Scribd
Upload
84 views3 pages

PUNCTUATION Guide

Punctuation is used to properly structure written language and indicate pauses, stops, and grammatical relationships. The document outlines the main punctuation marks - period, comma, semicolon, colon, question mark, exclamation mark - and provides examples of their uses. It also discusses other marks such as parentheses, dashes, hyphens, apostrophes, and capital letters and their functions in written text.

Uploaded by

Hina Imran
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
84 views3 pages

PUNCTUATION Guide

Punctuation is used to properly structure written language and indicate pauses, stops, and grammatical relationships. The document outlines the main punctuation marks - period, comma, semicolon, colon, question mark, exclamation mark - and provides examples of their uses. It also discusses other marks such as parentheses, dashes, hyphens, apostrophes, and capital letters and their functions in written text.

Uploaded by

Hina Imran
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 3

PUNCTUATION

Punctuation (derived from the Latin punctum, a point) means the right use
of putting in Points or Stops in writing. The following are the principal stops:

(1) Full Stop or Period (.)


(2) Comma (,)
(3) Semicolon (;)
(4) Colon (:)
(5) Question Mark (?)
(6) Exclamation Mark (!)

Other marks in common use are the Dash: - Parentheses ( ); Inverted


Commas or Quotation Marks" "

Full Stop

The Full Stop represents the greatest pause and separation. It is used to
mark the end of a declarative or an imperative sentence.

The Full stop can be used in abbreviations, but they are often omitted in
modern Style.
M.A. or MA

Comma

The Comma represents the shortest pause and some if the purposes are:

(1) To separate a series of words in the same construction; as,


England, France and Italy formed an alliance.
He lost lands, money, reputation and friends.

Note: - A comma is generally not placed before the word preceded by and.

(2) To separate each pair of words connected by and; as,


High and low, rich and poor, wise and foolish, must all die.

(3) After a Nominative Absolute; as,


This done, she returned to the old man with a lovely smile on her face.
The genius making me no answer, I turned about to address myself to him a
second time.

(4) To mark off a Noun or Phrase in Apposition; as,


Milton, the great English poet, was blind.

(5) To mark off words used in addressing people


Come into the garden, Maud.
How are you, Mohan?

(6) Before and after words, phrases, or clauses, let into the body of a
sentence; as,
He did not, however, gain his object.
It is mind, after all, which does the work of the world.

(7) To mark off a direct quotation from the rest of the sentence; as,
"Exactly so," said Alice.
He said to his disciples, "Watch and pray."
"Go then," said the ant, "and dance winter away."

1
Semicolon

The Semicolon represents a pause of greater importance than that shown by


the Comma. It is used:
(1) To separate the clauses of Compound sentence, when they contain a
comma; as,
He was a brave, large-hearted man; and we all honored him.

(2) To separate a series of loosely related clauses; as,


Her court was pure; her life serene;
God gave her peace; her land reposed.
Today we love what tomorrow we hate; today we seek what tomorrow we
Shun; today we desire what tomorrow we fear.

Colon

The Colon marks a still more complete pause than that expressed by the
Semicolon.
It is used (sometimes with a dash after it): -
(1) To introduce a quotation; as,
Bacon says: - “Reading makes a full man, writing an exact man, speaking a
ready man.”
(2) Before listing
(3) Between sentences grammatically independent but closely connected in
sense; as,
Study to acquire a habit of thinking: no study is more important.

Question Mark

The Question Mark is used, instead of the Full Stop, after a direct question;
as,
Have you written your exercise?

Exclamation Mark
The Exclamation Mark is used for expressing sudden emotion or wish; as,
Alas! -- Oh dear!
What a terrible fire this is!

Inverted Commas

Inverted Commas are used to enclose the exact words of a speaker, or a


quotation;
As, "I would rather die," he exclaimed, "than join the oppressors of my
country."

If a quotation occurs within a quotation, it is marked by single inverted


commas; as,
"You might as well say," added the March Hare, "that 'I like what I get' is the
same thing as 'I get what I like’,”

Dash

The Dash is used:


(1) To indicate an abrupt stop or change of thought; as,
If my husband were alive – but why lament the past?
(2) To resume a scattered subject; as,
Friends, companions, relatives - all deserted him.

2
Hyphen

The Hyphen - a shorter line than the Dash - is used to connect the parts of a
Compound word; as,
Passer-by, man-of-war, jack-of-all-trades.

Parentheses

Parentheses or Double Dashes are used to separate from the main part of
the Sentence a phrase or clause which does not grammatically belong to it;
as,
He gained from Heaven (it was all he wished) a friend.
A remarkable instance of this kind of courage - call it, if you please,
Resolute will - is given in the history of Babar,

Apostrophe

It is used:
(1) To show the omission of a letter or letters; as, don’t, ever, I've.
(2) To form the plural of letters and figures.

Capital Letters

Capitals are used:


(1) To begin a sentence.
(2) To begin each fresh line of poetry.
(3) To begin all Proper Nouns and Adjectives derived from them: as,
Delhi, Rama, Africa, African, Shakespeare, Shakespearian.
(4) For all nouns and pronouns which indicate the Deity; as, The Lord, He is
the God.

You might also like

pFad - Phonifier reborn

Pfad - The Proxy pFad of © 2024 Garber Painting. All rights reserved.

Note: This service is not intended for secure transactions such as banking, social media, email, or purchasing. Use at your own risk. We assume no liability whatsoever for broken pages.


Alternative Proxies:

Alternative Proxy

pFad Proxy

pFad v3 Proxy

pFad v4 Proxy