Punctuation is the act or system of using specific marks or symbols in writing to separate different elements from each other or to make writing more clear. Punctuation is used in English and the other languages that use the Latin alphabet. Many other writing systems also use punctuation, too. Thanks to punctuation, we don’t have to suffer through a block of text that looks like this:
The following sentences give examples of the many different punctuation marks that we use:
The term typographical symbol, or any other number of phrases, refers to a character or symbol that isn’t considered to be a punctuation mark but may still be used in writing for various purposes. Typographical symbols are generally avoided in formal writing under most circumstances. However, you may see typographic symbols used quite a bit in informal writing.
The following examples show some ways that a writer might use typographical symbols. Keep in mind that some of these sentences may not be considered appropriate in formal writing.
Punctuation marks are considered part of grammar and often have well-established rules for how to use them properly. For example, the rules of proper grammar state that a letter after a period should be capitalized and that a comma must be used before a coordinating conjunction.
Typographical symbols, on the other hand, may not have widely accepted rules for how, or even when, they should be used. Generally speaking, most grammar resources will only allow the use of typographical symbols under very specific circumstances and will otherwise advise a writer to avoid using them.
There are many different types of punctuation marks and typographical symbols. We’ll briefly touch on them now, but you can learn more about of these characters by checking out the links in this list and also each section below:
These three commonly used punctuation marks are used for the same reason: to end an independent thought.
A period is used to end a declarative sentence. A period indicates that a sentence is finished.
Unique to them, periods are also often used in abbreviations.
The question mark is used to end a question, also known as an interrogative sentence.
The exclamation point is used at the end of exclamations and interjections.
Commas, colons, and semicolons can all be used to connect sentences together.
The comma is often the punctuation mark that gives writers the most problems. It has many different uses and often requires good knowledge of grammar to avoid making mistakes when using it. Some common uses of the comma include:
Try out this quiz on the Oxford comma!
The colon is typically used to introduce additional information.
Like commas, colons can also connect clauses together.
Colons have a few other uses, too.
Like the comma and the colon, the semicolon is used to connect sentences together. The semicolon typically indicates that the second sentence is closely related to the one before it.
All three of these punctuation marks are often referred to as “dashes.” However, they are all used for entirely different reasons.
The hyphen is used to form compound words.
The en dash is used to express ranges or is sometimes used in more complex compound words.
The em dash is used to indicate a pause or interrupted speech.
Test your knowledge on the different dashes here.
These pairs of punctuation marks look similar, but they all have different uses. In general, the parentheses are much more commonly used than the others.
Typically, parentheses are used to add additional information.
Parentheses have a variety of other uses, too.
Typically, square brackets are used to clarify or add information to quotations.
Curly brackets, also known as braces, are rarely used punctuation marks that are used to group a set.
Angle brackets have no usage in formal writing and are rarely ever used even in informal writing. These characters have more uses in other fields, such as math or computing.
You’ll find these punctuation marks hanging out at the top of a line of text.
The most common use of quotation marks is to contain quotations.
The apostrophe is most often used to form possessives and contractions.
These are two punctuation marks you may not see too often, but they are still useful.
The slash has several different uses. Here are some examples:
In formal writing, ellipses are used to indicate that words were removed from a quote.
In informal writing, ellipses are often used to indicate pauses or speech that trails off.
Typographical symbols rarely appear in formal writing. You are much more likely to see them used for a variety of reasons in informal writing.
In formal writing, especially academic and scientific writing, the asterisk is used to indicate a footnote.
The asterisk may also be used to direct a reader toward a clarification or may be used to censor inappropriate words or phrases.
The ampersand substitutes for the word and. Besides its use in the official names of things, the ampersand is typically avoided in formal writing.
Bullet points are used to create lists. For example,
For this recipe you will need:
Informally, the pound symbol is typically used to mean number or is used in social media hashtags.
Besides being used as an accent mark in Spanish and Portuguese words, the tilde is rarely used. Informally, a person may use it to mean “about” or “approximately.”
The backslash is primarily used in computer programming and coding. It might be used online and in texting to draw emoticons, but it has no other common uses in writing. Be careful not to mix it up with the similar forward slash (/), which is a punctuation mark.
The at symbol substitutes for the word at in informal writing. In formal writing, it is used when writing email addresses.
The caret symbol is used in proofreading, but may be used to indicate an exponent if a writer is unable to use superscript.
The pipe symbol is not used in writing. Instead, it has a variety of functions in the fields of math, physics, or computing.
Not sure if you’re using the hyphen, en dash, or em dash correctly? Check your writing on. This writing tool uses machine learning technology uniquely designed to catch grammar and spelling errors. Its Synonym Swap will find the best nouns, adjectives, and more to help say what you really mean, guiding you toward clearer, stronger, writing.
Whether you’re using commas, apostrophes, or parentheses, start writing smarter today!
I am on a mission to do my part of duty as a teacher. Teaching is my passion and fortunately my job as well.
Copyright © Englishlovers.in
