech marks.

   219  * You need a space before the opening speech mark, but no space after

   220    it, and a space after the closing one, but no space before it.

   221  * Another general rule is to use a comma after the introduction to

   222    quoted speech or writing.

   223  * Sometimes when writing a spoken sentence it is split in two. The

   224    speech marks must then be placed at the beginning and end of each

   225    part of the sentence. Commas are used to separate the spoken part

   226    from the rest of the sentence.

   227  * If you need a question mark or exclamation mark the markers that

   228    punctuate the quoted words are enclosed by the speech marks.

   229 

   230 Examples::

   231 

   232   "Could everyone sit down please," said the teacher.

   233   Jaime said, "I love you."

   234   "I wonder," she said quietly, "whether people will ever truly understand each other."

   235   "I don't understand," replied Nathan.

   236   "Do you understand?" asked Nathan.

   237   "I don't understand!" shouted Nathan.

   238   Nathan replied, "I don't understand."

   239   Nathan asked, "Do you understand?"

   240   Nathan shouted, "I don't understand!"

   241   He wrote in 1946 that, "The key word in digital computer is 'digital'."

   242 

   243 Ellipsis, ``...``

   244 =================

   245 

   246  1. Ellipsis used to show that something has been omitted, indicate

   247     missing words in an incomplete quotation.

   248 

   249 Examples::

   250 

   251   [1] Chomsky suggested that, "Language is a system that...can be described in

   252       an algebraic notation."

   253 

   254 Dash, ``-``, ``--``

   255 ===================

   256 

   257  1. The dash should be used when making a brief interruption within a

   258     statement, a sudden change of thought, an additional comment, or a

   259     dramatic qualification.

   260 

   261 Parentheses ``()``

   262 ==================

   263 

   264  1. Use parentheses to clarify, to place an afterthought, or to add a

   265     personal comment. Be sure to include the period after the closing

   266     parenthesis.

   267 

   268 Examples::

   269 

   270   [1] Steve Case (AOL's former CEO) resigned from the Time-Warner board of

   271       directors in 2005.

   272   [1] You will need a flashlight for the camping trip (don't forget the

   273       batteries!).

   274   [1] Most grammarians believe that parentheses and commas are always

   275       interchangeable (I disagree).

   276 

   277 Brackets ``[]``

   278 ===============

   279 

   280  1. Use brackets to signify an editor's note in a regular piece of

   281     writing. You can also use brackets to clarify or to revise a direct

   282     quote so that it appeals to your own writing.

   283  2. The first brackets are rounded, and brackets inside brackets are

   284     squared.

   285 

   286 Examples::

   287 

   288   [1] "[The blast] was absolutely devastating," said Susan Smith.

   289 

   290 Slash ``/``

   291 ===========

   292 

   293  1. Use the slash to separate "and" and "or", when appropriate.

   294  2. The slash can replace the word "and" to join two nouns.

   295  3. The slash is used when quoting lyrics and poetry to denote a line

   296     break. Be sure to add spaces between your slashes here.

   297 

   298 Examples::

   299 

   300   [1] To register, you will need your driver's license and/or your birth

   301       certificate."

   302   [2] The student/part-time employee has very little free time.

   303   [3] "Row, row, row your boat / gently down the stream / life is but a dream."

   304