# HG changeset patch # User Oleksandr Gavenko # Date 1262003249 -7200 # Node ID b186113f9492daa1b55e04d8819656a3e7609a51 # Parent f8bc3e208c16cc6c6dc3922f9412138e1a4b358a Update English Punctuation Guide. diff -r f8bc3e208c16 -r b186113f9492 english-punctuation.rst --- a/english-punctuation.rst Mon Dec 28 14:21:47 2009 +0200 +++ b/english-punctuation.rst Mon Dec 28 14:27:29 2009 +0200 @@ -127,25 +127,32 @@ * Colon, ':'. 1 Colons precede a list, an explanation or an example. - 2 To introduce a direct quote (a comma can also be used in this situation). + 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] He announced to his friends: "I'm getting married!" + [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), '.'. - * Full stops (periods in the USA) go at the end of sentences that are + 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: - My name is Lynn. I am a teacher. + [1] My name is Lynn. I am a teacher. + [2] An overhead projector is often referred to as an O.H.P. * Hyphen, '-'. @@ -213,12 +220,13 @@ * Ellipsis, '...'. - * Ellipsis used to show that something has been omitted. + 1 Ellipsis used to show that something has been omitted, indicate missing + words in an incomplete quotation. Example: - Chomsky suggested that, "Language is a system that...can be described in an - algebraic notation." + [1] Chomsky suggested that, "Language is a system that...can be described in + an algebraic notation." * Dash, '-', '--'. @@ -245,6 +253,7 @@ 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: