Punctuation

The period (or full stop) is an important punctuation mark in English that actually has three different uses: ending a sentence, indicating abbreviations, and other stylistic uses.

This article will look at the basic ways in which you can use the period as a punctuation mark in your writing.

The exclamation point ( !) is a terminal punctuation mark in English and is usually used at the end of a sentence with no extra period. It can turn a simple indicative or declarative sentence into a strong command or reflect an emotional outburst. It can also indicate rhetorical questions. Do not use an exclamation point in texts that are neither literary dialog nor personal expressive writing. It is inappropriate to put an exclamation point in formal pieces of writing such as a business resume, school book report, or a due college paper, as the style expected in these should be objective, standard, and informative. Using an exclamation point in such settings creates an impression of unwarranted exaggeration, which in turn is perceived as amateurish, marketing oriented or just plainly childish. Do use it in stories and personal communication, and even then, sparingly.

As our brief article will show, those tiny 6s and 9s – the quotation marks – turn out to have quite a few usages in addition to just indicating quotation. It is important for good writers to be able to make use of the wide range of quotation mark usage, as it is the small details that give your writing the final polishing touches.

This article will look at the ways in which you can use quotation marks as a punctuation mark in your writing.

As our article shows, the ubiquitous comma, as it appears just everywhere has numerous uses. The understanding of when and how to use the comma, is vital to writing quality English in a range of contexts.

This article will look at the rules for using the comma correctly as a punctuation mark. The comma is the most widely used and often misused punctuation mark in English.

This article will give you all the information on one of the most intriguing punctuation marks in English – the colon. Read the rules for using the colon correctly in an English sentence.

The semicolon denotes a half-way separation between elements close in meaning. Skilled writers know that they should not overuse the semicolon but merely use for "spicing up" the text's punctuation, as explained in the following sections.

This article will look at the ways in which you can use the question mark as a punctuation mark in your writing.

Do you know how to use ellipses correctly? Read this quick tip to find out.

Quotation use is tricky, especially quotes within quotes. Read this quick tip for best practices in quotation mark use.

Apostrophe use is hard to master, and many apostrophe errors occur due to adding apostrophes when they are not needed. read here to find out more.

Why should you use quotation marks in English writing, and when should you use them? Read this quick tip to find out.

Hyphen use is definitely a tricky area for everyone writing in English. Read this quick tip to clarify when to use the hyphen.

Out of the many important elements of writing, punctuation may be the most essential. Punctuation helps direct us through written language with its system of symbols and the rules for using them. Correct usage of punctuation symbols like commas and periods, as well as spaces, capital letters and many other conventions, helps the reader avoid confusion and understand more clearly what the writer has intended.

According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the word apostrophe comes from the Greek apostrophes, meaning “turning away” (to one in particular). An apostrophe symbolizes letters that have been “turned away”, or discarded, in order to make a word shorter or easier to pronounce.

Commas can drastically change the meaning of a sentence, and therefore correct positioning of commas is vital to convey the meaning of a sentence correctly. This post covers correct use of the comma.

Hyphens are used to link words that function as a single adjective before a noun. They are used with compound numbers, and to avoid confusion or awkward letter combinations. Hyphens are also used with certain prefixes and suffixes and in certain special cases.

Different punctuation marks are used to end different kinds of sentences. How do you know which ones to use? Check out these simple tips on how to end your sentences. Here are three basic punctuation marks that are used at the end of a sentence.

Punctuation marks that are not placed where they should be give a negative impression of the writer as much as bad grammar does. When proofreading your work, an online punctuation checker will be helpful. It will help you to avoid committing the most common punctuation mistakes people make, three of which are given here...