1.0 INTRODUCTION
Punctuation actually helps the flow of the
message being presented in writing form to be
meaningful. It helps to know when to stop,
when to shout, when to pause for some time
etc. a write up that is not well punctuated
is likely to lose its meaning. It could however,
not connote the intension or message that is
being passed across. This is detrimental to
effective business communication. Therefore
the proper knowledge of punctuation is
very important in order to communicate
effectively.
2.0 OBJECTIVES OF THE NOTE
On completion of this note, you should be
able to:
· List different types of
punctuation marks in English.
· Identify the uses of
various punctuation marks.
· Explain the wrong use of
some punctuation marks.
· Appropriately use all
punctuation marks.
3.0 MAIN CONTENT
3.1 Punctuation in English
Punctuation is the system of symbols (.,! - :
etc) that we use to separate sentences and
parts of sentences, and to make their meaning
clear. Each symbol is called a "punctuation
mark. The punctuation marks in English
language are discussed below
3.1.1 Quotation Marks
The exact rules for quotation marks vary greatly from language to language and
even
from country to country within the
English-speaking world. In North American usage,
you should place double quotation marks
(") before and after directly quoted material and
words of dialogue:
One critic ended his
glowing review with this superlative: "It is simply the best
film ever made about potato
farming."
May be replied, "This
is the last cookie."
You also use quotation marks to set off
certain titles, usually those of minor or short
works -- essays, short stories, short poems,
songs, articles in periodicals, etc. For titles of
longer works and separate publications, you
should use italics (or underlined, if italics are
not available). Use italics for titles of books,
magazines, periodicals, newspapers, films,
plays, long poems, long musical works, and
television and radio programs.
Once when I was sick, my
father read me a story called "The Happy Flower,"
which was later made into a
movie entitled Flower Child, starring Tiny Tim.
Sometimes, you will use quotation marks to
set off words specifically referred to as
terms, though some publishers prefer italics.
I know you like the word "unique,
"but do you really have to use it ten times in
one essay?
"Well" is sometimes a noun,
sometimes an adverb, sometimes an adjective and
sometimes a verb.
3.1.2 End Punctuation
The punctuation marks that signal the end of
a sentence are the period, the question mark
and the exclamation mark.
You use the period, by
far the most common of the end
punctuation marks, to terminate
a sentence that makes a statement. You may
also use periods with imperative
sentences
that have no sense of urgency or excitement
attached:
Without a doubt, Lady Emily
was much happier after her divorce.
Turn right at the stop
sign.
Bring me a cup of coffee
and a slice of bread.
When you want to express a sense of urgency
or very strong emotion, you may end your
imperative sentences and statements with an exclamation mark:
Look out below!
Leave this house at once!
I hate him!
Exclamation marks are, however, rare in
formal writing. Use them sparingly, if at all.
You should use the question mark at the end of a direct question:
Who's on first?
Where is my flowered cape?
Be careful not to use a question mark at the
end of an indirect question. Indirect questions
are simply statements, and therefore end with
a period:
I wonder who was chosen as
Harvest King in the county fair.
She asked if she could play
volley ball.
The teacher asked who was
chewing gum.
3.1.3 The Comma
Comma usage is in some respects a question of personal writing
style: some writers use
commas liberally, while others prefer to use
them sparingly. Most modern North
American style guides now recommend using
fewer commas rather than more, so when
faced with the option of using a comma or
not, you may find it wise to refrain.
For instance, the use of a comma before the
"and" in a series is usually optional, and
many writers choose to eliminate it, provided
there is no danger of misreading:
We bought scarves, mittens
and sweaters before leaving for Ghana. (Comma
unnecessary before
"and")
We ate apples, plums,
strawberry and paw-paw. (comma needed before "and" for
clarity)
Comma Usage
1. Use a comma before a co-ordinating
conjunction that joins independent clauses
(unless the independent clauses are very
short):
I wrapped the fresh fish in
three layers of newspaper, but my van still smelled like
trout for the next week.
(commas with two independent clauses)
She invited him to her
party and he accepted. (comma unnecessary with short
clauses)
2. Use a comma after an introductory adverb
clause and, often, after an introductory
phrase (unless the phrase is very short):
After the hospital had
completed its fund-raising campaign, an anonymous donour
contributed an additional
N10,000. (after introductory adverb clause)
From the east wall to the
west, her cottage measures twenty feet. (after
introductory prepositional
phrase)
In the bottom drawer you
will find some pink spandex tights. (no comma with
short, closely related
phrase)
3. Use a comma to separate items in a series:
Playing in a band can be
exciting, but many people do not realize the hardships
involved: constant
rehearsals, playing until 2 a.m., handling drunken audience
members, and transporting
heavy equipment to and from gigs. (the comma
preceding "and"
is optional unless needed to prevent misreading)
4. Use commas to set off non-restrictive elements and other parenthetical elements.
A non-restrictive
modifier is a phrase or clause that
does not restrict or limit the
meaning of the word it is modifying. It is,
in a sense, interrupting material that
adds extra information to a sentence. Even
though removing the non-restrictive
element would result in some loss of meaning,
the sentence would still make
sense without it. You should usually set off
non-restrictive elements with
commas:
The people of Haiti, who for decades have
lived with grinding poverty and mindnumbing
violence, are unfamiliar with the workings of
a true democracy.
A restrictive
modifier is a phrase or clause that
limits the meaning of what it
modifies and is essential to the basic idea
expressed in the sentence. You should
not set off restrictive elements with commas:
Those residents in Lagos who do not hold
secure, well-paying jobs must resent
the common portrayal of the city as a land of
opportnunity.
Note that you can use two other punctuation
marks to set off non-restrictive
elements or other parenthetical information: parentheses
and dashes. Enclosing
parenthetical information in parentheses
reduces the importance of that
information:
Mr. Mumuni driving record (with one small
exception) was exemplary.
5. Placing parenthetical information between
dashes has the opposite effect: it
emphasises the material:
Mr. Mumuni's driving record
-- with one exception -- was exemplary.
Nevertheless, you should
usually set off parenthetical information with commas.
Superfluous Commas
Equally important in understanding how to use
commas effectively is knowing when not
to use them. While this decision is sometimes
a matter of personal taste, there are certain
instances when you should definitely avoid a
comma.
· Do not use a comma to separate the subject
from its predicate:
[WRONG] Registering for our
fitness programs before September 15, will save
you thirty percent of the
membership cost.
[RIGHT] Registering for our
fitness programs before September 15 will save you
thirty percent of the
membership cost.
· Do not use a comma to separate a verb from
its object or its subject complement,
or a preposition from its
object:
[WRONG] I hope to mail to
you before Christmas, a current snapshot of my dog
Benji.
She travelled around the
world with, a small backpack, a bedroll, a pup tent and a
camera.
[RIGHT] I hope to mail to
you before Christmas a current snapshot of my dog
Benji.
[RIGHT] She travelled
around the world with a small backpack, a bedroll, a pup
tent and a camera.
· Do not misuse a comma after a co-coordinating
conjunction:
[WRONG] Sleet fell heavily
on the tin roof but, the family was used to the noise
and paid it no attention.
[RIGHT] Sleet fell heavily
on the tin roof, but the family was used to the noise
and paid it no attention.
· Do not use commas to set off words and short
phrases (especially introductory
ones) that are not
parenthetical or that are very slightly so:
[WRONG] After dinner, we
will play badminton.
[RIGHT] After dinner we
will play badminton.
· Do not use commas to set off restrictive
elements:
[WRONG] The fingers, on his
left hand, are bigger than those on his right.
[RIGHT] The fingers on his
left hand are bigger than those on his right.
· Do not use a comma before the first item or
after the last item of a series:
[WRONG] The treasure chest
contained, three wigs, some costume jewellery and
five thousand Naira in
Monopoly money.
[WRONG] You should practice
your punches, kicks and foot sweeps, if you want
to improve in the martial
arts.
[RIGHT] The treasure chest
contained three wigs, some costume jewellery and
five thousand Naira in
Monopoly money.
[RIGHT] You should practice
your punches, kicks and foot sweeps if you want to
improve in the martial
arts.
3.1.4 The Dash
As noted in the section on commas, you can
use a dash at the beginning and end of
parenthetical information. Usually, you will
use dashes when you want to emphasize the
information, but you might also use them if
the parenthetical information is too long or
abrupt to be set off with commas.
I think you would look fine
wearing either the silk blouse -- the one with the blue
pattern -- or the angora
sweater (abrupt interruption).
The idea of returning to
the basics in the classroom -- a notion which,
incidentally, has been quietly
supported for years by many respected teachers -- is
finally gaining some
currency with school administrators (lengthy interruption
containing internal
commas).
You can use a dash to conclude a list of
elements, focusing them all toward one point.
Chocolate, cream, honey and
peanut butter -- all go into this fabulously rich
dessert.
Dashes also mark sharp turns in thought.
We pored over exotic,
mouth-watering menus from Aisha Catering, Menu du
Jour, Taste Temptations,
and three other reputable caterers -- and rejected them
all.
3.1.5 The Apostrophe
You should use an apostrophe to form the possessive case of a noun or to show that you
have left out letters in a contraction. Note that you should not generally use contractions
in formal, academic writing.
The convertible's engine
has finally died. (The noun "convertible's" is in the
possessive case)
I haven't seen my roommate
for two weeks. (The verb "haven't" is a contraction of
"have not")
To form the possessive of a plural noun
ending in "s," simply place an apostrophe after
the "s."
He has his three sons'
futures in mind.
In many suburbs, the
houses' designs are too much alike.
Possessive pronouns -- for example,
"hers," "yours," and "theirs" -- do not take
apostrophes. This is the case for the possessive
pronoun "its" as well: when you write
"it's" with an apostrophe, you are
writing a contraction for "it is."
The spaceship landed hard,
damaging its radar receiver. ("its" is the possessive
pronoun)
It's your mother on the
phone. ("it's" is the contraction of "it is")
3.1.6 The Colon
Writers often confuse the colon with the
semicolon, but their uses are entirely different.
When to Use a Colon
The colon
focuses the reader's
attention on what is to follow, and as a result, you should
use it to introduce a list, a summation, or
an idea that somehow completes the
introductory idea. You may use the colon in
this way, however, only after an independent
clause:
He visited three cities
during his stay in the Maritimes: Halifax, Saint John and
Moncton.
Their lobbying efforts were
ultimately useless: the bill was soundly defeated.
My mother gave me one good
piece of advice: to avoid wasting time and energy
worrying about things I
cannot change.
When Not to Use a Colon
You should not place a colon between a verb
and its object or subject complement, or
between a preposition and its object:
[WRONG] His neighbor lent
him: a pup-tent, a wooden canoe, and a slightly
battered Coleman stove
(colon between verb and objects).
[RIGHT] His neighbor lent
him a pup-tent, a wooden canoe, and a slightly
battered Coleman stove.
[WRONG] Her three goals
are: to improve her public speaking skills, to increase
her self-confidence and to
sharpen her sales techniques (colon between verb and
subject complement).
[RIGHT] Her three goals are
to improve her public speaking skills, to increase her
self-confidence and to
sharpen her sales techniques.
[WRONG] We travelled to:
London, Wales and Angola (colon between
preposition and objects).
[RIGHT] We travelled to
South Africa, Ghana and Angola.
3.1.7 The Semicolon
You will usually use the semicolon to link independent clauses not joined by a
coordinating conjunction. Semicolons should
join only those independent clauses that are
closely related in meaning.
Abdominal exercises help
prevent back pain; proper posture is also important.
The auditors made six
recommendations; however, only one has been adopted so
far.
Do not use a semicolon to link a dependent
clause or a phrase to an independent clause.
[WRONG] Although gaining
and maintaining a high level of physical fitness
takes a good deal of time;
the effort pays off in the long run.
[RIGHT] Although gaining
and maintaining a high level of physical fitness takes
a good deal of time, the
effort pays off in the long run.
Generally, you should not place a semicolon
before a co-coordinating conjunction that
links two independent clauses. The only
exception to this guideline is if the two
independent clauses are very long and already
contain a number of commas.
[WRONG] The economy has
been sluggish for four years now; but some signs of
improvement are finally
beginning to show.
[RIGHT] The economy has
been sluggish for four years now, but some signs of
improvement are finally
beginning to show.
It may be useful to remember that, for the
most part, you should use a semicolon only
where you could also use a period.
There is one exception to this guideline.
When punctuating a list or a series of elements
in which one or more of the elements contains
an internal comma, you should use
semicolons instead of commas to separate the
elements from one another:
Henry's mother believes
three things: that every situation, no matter how grim,
will be happily resolved;
that no one knows more about human nature than she;
and that Henry, who is
thirty-five years old, will never be able to do his own
laundry.
4.0 CONCLUSION
Now writing process will be a lot better with
the thorough knowledge of punctuation in
English grammar. Common mistakes and
confusion in use of punctuation marks are
expected to be corrected and it could be
misleading and detrimental.
5.0 SUMMARY
In this note, we discussed various
punctuation marks and their usage in writing process.
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