Professional Documents
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Understanding Basics of Punctuation
Understanding Basics of Punctuation
Semicolon:
In English, a reader will see semicolons much more often than colons
because they have more uses. The following mark is a semicolon;
Usage:
1) Joining two related ideas:
The word “and” with no punctuation joins two related ideas without
slowing the reader down too much. A comma joins two ideas but
gives a little speed bump. The semicolon joins ideas and slows the
reader even more. A period is a full stop, and a piece with too many
will be very jarring to read. To help the flow of the writing but still
leave much of the “punch” of two complete sentences, try using a
semicolon to join two closely-related ideas.
“Bob was hungry; the smell of the neighbors’ barbecue was driving
him insane.”
“It was raining; the dog smelled like dirty laundry.”
Things can get crazy with lists and commas hanging out all over the
place. Semicolons can be used to make it all much easier to read.
“I have lived in Little Rock, Arkansas; Chicago, Illinois; Port
Charlotte, Florida; and San Antonio, Texas.”
Colon
A colon is used to call attention to whatever is coming after it, generally a
list or an explanation of some sort. When using a colon, the phrase before it
must always be a complete sentence and will tell the reader exactly what is
followed by the mark.