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--*- mode: outline; coding: utf-8 -*-
-
- English Punctuation Guide.
-
-* Punctuation symbol.
-
- ! exclamation mark
- "" single quotation marks
- '' double quotation marks
- ' apostrophe
- , comma
- - hyphen
- . full stop (period USA)
- : colon
- ; semi colon
- ? question mark
- ... ellipsis
-
-* General rules.
-
- * Put end-of-sentence punctuation inside quotation marks.
- * Put commas and other sentence punctuation outside of parentheses.
- * Put a comma (plus a space) before and, but, or, and nor when they join two
- sentences.
- * The semicolon (;) is not used widely in English and probably should be
- avoided by non-native writers.
- * Names of newspapers, books, movies, ships, magazines, journals, and poems
- are usually italicized or underlined.
-
-** Capital letter.
-
- 1 A capital is used for the first letter of a new sentence, of quoted speech
- or proper nouns.
- 2 The first letter of a sentence does not need to be capitalized if it is
- included in parenthesis within another sentence.
- 3 A capital letter is always used for the first person singular subjective
- personal pronoun I.
- 4 A capital is used for the first letter of key words in headings and titles.
- If such titles are hyphenated then both components are given capitalized
- first letters.
- 5 A capital is used for the first letter of key words in historical events.
- 6 A capital is used for the first letter of religions and many other
- religious words.
- 7 A capital is used for the first letter of names of months and days of the
- week, but not of seasons.
- 8 Holidays should also be capitalized.
-
-Example:
-
- [3] My boss and I agreed that I should make up for the time I had lost.
- [4] The Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries
- [4] The Centers for Disease Control
- [4] Vice-President Dick Cheney
- [5] The Battle of Waterloo
- [5] The Great Fire of London
- [6] Devout Christians do daily Bible study.
- [7] After a long, hot summer she married him on a sultry Saturday in September.
- [8] January 1 is New Year's Day.
-
-** Spaces.
-
- * Put one space after punctuation.
- * Put no spaces before punctuation, but always put a space between words.
- * Put no spaces after periods inside abbreviations.
- * Put no space before or after an apostrophe.
- * Put no space on the "inside" of quotation marks (often called "quotes").
- * Put no space on the "inside" of parentheses.
-
-Some old rules:
-
- * Put two spaces after colons and between sentences.
-
-
-* Exclamation mark, '!'.
-
- * Exclamation marks act as a full stop.
- * An exclamation mark is most often used to show shock, surprise, horror or
- pleasure.
- * No space is needed before an exclamation mark, at least one space after one
- (two spaces for purists).
-
-Example:
-
- Oh! Wow! Brilliant!
- It was shocking!
-
-* Apostrophe, "'".
-
- * Apostrophes next to the letter ('s) indicate possession or belonging.
- * They are also used to show missing letters in shortened words, especially in
- informal writing.
- * No space is needed before or after the apostrophe.
-
-Example:
-
- This is Lynne's web site.
- It's a nice day today, isn't it? I've got an idea. Let's go out.
-
-* Comma, ','.
-
- 1 Separate items in long lists.
- 2 Commas point out brief pauses in a complex sentence or a long prepositional
- phrase.
- 3 Comma is included before the conjunction 'and' which comes
- before the final element of a list (for purists).
- 4 Introduce a direct quote.
- 5 Separate appositives (a noun, or noun phrase) or non-defining relative
- clauses.
- 6 Use a comma if your subject has two or more adjectives describing it.
- * You do not put a space before a comma, but you do need a space after one.
- ? We don't usually put a comma before the word 'and'.
-
-Example:
-
- [1] There were a lot of people in the room, teachers, students and parents.
- [2] The teachers were sitting, the students were listening and the parents
- were just worrying.
- [2] Although he wanted to come, he wasn't able to attend the course.
- [3] I like reading, listening to music, and visiting with my friends.
- [4] The boy said, "My father is often away during the week on business trips."
- [4] His doctor replied, "If you don't stop smoking, you run the risk of a
- heart attack."
- [5] Bill Gates, the richest man in the world, comes from Seattle.
- [5] My only sister, who is a fantastic tennis player, is in great shape.
- [6] The powerful, resonating sound caught our attention.
-
-* Colon, ':'.
-
- 1 Colons precede a list, an explanation or an example.
- 2 The colon is used to separate two main clauses where the first is an
- introduction to the second.
- 3 To introduce a direct quote (a comma can also be used in this situation).
- * You do not put a space before a colon, but you do need a space after one.
-
-Example:
-
- [1] There are two main shopping areas in Nottingham: Broadmarsh Centre and
- Victoria Centre.
- [2] The pilot had an awful realization: he had forgotten to turn off the gas
- at breakfast time.
- [3] He announced to his friends: "I'm getting married!"
-
-* Full stop (period), '.'.
-
- 1 Full stops (periods in the USA) go at the end of sentences that are
- statements.
- 2 They are also used to mark abbreviations. If such an abbreviation occurs at
- the very end of a sentence, the final dot is not usually written twice.
- * You do not put a space before a full stop, but you do need at least one
- space after one (two spaces for purists).
-
-Example:
-
- [1] My name is Lynn. I am a teacher.
- [2] An overhead projector is often referred to as an O.H.P.
-
-* Hyphen, '-'.
-
- * Hyphens are used to connect words or syllables, or to divide words into
- parts.
- * You don't use a space on either side of a hyphen.
-
-Example:
-
- There were ninety-nine red balloons.
-
-* Question mark, '?'.
-
- 1 Question marks go at the end of sentences that are questions.
- 2 You need a question mark at the end of tag questions.
- * For quotes within quotes, use single quotes.
- * You do not put a space before a question mark, but you do need at least one
- space after one (two spaces for purists).
-
-For example:
-
- [1] Is my name Lynn? Of course it is.
- [2] It's a nice day, isn't it?
-
-* Semicolon, ';'.
-
- 1 Semicolons are used to separate two sentences that would otherwise be
- joined with a word such as 'and', 'because', 'since', 'unless' or 'while'.
- 2 To separate groups of words that are themselves separated by commas.
- * You do not put a space before a semicolon, but you do need a space after one.
-
-Example:
-
- [1] I'm looking forward to our next lesson; I'm sure it will be a lot of fun.
- [2] They plan to study German, for their travels; chemistry, for their work;
- and literature, for their own enjoyment.
-
-
-* Quotation mark (speech mark), '""', "''".
-
-Double quotes '""', single quotes "''".
-
- * Quotation marks (single or double) are used to show words that are directly
- spoken (direct speech).
- * Only the words actually being quoted are enclosed by speech marks.
- * You need a space before the opening speech mark, but no space after it, and
- a space after the closing one, but no space before it.
- * Another general rule is to use a comma after the introduction to quoted
- speech or writing.
- * Sometimes when writing a spoken sentence it is split in two. The speech
- marks must then be placed at the beginning and end of each part of the
- sentence. Commas are used to separate the spoken part from the rest of the
- sentence.
- * If you need a question mark or exclamation mark the markers that punctuate
- the quoted words are enclosed by the speech marks.
-
-Example:
-
- "Could everyone sit down please," said the teacher.
- Jaime said, "I love you."
- "I wonder," she said quietly, "whether people will ever truly understand each other."
- "I don't understand," replied Nathan. "Do you understand?" asked Nathan. "I don't understand!" shouted Nathan.
- Nathan replied, "I don't understand." Nathan asked, "Do you understand?" Nathan shouted, "I don't understand!"
- He wrote in 1946 that, "The key word in digital computer is 'digital'."
-
-* Ellipsis, '...'.
-
- 1 Ellipsis used to show that something has been omitted, indicate missing
- words in an incomplete quotation.
-
-Example:
-
- [1] Chomsky suggested that, "Language is a system that...can be described in
- an algebraic notation."
-
-* Dash, '-', '--'.
-
- 1 The dash should be used when making a brief interruption within a
- statement, a sudden change of thought, an additional comment, or a dramatic
- qualification.
-
-* Parentheses '()'.
-
- 1 Use parentheses to clarify, to place an afterthought, or to add a personal
- comment. Be sure to include the period after the closing parenthesis.
-
-Example:
-
- [1] Steve Case (AOL's former CEO) resigned from the Time-Warner board of
- directors in 2005.
- [1] You will need a flashlight for the camping trip (don't forget the
- batteries!).
- [1] Most grammarians believe that parentheses and commas are always
- interchangeable (I disagree).
-
-* Brackets '[]'.
-
- 1 Use brackets to signify an editor's note in a regular piece of writing. You
- can also use brackets to clarify or to revise a direct quote so that it
- appeals to your own writing.
- 2 The first brackets are rounded, and brackets inside brackets are squared.
-
-Example:
-
- [1] "[The blast] was absolutely devastating," said Susan Smith.
-
-* Slash '/'.
-
- 1 Use the slash to separate "and" and "or", when appropriate.
- 2 The slash can replace the word "and" to join two nouns.
- 3 The slash is used when quoting lyrics and poetry to denote a line break. Be
- sure to add spaces between your slashes here.
-
-Example:
-
- [1] To register, you will need your driver's license and/or your birth
- certificate."
- [2] The student/part-time employee has very little free time.
- [3] "Row, row, row your boat / gently down the stream / life is but a dream."
-