Punctuation is the term used for the marks, such as the period/full stop, comma, dash, and parentheses, used to separate structural units, and perform other roles that clarify the meaning.
2
votes
1answer
925 views
Comma before “including”?
Does this sentence require a comma before including?
He has written on a range of moral issues including poverty, globalization, and euthanasia.
2
votes
1answer
134 views
How should one punctuate the phrase “simply to understand devote yourself”?
I found an acronym for the word STUDY online. However, the punctuation looks amiss.
It reads
Simply — to understand, devote yourself!
But I think the dash makes no sense here. Am I right?
...
-1
votes
1answer
104 views
“And those who were seen dancing, were thought to be crazy, by those who could not hear the music.” Are these commas required?
Just spotted this as an answer in Quora:
And those who were seen dancing, were thought to be crazy, by those who could not hear the music.
At first look, I thought the comma between dancing and ...
0
votes
1answer
46 views
In text Citation [duplicate]
If your quote is at the end of a sentence and is the end of its own sentence as well does the period go inside the parentheses or outside of it? Also what would you do with the in text citation (page ...
0
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3answers
107 views
How to use commas around the word “both”?
In the following sentence, how should I place commas around the word "both"? Should there be a comma before AND after "both", or ONLY after it? Should there be commas at all?:
"This includes ...
-1
votes
2answers
80 views
punctuation of “damned if you do and damned if you don't” [duplicate]
Personally, I think quotes are best, but lately, I'm hearing that quotes are incorrect and dashes should be used between the words. What say you?
damned-if-you-do and damned-if-you-don't
or
...
2
votes
1answer
130 views
Serial commas in quotations
If the publication you are proofing for uses the serial comma, and an essay you're proofing includes a quotation from a biography that does not use a serial comma, is it permissible to silently add ...
0
votes
3answers
190 views
Comma in “Is milk without coffee, considered latte?”
Is the presence of the comma in, "Is milk without coffee, considered latte?", acceptable usage?
-1
votes
1answer
98 views
Proper punctuation? [duplicate]
1) What looks better to you ?
2) What looks better to you?
Many years ago, I found myself adding a space before exclamation points and question marks. I don't, however, put a space before a period. ...
-4
votes
1answer
79 views
Comma Delimitation
I just started reading Terence Tao's second edition analysis textbook, and I came across the following sentence.
1.2 Why do analysis?
It is a fair question to ask, "why bother?", when it comes to ...
4
votes
2answers
191 views
When to choose em dash over parenthesis for parenthetical phrases?
According to Wikipedia:
The em dash, m dash, m-rule, or "mutton" (—) often demarcates a break
of thought or some similar interpolation stronger than the
interpolation demarcated by parentheses
...
1
vote
1answer
96 views
Double parentheses ((. . .))
I wonder why the author used two parentheses in the sentence below:
While touring the Center for Agrobiotechnology at Monterrey Tech, its
director, Guy Cardineau, a scientist from Arizona, ...
1
vote
1answer
100 views
Larry and the fanboys
In the Penguin guide to punctuation Larry Trasks claims that a joining comma must be followed by and, or, but, yet or while.
However, I was under the impression that a joining comma should be ...
-1
votes
1answer
84 views
Comma or semicolon?
Which of the following is correct?
This not only produces higher success rates, it increases our energy and morale instead of depleting them.
This not only produces higher success rates; it ...
-1
votes
1answer
60 views
What is the best way in which to understand bracketed text?
Though a native English-speaker, I've always had trouble understanding bracketed text. It's fairly clear that parenthesis indicate "optional" text, as in below:
The (unusually quick) man stormed ...
0
votes
4answers
298 views
Using an ellipsis to show omission, when we skip complete sentences. 3 or 4 dots? [duplicate]
Imagine I want to quote this text (the parts in bold):
If there were such a thing, I think I'd be a champion. You know, baking under dangerous conditions, high-speed frosting... all hypothetical ...
1
vote
2answers
379 views
Use of a semicolon before and comma after “however”
Several years ago, a previous boss told me to use a semicolon and comma with the word "however". I've always questioned this and would like to know if the following random sentences are using the ...
0
votes
1answer
172 views
Where do I put a comma when I have quotes around a short story, and the sentence structure needs a comma? [duplicate]
Where do I put a comma when I have quotes around a short story, and the sentence structure needs a comma? I know that, generally, commas go inside of quotes, but what if the quotes are marking a short ...
1
vote
1answer
57 views
Should a chapter title be punctuated with quotes in text?
If one is typing the name of the chapter inside a story, do they put quotes around it? If not, how is one indicated?
0
votes
0answers
33 views
Software to change American punctuation to British [migrated]
My apologies if this is off topic.
American and British writing have different punctuation styles. Is there any software that can change American style punctuation to British? I am referring to ...
1
vote
1answer
114 views
Punctuation for lists
I have a sentence like this:
As you can see, there are two projects "project1" and "project2", where the latter uses the global wrapper functions defined in "project1" project.
My question is ...
15
votes
4answers
1k views
Meaning of “My friend, who lives in Paris, is a teacher” with and without commas
Can anyone help me understand the difference in meaning between these two sentences?
My friend who lives in Paris is a teacher.
My friend, who lives in Paris, is a teacher.
To me it ...
1
vote
1answer
339 views
Is the comma before “with” necessary?
The Oscars may not take place until February 24, but awards season is already in full swing, with the Golden Globes among Hollywood's many red-carpet events. (British Vogue, Feb 2013)
I've been ...
1
vote
3answers
102 views
Punctuation of a Direct Quote [closed]
Is any particular punctuation necessary when a quotation is the subject of a sentence? For example, in the sentence below, should there be a comma after export? Or anything else?
"Laughter is ...
3
votes
5answers
139 views
Question Regarding Possessives with ('s) and (of)
Question: Is the first one redundant and proper, or is it redundant and not necessarily correct? Thanks!
(1) "He is a friend of Doug's."
(2) "He is a friend of Doug."
2
votes
0answers
32 views
Correct place of period [duplicate]
Consider following that is followed by a parenthetical sentence. Which one is correct according to punctuation rules?
Xxx yyy zzz. (Aaa bbb ccc.)
Xxx yyy zzz (Aaa bbb ccc.).
0
votes
3answers
148 views
Can a semicolon be used to separate questions? [closed]
Did you see Survivor last night; it was crazy, right?
Did you see Survivor last night? It was crazy, right?
Can a semicolon separate questions? Which one is correct?
0
votes
2answers
92 views
Can “both” be used in this way as an appositive?
Although not a preferred style, in the following example, is it incorrect to treat "both" as an appositive, and therefore to insert commas around it?
Thank you, both, for helping.
0
votes
1answer
76 views
Do punctuation marks take on the formatting of the preceding word?
If the last word of a sententece is in boldface, should the question mark be bolded as well?
Which example is correct (see below)?
Example 1: How much did your hip, leg or foot hurt?
Example 2: How ...
1
vote
3answers
138 views
Comma after a long introductory phrase
Please help me with commas in the following sentence:
As an example of the successful use of such a model [,] one can mention SymPy computer algebra system [,] which uses Python as a main user ...
2
votes
2answers
122 views
Ending a sentence with “?!” or “!?”
When ending a sentence with a ? and a !, is there a rule which one comes first? That is, ?! or !?? If either is okay, are they interchangeable, or for difference circumstances?
0
votes
1answer
63 views
Comma with explanatory insertions?
I wonder if there should be commas in this sentence:
Method A translates votes into seats such that, for each
constituency, fixed seat-contingents are met.
Method A translates votes into seats such ...
3
votes
3answers
422 views
Punctuation to denote sarcasm
Does such a thing exist?
I am aware of the irony mark but it appears the backwards question mark symbol doesn't exist in most modern fonts (U+2E2E). That seems to be a good indication of its ...
0
votes
3answers
115 views
Punctuation and word choice in one particular sentence
I'm wondering, what is the correct punctuation in this sentence:
In OOP, each object contains data and a set of methods, which operate
on the data.
I read the rules about restrictive and ...
-1
votes
1answer
100 views
Punctuation or perhaps more [closed]
Does the punctuation in the following sentence make sense?
John is popular among clients, as well as the management who have
been very pleased with his work.
1
vote
4answers
131 views
He said “she is pretty” [closed]
How to correctly punctuate this?
He said "she is pretty".
Is a comma a must after 'said'? Do we need to make 's' in 'she' capitalized?
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votes
4answers
184 views
Using any punctuation, how many meanings does this sign have? [closed]
I was walking in the Norfolk countryside today, when I spotted this sign.
Notice that it is devoid of punctuation. It is obviously a warning sign to motorists. However, it made me giggle. Using any ...
2
votes
6answers
231 views
Em dash vs semicolon: which is more appropriate in the following examples?
I am very confused by these, and even when I understand other people's usage of them I find it difficult to know when to employ them myself. For this reason, I am trying to make my own examples and ...
1
vote
1answer
150 views
What do the question marks in this quote mean (or are they typos)?
I read the following in an article entitled "Duke resets after the 'annihilation'" By Laura Keeley of the Raleigh News and Observer, dated Friday, January 25, 2013. I've not seen question marks used ...
0
votes
1answer
150 views
Questions on question mark with a certain type of sentence
Do you use a question mark when a sentence starts as a question but then turns into a statement? For example, "Can you explain this to me, because I don't understand the second part." Another example ...
2
votes
3answers
154 views
Correct sentence ending: X asked, “Y?”
Is it correct to use sentences in the following format?
X asked, “...?”.
That is, a simple interrogative sentence enclosed within quotes followed by a period. Which is the correct sentence?
...
0
votes
2answers
109 views
Is prefixing “@” to address a person becoming an English standard?
In order to address or reply to a person, is prefixing an "@" symbol in front of their names becoming a standard in English?
This is really useful in e-communications wherein a parts of message can ...
3
votes
1answer
187 views
The usage of en dash between two complete dates
Is it necessary to put a space before and after the symbol en dash (–) put between two complete dates?
Example:
January 1, 2013 – January 1, 2014
1
vote
4answers
172 views
Usage of brackets/parentheses [closed]
When and how do we use the different kinds of brackets/parentheses — (){}[] — while writing English (not code)?
3
votes
1answer
99 views
Dollar sign necessary in “$16 LD”?
I'm editing a book that mentions Liberian Dollars (LD) and U.S. Dollars (USD). Should I put a dollar sign in front of the number or not? ($16 LD or 16 LD? $10 USD or 10 USD?)
1
vote
1answer
116 views
What punctuation mark should I use? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
What is the proper use of [square brackets] in quotes?
What do brackets in a quote mean?
When I add information beside a word in a Bible verse, what bracket should I ...
6
votes
4answers
1k views
When writing out large numbers in words, should commas be placed at thousand separators?
Would a number, say,
5,629,296
be written with commas:
Five million, six hundred twenty nine thousand, two hundred ninety six
or without commas:
Five million six hundred twenty nine ...
0
votes
1answer
441 views
Is there a comma after “As of today”?
As of today(?) I'm a student of a prestigious university.
Should there be a comma after "As of today"?
0
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2answers
187 views
Question regarding the use of “rather than” [closed]
Can you please tell me whether the following sentence is correct? Would you improve it (for example using appropriate punctuation)?
Hence several attempts have been made to cope with rather than ...
0
votes
2answers
355 views
When to use ellipsis (suspension points)
Continuing this thought:
Learning English as a second language I was taught that suspension points meant uncertainty, omission of words or interrupted thoughts. There are plenty of threads ...
