Oh, the comma

The comma can be a tricky punctuation mark to use and is perhaps one of the frequently misused punctuation mark in the English language. For this reason, the comma has an entire page dedicated to it.

Click here to learn all about the comma!

The Semicolon; infrequently used, frequently abused

The semicolon is a punctuation mark that is frequently misused, and generally appears in texts with a high reading level. In nearly all cases where you may consider using a semicolon, it could be argued that you can rewrite the sentence or sentences to be more concise. The use of a semicolon often is a style choice, rather than one used for grammatical accuracy.

The semicolon looks like a comma with a period above it, and this can be a good way to remember what it does. A semicolon creates more separation between thoughts than a comma does but less than a period does. Below are the two most common uses for the semicolon.

The Hyphen -

The hyphen, often confused with the dash and the em dash (explained below), joins two or more words together to demonstrate they are connected. The purpose of the hyphen is clarify meaning or form a phrase.

• Step-by-step

• Mother-in-law

• Ex-boyfriend

The Dash - and the Em Dash –

There are two types of dash, and are sometimes hard to spot the difference. The dash, and the em dash. The dash is something that should be used between numbers, and the em dash should never be used. I will explain this bold statement after explaining the primary use of the dash, to indicate range.

Using a Dash to Indicate a Range

A dash is used between two numbers to indicate a range. Consider the example below:

The company was in operation from 1990-2005.

He took the Cairo-Dubai flight last night

The dash in the first example indicates that between the dates of 1990 and 2005, the company was in operation. However, it would be more formal to write using the conjunction to in the sentence, "The company was in operation from 1990 to 2005." The dash is generally used when the numbers exist on their own.

The Em Dash –

I'm going to say it. Never use the em dash. I am explaining the use of this abomination simply to educate readers in understanding how it may be used in writing they may be reading, but strongly encourage never to actually use. There are other punctuation marks that do the job more appropriately.

The em dash (–)can be distinguished from a dash (-) because it is slightly longer. The em dash replaces the comma, set off material for emphasis, or break up dialogue to show pauses or indicate other things in dialogue. The em dash is informal, and should never appear in formal writing. It should not appear in informal writing either. Don't ever use the em dash.

(Parenthesis)

Parenthesis have several uses in writing, but should be used sparingly. A parenthesis indicates that the information enclosed inside is supplemental or less important that information than other information in the sentence.

Mr. Oxford (a teacher at my school) comes to school in a flying car and drinks way too much coffee.

In the quote above the portion, "a teacher at my school" is adding information that is less important than the information in the rest of the sentence. It would be more appropriate to use a comma, but parenthesis is also grammatically correct. Parenthesis is also used in citation.

[Brackets]

The bracket is used to clarify information that came before it. Often used in technical writing or academic writing, they should be used sparingly when writing.

Brackets are used in quotes, when you are inserting information into the quote to clarify meaning that was not a part of the original quote, for example:

Mr. Oxford said, "It [English Language Arts] is the most exciting part of any students day."

In this example, the speaker, Mr. Oxford, is quoted but the "English Language Arts" was added to clarify what the speaker was referring to. When you are quoting, you cannot add words to the quote.

Apostrophe '

Apostrophes are meant to show that a letter or letters have been omitted and also to indicate the possessive or contractions. It can also be used to pluralize lowercase letters.

In the example below, the words "I have," and "it is," have been shortened. Do not use this form of apostrophe in formal writing.

I’ve been working from home for 6 months and it’s great.

In the example below, the owner of the dog, Nadia, is indicated with an apostrophe.

Nadia's dog had surgery yesterday.

"Quotation Marks"

Quotation marks are used to denote text, speech, or words spoken by someone else. In formal writing, it is to indicate the words inside the quotation marks are spoken by someone else and not the writer. It is also used to indicate dialogue in fiction writing.

“I don’t like this,” said Mark.

She told him that she, “prefers not to think about that.”

'Single quotation marks', not to be confused with apostrophes, are often used for a quote within a quote.

Jill told her mother, “Jack ran up the hill and he said he was going to ‘fetch a pail of water’ before he fell.”

Ellipsis…

An ellipsis is three periods used together to represent an omission of words or letters. They are often used to jump from one sentence or phrase to another while omitting unnecessary or obvious words.

In the example below, the countdown is introduced but does not go all the way down, because that information is not needed.

At midnight, she began to count down, “ten, nine, eight…” and then the ball dropped.

In the example below, unnecessary information is omitted in a quotation.

In Mr. Oxford's final lesson of the year he said that he is sad everyone is leaving and he will be, "...spending the summer reading great books."

This shows the reader that there is more the quote, but only the important part is being shown in the quotation.