1. A.

I am asking if you would like to

rollerblade together tomorrow?
B. I am asking “if you would like to
rollerblade together tomorrow”?
C. I am asking if you would like to
rollerblade together tomorrow.
D. I am asking “if you would like to
rollerblade together tomorrow.”
2. A. Yes, Jean, you were right about
that answer.
B. Yes Jean, you were right about that
answer.
C. Yes Jean you were right about that
answer.
D. Yes, Jean, you were right, about that
answer.
3. A. I saw our town's ex-Mayor in the mall.
B. I saw our town's ex-mayor in the mall.
C. I saw our town's ex Mayor in the mall.
D. I saw our town's exMayor in the mall.
What is punctuation?

It is the use of symbols such as full

stops or periods, commas, or
question marks to divide written
words into sentences and
clauses.

Why is punctuation important?

 BASIC
PUNCTUATIO
N
RULES
a. Commas (Symbol ,)
Commas indicate a separation of ideas or elements or a
series or a list of things within the structure of a sentence.

1. Commas are used to separate three or more words, phrases, or

clauses (sentence parts) in a series.

Example: The entrée includes chips, salsa, and a beverage.

2. Commas are used after an introductory dependent clause (a group

of words before the subject of a sentence that do not form a complete
sentence).

Example:
Since we would be returning late anyway, we stayed to watch the
sunset.
3. Commas indicate that introductory words and phrases moved from
the end of the sentence.

Example: In the light of day, everything looked different.

(Notice how the phrase “In the light of day” was moved from the end
to the beginning of the sentence. The sentence was originally like this,
“Everything looked different in the light of day.” Since we moved the
phrase “in the light of day”, we
need to use a comma after the said phrase.

4. Commas are used between independent clauses (complete sentences)

joined by a coordinating conjunction: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so.

Example: My family went to see the taping of Vice Ganda’s Gandang

Gabi Vice, but I stayed at home to make my project.
5. Commas set off nonessential phrases or clauses (phrases that can be
removed without changing the sentence’s overall meaning) or
appositives (words or phrases that rename a noun).

Example: My cousin, who is the Mayor’s daughter, said I should try

taking the test for scholarship.
b. Quotation Marks (Symbol “ ”)
Quotation marks are used to identify the exact
words of a speaker or a title of a
short work.

1. Quotation marks enclose the exact words of a person.

Example: Sia said, “I’m gonna swing from the chandelier.”

2. Do not use quotation marks around a paraphrase or

summary.

Example: Sia said she intended to pendulate from a chandelier.

3. Use quotation marks for the titles of shorter pieces of work:
poems, articles, book chapters, songs, T.V. episodes, etc.

Example: Read the article “I Am Writing Blindly” by Roger

Rosenblatt.
c. Apostrophe (Symbol ’)
Apostrophes show possession and also indicate where a
letter has been omitted to form a contraction.

1. To show possession, add an apostrophe and an s to singular nouns

or indefinite pronouns that end in one or body.

Examples: Jenny’s book, somebody’s laptop, anyone’s guess

2. Add only an apostrophe for plural possessive nouns ending in s.

Remember that the apostrophe placement depends on whether there
is more than one noun: student’s books (one student), students’ books
(more than one student).

Examples: my parents’ car, the musicians’ instruments

3. Do not use an apostrophe with possessive personal pronouns.

Example: yours, his, hers, ours, theirs, whose, its

4. Apostrophes are also used in contractions (two words which have

been combined into one) to mark where the missing letter or letters
would be.

Examples: I am= I’m cannot= can’t I have= I’ve they are= they’re
d. Hyphen (Symbol -)
Hyphens are used to form compound words or join
word units. They are also used to join prefixes, suffixes,
and letters to words.

1. Use hyphens with compound numbers from twenty-one to

ninety-nine and with fractions used as modifiers (adjectives).

Examples: forty-two students

three thousand five hundred and
sixty-seven students
two-thirds majority
e. Colon (Symbol :)
Colons follow independent clauses and call attention
to the information that comes after.

1. Colons come after the independent clause (complete sentence)

and before the word, phrase, sentence, quotation, or list they are
introducing.

Examples:
Lately, I have had only one thing on my mind: graduation.
Lately, I have had one thing on my mind: graduating from
college.
Lately, I have had only one thing on my mind: I can’t wait to
graduate.
Lately, I have had several things on my mind: papers, grades,
and finals
2. Never use a colon after a verb that directly introduces a list.

Examples:
(Wrong) The things on my mind are: papers, grades, and finals.

(Correct) The things on my mind are the following: papers,

grades, and finals.

(Correct) The things on my mind are papers, grades, and finals.

f. Dash (Symbol —)
Dashes—often confused with hyphens—connect
groups of words to other groups of words to emphasize a
point. Usually, the dash separates words in the middle or
at the end of a sentence.

1. In the middle of a sentence, a dash can put special emphasis on

a group of words or make them stand out from the rest of the
sentence.

Examples:
(Wrong) Our ideas for the weekend, going to a movie, having a
picnic, doing homework, and hiking Garcia Trail, seemed like a
lot to squeeze in.
(Correct) Our ideas for the weekend —going to a movie, having a
picnic, doing homework, and hiking Garcia Trail—seemed like a
lot to squeeze in.

2. At the end of a sentence, a dash separates information from the

rest of the sentence.

Example: I knew the material perfectly—until test day.

g. Semicolons (Symbol ;)
Semicolons separate clauses or phrases that are related and
that receive equal emphasis.

1. Semicolons join two independent clauses (complete sentences) that are

closely related if no coordinating conjunction is used.

Example:
Megan said she was tired; she had stayed up late cutting giraffe-shaped
holes out of foreign newspapers.

2. Semicolons signal to a reader that the information in both sentences

should be taken together.

Example:
We were planning to go get coffee; however, he had to cancel.
3. Semicolons help avoid confusion between items in lists where there
are already commas.

Example:
She traveled to Sao Paulo, Brazil; Seoul, South Korea; and Nairobi,
Kenya.
What is capitalization?

Capitalization is the writing of

a word with its first letter in
uppercase and the
remaining letters in
lowercase.
 BASIC
CAPITALIZATI
ON
RULES
a. Capitalize the First Word of a Sentence

Always capitalize the first word of a sentence.

Examples: The cat is sleeping.

Hey! It’s great to see you!
How have you been?
b. Capitalize Names and Other Proper Nouns

You should always capitalize people’s names

.
Examples: My favorite author is Jane Austen.
Have you met my dog, Boomer?
Names are proper nouns. The names of
cities, countries, companies, religions, and
political parties are also proper nouns, so
you should capitalize them, too.
Example:
We experienced some beautiful Southern California weather last
fall when we attended a Catholic wedding in San Diego.
You should also capitalize words like mom and grandpa when they
are used as a form of address.
Just wait until Mom sees this! (It is a form of address.) But
My mom is not going to like this.
c. Don’t Capitalize After a Colon (Usually)
In most cases, you don’t need to capitalize after a colon.
Example:
I have one true passion: wombat racing.

There are a couple of common exceptions. One is when the

word following the colon is a proper noun.

Example:
There is only one place I want to visit: New York City.
The other exception is when the words
following the colon form one or more
complete sentences.

Example:
Maggie wears a brimmed cap at all times for
these two reasons: Strong light often gives her
a headache. She also likes the way it looks
d. Capitalize the First Word of a Quote
(Sometimes)
Capitalize the first word of a quote when the
quote is a complete sentence.

Examples: Mario asked, “What is everyone

doing this weekend?”
Stacy answered, “My sister and I are going to
the water park.”
e. Capitalize Days, Months, and Holidays,
But Not Seasons
The names of days, months, and holidays are
proper nouns, so you should capitalize them.

Examples: I hate Mondays!

Tom’s birthday is in June.
Oh no! I forgot about
Valentine’s Day!
The names of seasons, however, are not
proper nouns, so there’s no need to capitalize
them.

I hate winter!
Having a summer birthday is the best.
f. Capitalize Most Words in Titles The capitalization rules
for titles of books, movies, and other works vary a little
between style guides. In general, you should capitalize the
first word, all nouns, all verbs (even short ones, like is), all
adjectives, and all proper nouns. That means you should
lowercase articles, conjunctions, and prepositions—however,
some style guides say to capitalize conjunctions and
prepositions that are longer than five letters.

Examples: Sense and Sensibility is better than Pride and

Prejudice.
The first movie of the series is Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s
Stone.
g. Capitalize Cities, Countries, Nationalities, and
Languages

The names of cities, countries, nationalities, and languages are

proper nouns, so you should capitalize them.

Examples:
English is made up of many languages, including Latin,
German, and French.
My mother is British, and my father is a Filipino.
The capital of Botswana is Gaborone.