PUNCTUATION

1. What is Punctuation? 5. Colon (:)

Punctuation refers to the symbols used in writing to  Introduces a list, explanation, or quotation.
separate sentences and their elements, clarify
meaning, indicate pauses, and convey tone or She brought three things: bread, milk, and butter.
emotion. He had one goal: to win.

Example: 6. Semicolon (;)

Without punctuation: Let’s eat grandma.
With punctuation: Let’s eat, grandma.  Connects closely related independent clauses.
 Separates items in a complex list.
2. Why is Punctuation Important?
She loves music; he loves art.
 Clarifies meaning On our trip we visited Paris, France; Rome, Italy;
 Organizes sentences and Berlin, Germany.
 Indicates pauses, stops, and tone
 Helps avoid ambiguity and 7. Apostrophe (’)
misunderstanding
 Indicates possession.
3. Common Punctuation Marks and Their  Forms contractions.
Uses
John’s book; children’s toys
It’s (it is), don’t (do not)
1. Full Stop / Period (.)
8. Quotation Marks (" ")
 Used to mark the end of a declarative
sentence.
 Enclose direct speech or quotations.
 Abbreviations.
 Indicate titles of short works.
She went home.
She said, “I’m tired.”
Dr., Mr., etc.
I read “The Road Not Taken.”
2. Comma (,)
9. Hyphen (-)
 Separates items in a list.
 Joins words in compound terms.
 Indicates a pause.
 Separates syllables.
 Sets off clauses, phrases, or interjections.
Well-known, part-time, mother-in-law
I bought apples, oranges, bananas, and grapes.
Co-operate
Yes, I agree.
My brother, who lives in Canada, is visiting.
10. Dash (—)
3. Question Mark (?)
 Indicates a break or pause.
 Adds emphasis or additional information.
 Ends direct questions.
He was late — again!
What is your name?
She needed one thing — courage.
Are you coming?
11. Parentheses ( )
4. Exclamation Mark (!)
 Enclose additional, non-essential information.
 Shows strong emotion or surprise.
He gave me a gift (a book) on my birthday.
Wow! That’s amazing!
Help!
12. Ellipsis (…) 6. Summary Table
 Indicates omission or pause. Punctuation Function Example
 Shows trailing off of thought. . End of sentence She left.
Red, blue, and
He said, “I was thinking…” , Pause/list
green
She didn’t know what to say…
? Question Are you okay?
13. Brackets [ ] ! Emotion Stop!
Items: bread,
: Introduce list
 Add editorial or explanatory information. milk
; Join clauses It’s late; go now.
She said she was “happy [about the results]” Sarah’s bag, it’s
' Possession/contraction
nice
14. Slash (/) "" Quotation “Hello,” he said.
- Compound word Mother-in-law
 Indicates alternatives or fractions. I need this —
 Used in URLs. — Break/emphasis
now!
She is kind (and
He/she will come. () Extra info
smart).
1/2; www.example.com … Omission/pause I wonder…
[Emphasis
4. Common Punctuation Rules [] Editorial info
added]
/ Alternatives and/or
Rule Example
Use a comma before "and" I like apples,
in a list (Oxford comma) oranges, and bananas.
Place the period inside She said,
quotation marks “Let's go.”
Use a semicolon to join two I went to the
related clauses park; it was closed.
Use apostrophes correctly That is
for possession Sarah’s car.
Correct: I
Do not overuse exclamation
love it! Overuse: I love
marks
it!!!

5. Common Errors in Punctuation

Error Correction
Its raining. It’s raining.
I love you do you I love you. Do you
love me love me?
She said I am fine She said, “I am fine.”