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Topic: Punctuation |
22 July 2003 |
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Punctuation marks--such as a full stop or a period (.), a comma (,), a dash (-), a colon (:),
and a semicolon (;)--are important. They have meanings.
Learning their meanings is helpful as a writer and a reader.
Lets have a look at a few punctuation marks and their functions.
Colon :
A colon functions as an introducer. It alerts the reader to what is coming.
It is used to give more information about the statement that comes before it.
For example:
These are our options: we go by train and leave before the end of the show,
or we take the car and see it all.
The statement after the colon tells us what the options are.
The garden had been neglected for a long time: it was overgrown and full of weeds.
The statement after the colon in the second example describes the state of the neglected garden.
A colon is used to introduce a list or example that defines or amplifies something in the statement.
The information after the colon often answers the question what? or who?
For example:
There is new danger to consider: (what?) inflation.
He looked into the water to see his favorite friend: (who?) himself.
Semicolon ;
Like a colon, a semicolon is also used as a prompter. It is used with some phrases such as
for example, however, moreover, in addition, etc.
For example:
There are many places to visit in Bangkok; for example,
the Grand Palace and the Flower market are among the most interesting attractions.
The Grand Palace and the Flower Market are the examples of places in Bangkok.
The phrase for example is prompted by the semicolon.
A semicolon is used to connect two closely logically elated sentences.
For example:
Anna studied hard for her university entrance exams;
she did well in every subject.
The two clauses are closely related as cause and effect. You can also use a period to punctuate them.
The sentences can read:
Anna studied hard for her university entrance exams.
She did well in every subject.
A semicolon is used to separate items in a series in place of a comma.
It is used when the items being separated are of long structure.
For example:
The endings of most movies are predictable:
the hero wins; the villain loses or redeems; or they go insane.
The three items listed are 1. the hero wins, 2. the villain loses or redeems
and 3. they go insane. All of them are in the form of a clause. To use a comma will be confusing.
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Exercise: Colon and Semi-colon |
| Directions: Decide if each of the following sentences is correctly punctuated. If not, correct them. |
 1. Jans new house is beautiful; it has wooden floor, off-white walls and big windows with the park view. |
| 2. They must be out; nobody answers the phone. |
| 3. This is a very useful book; it provides good guidelines in writing. |
| 4. The country is suffering once more from an economic downfall; however, the rich are not very much affected. |
| 5. You have to stand outside, you are late. |
| 6. The Queen of Charles I saw him picking flower for a lady and ordered all flowers to be dug up; as a result, there are no flowerbeds in Kensington Park to these days. |
| 7. The police have found a new clue to the murder investigation: a letter. |
| 8. We have a really good life; a trip abroad every year, a comfortable home and two lovely children. |
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Answers |
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