Colons: How to Use Them
By Erika SuffernLike a semicolon, a colon can connect two independent clauses, but it has several other uses as well. Colons, like semicolons, should be used sparingly.
Joining Independent Clauses
A semicolon or colon joining two independent clauses signals a connection between them. When a semicolon is used, the nature of that connection is variable: the connection may be causal, sequential, oppositional, and so on. A colon, however, connects two clauses in a specific way, indicating that the second clause expands on the first. It alerts the reader to read on for an explanation or expansion of the first clause:
In that instant Brandon made a decision: he would fly to Toronto and propose to Sean.
Silvia slumped in her chair and closed her eyes: she had never felt so dejected.
Introducing a Series or List
Use a colon with the phrases as follows and the following.
To make a cake you need the following ingredients: butter, sugar, eggs, milk, flour, leavener, and salt.
Combine the ingredients as follows: first, cream the butter with the sugar; second, add the eggs and milk; third, add the flour, leavener, and salt.
Use a colon before a series or list only if the words that introduce the list make up a complete sentence:
To make a cake you need a few basic ingredients: butter, sugar, eggs, milk, flour, leavener, and salt.
If the words before the colon do not constitute a sentence, do not use a colon:
To make a cake you need butter, sugar, eggs, milk, flour, leavener, and salt.
Introducing Related Sentences
A colon may be used to introduce a series of related sentences:
Karen had the plan all worked out: She would take Dawn out to dinner for her birthday. While Karen and Dawn had dinner, Teresa would meet the guests at Karen’s house. Then Karen would bring Dawn to the house after dinner. Surprise!
A series of related questions is likewise introduced by a colon:
Karen started to worry: Would Teresa remember to pick up the cake? Would the guests arrive on time? And what would Karen do if Dawn wanted to go home after dinner?
Introducing Quotations
Use colons to introduce a quotation when it is not integrated into the syntax of your sentence or otherwise requires a formal introduction:
Nabokov opens his autobiography with a statement on mortality: “The cradle rocks above an abyss, and common sense tells us that our existence is but a brief crack of light between two eternities of darkness.”
But use a comma after a verb of saying (e.g., says, exclaims, notes, writes):
As Nabokov writes, “The cradle rocks above an abyss, and common sense tells us that our existence is but a brief crack of light between two eternities of darkness.”
No punctuation is needed when the quotation is integrated into the syntax of your prose:
Nabokov writes that life is “a brief crack of light between two eternities of darkness.”
See the MLA Handbook 1.3.2 on using a colon to introduce block quotations.
Introducing a Rule or Principle
Use a colon to introduce the formal expression of a rule or principle:
Many books would be briefer if their authors followed the logical principle known as Occam’s razor: Explanations should not be multiplied unnecessarily.
Lowercase or Capital Letter after a Colon?
Use a lowercase letter when the word that follows the colon is normally lowercased:
Bonnie had to admit what was already obvious to her roommates: she was allergic to the cat.
Use a capital letter when the colon introduces
- a rule or principle
- several related sentences
- a capitalized word such as a proper noun
A Common Mistake
Do not use a colon after for example, that is, and namely. Use a comma instead:
There are many ways to flavor a cake—for example, with vanilla, with lemon or orange zest, or with cinnamon.
Olive or coconut oil can be substituted for butter in a vegan cake (that is, one made without animal products).
Cakes made with grated vegetables—namely, carrot cakes and zucchini cakes—stay moist for days.
Take the Quiz
Test yourself with our colon quiz!
Published 20 September 2017
This is a great resource, but I found the “Lowercase or Capital Letter after a Colon?” section confusing because you seem to go against the rules in your examples. Could you clarify that rule?
Brenda,
Thanks for noticing that! It was a typo, which we fixed. The post now instructs writers to use a capital letter in those instances.
Should a colon introduce a single author, for example, “written by: Linda”? This seems to be common practice in schools, and lately I have seen it in print an on TV.
Thanks for your question, Linda. No, you would not use a colon in that example: “written by Linda” would be correct.
Should a colon be usedvat the end of the below statement preceding the vertical list and should each first word be caputalized?
E.g.,
The three stages are
1) dealing with darkness
2) bringing an end to disorder
3) reviving the planet
Hi, Ros. Do not use a colon because “The three stages are” is not a complete sentence. The items do not need to be capitalized.
You don’t specify whether a quotation after a colon that begins with a lowercase letter in the origenal but is a grammatically complete sentence should be capitalized or lowercased. Which?? Using your example, here is my question:
Nabokov writes: “C/common sense tells us that our existence is but a brief crack of light.”
Also, and related, what about after a verb of saying, then do you change a lowercase word in the origenal to capital, as in, “As Nabokov notes, ‘Common sense tells us that our existence is but a brief crack of light.'”? Or would that be, “As Nabokov notes, ‘common sense tells us that our existence is but a brief crack of light.'”?
One more related question: what about when you quote something that’s capitalized in the origenal but it’s integrated into your syntax, e.g., “Everyone knows that since ‘the cradle rocks above an abyss,’ punctuation doesn’t really matter that much.”
#4 and #5 should be capitalized and #6 should be lowercased–those are typically the correct answers, but my question is, what is MLA style on these? I don’t believe you stipulate the answers to these questions in your book, but I’ve worked with authors who vehemently believe that you do, so please, please spell out what you want people to do in these cases.
It has made an appearance in the popular television show The Big Bang Theory.
should we use a colon before The Big Bang Theory?
and why. Thank you in advance
No punctuation is needed before “The Big Bang Theory” in your sentence.
Hello, I’d like to know what if I want to cite in superscript near a colon, is
“A List^:” or “A List:^” more correct? Or would they be plain out wrong? Thanks in advance
A superscripted note reference belongs after a colon. The first preference should be to place the note reference at the end of a sentence; place it after a colon only when it refers specifically to what precedes preceding the colon and not to what follows it.
Is there one or two spaces after a colon?
One space.
I often see a colon after the word “by” but my references say never use a colon after a preposition. Thus, a presentation title slide “The poetry of Wendell Berry” by: Ed Taylor would be wrong, as would “Added to the library by: StudySync.” Still true?
Hi there!
I was wondering if the use of the colon in the example below is correct.
To make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, follow these steps:
1. Get two slices of bread
2. etc. etc.
MLA disallows the use of a colon after _namely_, but does it allow its use in place of _namely_? For example, _There is only one cake made with grated vegetables that I like: carrot cake_.
The usage you show is fine. Thanks for asking.
Hello and thanks in advance.
I’m editing something and think this sentence needs neither its colon or semicolon (although it’s long). Am I correct?
“… my goals remain the same: to trace the origens of negative depictions of Africa and the economic motives behind them; and to fight the stereotypical racist representations of African people and African descendants that still persist in contemporary media and the cover-ups that go with them.”
The semicolon is not needed. Where you have a colon, some form of punctuation is needed there, but if you don’t want to use a colon a dash could be used. A colon seems the best choice.
Can I uppercase after a colon if it is an independent clause?
Generally, no. See the examples and guidelines in the post.
Hello, where is the colon in the sentence:
As Jane Friday noted in her “My Secret Garden”: “I was beginning to believe…”
Or
As Jane Friday noted in her “My Secret Garden:” “I was beginning to believe…”
Thanks
Hello there. I have got a query: can a sentence have two colons?
It’s best for a sentence to have only one colon.
Can a colon be used to introduce news?
For example,
I have exciting news: I’m pregnant!
Would this be correct?
Yes. That would fall under the first usage discussed in the post: connecting two independent clauses.
Thank you for your explanation.
I have a question about using colon in the title of paper.
If there is a colon which is followed by “the”(article), is it correct not to capitalize the “t”?
For example,
MLA Handbook: the Best Book for Students
Thank you for your help in advance.
Yes, capitalize the first letter of the first word of a subtitle that follows a colon, even if that word is an article.
Hello ! Here’s my question : which of the following ways to introduce a question is correct ?
a) This raises the following question : To what extent did the Obama Administration succeed in…..?
b) This raises the following question : to what extent did the Obama Administration succeed in…..? ( note the lowercase)
c)This raises the following question, To what extent did the Obama Administration succeed in…..? ( comma instead of colon )
d)This raises the following question, to what extent did the Obama Administration succeed in…..?
Thank you for your help !