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.
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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
270 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
2
votes
4answers
199 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
105 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 ...
7
votes
5answers
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
488 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"?
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votes
2answers
205 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 ...
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2answers
402 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 ...
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3answers
126 views
The usage of quotation marks
I'm discussing and comparing two books and I want to know if I'm using quotation marks correctly:
Both books are known for being existential and the reader is bombarded with questions throughout ...
-2
votes
1answer
117 views
Is “… et al. data.” proper grammar? [closed]
Would it be proper grammar to use the Latin phrase in the following way?
The items inserted came from departments, employees et al. data.
1
vote
2answers
171 views
What is the grammatical construct using present progressive in relative clauses called?
When I learned this, it had a very distinctive name and allowed to make more interesting sentences. For instance, given the sentence
Fred extended his feet, which stopped the car.
It can be ...
2
votes
3answers
165 views
How do you punctuate around parentheses?
Which of these punctuation examples is more correct?
On December 7, 1941, ("a date which will live in infamy") Japan bombed Pearl Harbor.
On December 7, 1941 ("a date which will live in ...
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vote
3answers
166 views
This is a question regarding punctuation, I suppose
I have a tendency to place the phrase I suppose at the end of a sentence. It sounds alright to me. But when I want to write the expression down in words, how should I write it so that I won't violate ...
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votes
3answers
212 views
Are semicolons mandatory in a non-bulleted list after a colon?
Are semicolons required (rather than commas) in a list after a colon when the list is not bulleted? I was told that it was a rule, but I can find no authoritative prescriptive source.
Consider the ...
3
votes
1answer
302 views
What is it called when punctuation changes the meaning of a sentence?
Is there a word describing a sentence whose meaning is changed by moving the punctuation? For example,
Let’s eat, Mommy!
and
Let’s eat Mommy!
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votes
3answers
183 views
I've seen this kind of sentence before, but don't recall the correct punctuation separating the two clauses. Help?
I had lived most of my life suffering from panic attacks, of being afraid of everything for absolutely no reason at all.
It's a kind of stylized sentence. The second half is saying the same ...
1
vote
1answer
233 views
When to use or omit periods in acronyms, abbreviations, and initials [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Is it OK to drop the periods in abbreviations?
I don't understand when or where to use or discard a period when writing short forms.
For example, my college is the ...
-1
votes
1answer
71 views
Comma in “Before I go I will return the book” [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
When do I use the comma?
Before I go I will return the book.
Do we have to use a comma in the above sentence?
15
votes
3answers
456 views
You don't want to answer this word-placement question, now do you?
Prompted by this question I got to thinking about the placement of the word now.
If it's placed before the comma, it refers to an immediate condition:
You don't want to answer this word-placement ...
1
vote
1answer
112 views
Is a question mark needed at the end of a question if the sentence ends with a period or an exclamation mark?
For example, in the two sentences below, are you supposed to end with a question mark?
Which of Shaw's plays has the line "If only parents would realize how they bore their children!"
And
Is ...
31
votes
3answers
3k views
Why does the multi-paragraph quotation rule exist?
The answer to this question clearly explains the standard rule that when you have multiple quoted paragraphs, each new paragraph starts with an opening quotation mark, but only the final quoted ...
1
vote
2answers
57 views
'and to' quagmire
Consider:
Her goal is to pioneer the idea of gardening in small or urban environments, and to inspire and educate people everywhere to grow their own organic food and live sustainably.
The comma ...
0
votes
3answers
1k views
How should the punctuation work for “and, therefore,”?
I'm unsure where to place the commas:
[some argument], and, therefore, [blah blah].
or is it
[some argument] and, therefore, [blah blah].
or is it
[some argument], and therefore, [blah ...
4
votes
2answers
312 views
Period or colon? [closed]
Say, I have the following sentence: "The Gaussian Sobolev spaces are as expected defined as follows" and then you do a definition environment after. The question is: how do you end "as follows"? With ...
0
votes
0answers
58 views
Why are some words put in […] rather than without them? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
What is the proper use of [square brackets] in quotes?
I have come across articles, interviews, quotes etc., where a singular word in put in the box bracket.
Here is a ...
1
vote
1answer
127 views
Question about sentence structure and semicolons
Suppose the following sentence:
When the sun comes in the morning; the sky is blue.
Are "When the sun comes in the morning" and "the sky is blue" two clauses of the sentence? So, is it correct to ...
3
votes
1answer
117 views
Where shall I put the comma in this sentence?
I'm not sure whether I should write like this:
Try A or, a more famous one, B.
Or like this
Try A, or a more famous one, B.
Or try other forms to avoid expression like this.
Does anyone ...
-1
votes
1answer
102 views
Punctuation immediately after a question mark in a quote? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
How should I punctuate around quotes?
Comma placement when using quotes that end with a question mark
Say you're quoting someone with a requirement for a punctuation, ...
12
votes
5answers
531 views
Which type of comma is used here?
I was reading a book called "The Penguin Guide to Punctuation" by R. L. Trask. It seems that the book doesn't explain all the uses of comma. It says "There are four uses of the
comma, called the ...
10
votes
2answers
3k views
Do footnoting superscripts go inside or outside punctuation?
When using superscripts to indicate a footnote, do these fall inside or outside adjacent punctuation? If there is an answer, is that answer applicable worldwide, or just to specific regions or ...
1
vote
1answer
145 views
When to use commas (if at all) with subordinate clauses? [closed]
I'm finding conflicting guidelines about the use of commas with subordinate clauses. What are the rules?
Also, which of the following is correct, and why?
Some of what Mike did needs to be ...
6
votes
2answers
169 views
A quantity followed by a measurement (eg: 200 35mm circles)
If you have a quantity of items, where the items themselves are described with a measurement, how should you format this so it is unambiguous?
For example, This diagram contains...
two hundred ...
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votes
2answers
273 views
Punctuation after “I couldn't help but to think” introducing a quote — colon or comma? [closed]
I couldn’t help but to think: “Is this really what the meaning of success has become?” and to make matters even worse, this idea was just spread to the thousands of viewers.
Is the colon ...
0
votes
0answers
44 views
Should punctuation characters have a preceding space? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Is it ever correct to have a space before a question or exclamation mark?
Often, I see special punctuation characters such as exclamation points (!), question points ...
1
vote
3answers
626 views
Use of comma after “and” in “obsolete and, frankly pathetic”
Is the comma after the word and in this sentence correct?
Social networks made having friends obsolete and, frankly pathetic.
3
votes
3answers
2k views
Comma before “which”
I am editing a court transcript for a class (cannot alter the text). For each change I make, I need to cite a rule for it. I have read a lot about the use of which and that, and I am still confused on ...
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votes
1answer
338 views
Is “at least” a parenthetical expression requiring commas?
Is this sentence punctuated correctly with no commas surrounding "at least," or does it need them?
Why or why not?
Adverbial phrase? Essential or nonessential?
I have been looking at it too long and ...
-1
votes
1answer
108 views
Exclamation mark at the end of a quote and end of a sentence [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
When should end punctuation go inside quotes?
Is the grammar at the end of the following sentence correct? If not, what should it be?
I was told in no uncertain ...
3
votes
1answer
170 views
Hyphenation or blending
Are there any rules when to write a set of two (or more) words or abbreviations forming a name of some entity as separate, when to hyphenate, and when to stick them together?
These are my findings ...
3
votes
1answer
141 views
Colon between “that is” and formal definition
Is it appropriate to use "that is" followed by a colon when defining something formally? I have the following example:
Let γ be the set of groups that hold variables accessed by C, that is:
γ ...
4
votes
2answers
83 views
“It is, a done deed” [closed]
Comment on imgur:
Actually that's an appropriate use, comma used for the purpose of producing a short pause to add emphasis to what follows.
Is the comma in it is, a done deed correctly used?
0
votes
0answers
73 views
Does this sentence require a comma after the first quotation? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Punctuation of direct speech, edge cases
I wrote the following into my Facebook status:
Drinking coffee with a saucer for the first time in my life and it's making ...
6
votes
1answer
179 views
What is “:-” used for? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Henry Adam’s use of punctuation, “:—”
I've seen a couple of times, ":-" occurring where I could expect just a colon to occur, perhaps preceding a list.
When is it ...
0
votes
2answers
258 views
Comma use in “I am passionate about X, whether it be …”
I have trouble telling when I’m overusing commas. My question is if the comma between undertake and whether is needed:
I am passionate about the quality of work I undertake, whether it be school ...
2
votes
0answers
524 views
How to punctuate a quote within a quote? [duplicate]
Duplicate of:
What’s the difference between using single and double quotation marks/inverted commas?
How are embedded quotations used?
And:
When should end punctuation go inside quotes?
...
0
votes
1answer
77 views
Can a comma be used here? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Should I put a comma before the last item in a list?
In the following example, should there be a comma?
John has a car, and a motorbike.
John has a car and a ...
1
vote
2answers
2k views
“Each other's presence” vs. “each others' presence” [closed]
Which of the following is correct?
spend time in each other's presence
spend time in each others' presence
2
votes
6answers
233 views
Which punctuation to use in “I wonder _ could there be…”
I just came across a sentence in this form:
I wonder if could there be more precise translations ...
Obviously the if doesn't belong. As a native speaker I would say
I wonder __ could there ...
1
vote
1answer
161 views
Ellipsis at the end of a quote [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Punctuation of direct speech, edge cases
Space before three dots?
"I don't think so," she stated.
"I don't think..." her voice trailed off.
Is this second ...
