Full
stop: (.)
The
primary use of a period is to end a sentence. Its second important use is for
abbreviations. There are stylistic differences here.
Example:
Jasmine ate a
chocolate-broccoli muffin.
Assertive sentence
I am a student.
Imperative
sentence
Read attentively.
Optative sentece
May you shine in life.
(!) (both the terms are correct)
Fowler
Martin Fowler, author
of Modern English Usage, says that we should place a period at the end of an
abbreviation only when the final letter of the abbreviation is not the final
letter of the expanded word.
For example:
For example:
Jesus Christ was born c. 4-6AD
The abbreviation is for the word “circa” – as it ends in an
‘a’ and the abbreviation is normally ‘c’ – we include the period.
Mr Jones was happy to see his wife.
St Patrick lived in Ireland.
In the first case above, “Mr” is an abbreviation for mister.
Because mister ends in an ‘r’ and the abbreviation include that ‘r’, we omit
the period.
Other
If an abbreviated phrase is pronounced, we do not include
periods. For example: NASA is correct, N.A.S.A is incorrect. In some cases the
periods are omitted even when the word is not pronounced, usually because it is
a very commonly known term.
For example:
BUET (Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology).
In the case of a word like et cetera (etc.,) we always
include the period.
Comma
(,)
The Oxford Comma
I prefer the Oxford
comma when dealing with lists. It is also known as the Serial Comma or the
Harvard Comma. The Oxford comma is much more widespread in American English
than British English. When using the Oxford comma, all items in a list of three
or more items are separated.
For example:
For example:
I love apples, pears, and oranges.
Note the comma after “pears”. Many people prefer not to use
this style and will omit the final comma. We call this the Oxford comma because
it is the standard method taught at Oxford University.
Use comma after and
before a case in apposition
For example:
Mr Alom, a
professor of English, lives in Dhaka.
Abid, a
Close up One star, died last year.
Introductory words that
should be followed by a comma are: yes, however, and well.
For example:
Yes, you can come to the party.
No, I shall not come.
Use comma after and
before Parenthesis.
For example:
He, however, did not go.
You are, after all, a good man.
He is, I think, an honest man.
Use commas after
introductory words, phrases, or clauses that come before the main clause:
While I was eating, the cat scratched at the door.
If you are ill, you ought to see a doctor.
NOTE: You should not do
the reverse of this. For example, the following two cases are wrong:
Use comma according to the
position of vocative case.
For example:
Mother, pray for me!
Tell me, my brothers, what I can do.
Be attentive, boys.
Question
mark (?)
The question mark is a
fairly easy punctuation mark to use. It has one use, and one use alone. It goes
at the end of a sentence which is a question.
For example:
How many will be at the party?
Direct question
Why did you enter the room?
Are you there?
Uncertain information
We visited Dhaka ON 23 July (?)
He earns Tk. 50,000 (?) per month.
Note
of Exclamation (!)
Only use this when
issuing a command or speaking forcefully! As in the case of the question mark,
do not follow this with a period and do not combine it with other punctuation
marks. Oh, and only one is needed. Two or three exclamation marks in a row is completely
unnecessary.
For example:
Hurrah! We have won the game.
What a success!
My goodness! What a pity! Help!
Oh my friend! Do not disturb me.
Hyphen
(-)
Use hyphen to make
compound word.
For example:
Up-to-date; mother-in-law; built-in
Use hyphen at the end
of a line if the word is unfinished.
For example:
I have a sis-
ter.
Use hyphen in case of
number and fraction.
For example:
Thirty-five; there-quarters
Semicolon
(;)
A mark of punctuation
( ; ) used to connect independent clauses
and show a closer relationship than a period does.
It sits instead of coordinating
conjunction in compound sentence.
For example:
The road was bumpy: the bus was
rickety.
I went to college; I sat on the
first bench; I listened to my teacher’s lecture well.
Use semicolon before
the conjunction (yet, still, otherwise, then, however, so, therefore) which
expresses contrast or inference.
For example:
Anup didn’t study hard; so, he failed in the exam.
You should speak the truth; otherwise, you will be punished.
Dancing is good for body; however, it’s not supported for all ages of
people in our country.
Colon(:)
Semicolon can be used instead
of Such as, as follows, the following, thus, and so on.
For example:
The following are his virtues: Honesty, morality and sincerity.
I got just what I wanted for my birthday: a laptop.
Use semicolon to
differentiate speaker and quotation.
For example:
John: where are you going?
Jenny: I am going to college.
Quotation
Marks (ʽʽ ʼʼ) (ʻ ʼ)
Use quotation mark to
give quotation of someone.
For example:
He said to me, ʽʽHelp me
please.ʼʼ
Jemmy said to me, ʽʽCan you
remember me? ʼʼ
Use quotation mark for
story, poem, and special words.
For example:
ʽUlyssesʼ is written by Tennyson.
ʽTheyʼ is a
pronoun.
You are already 50. Still you are my ʽbabyʼ
Apostrophe
( ʼ)
Use apostrophe to
indicate omission of letters of a word.
For example:
Didn’t, can’t; I’ve; he’ll; ain’t; shan’t; won’t; o’clock (of the clock);
O’Neil (of Neil)
Use apostrophe in case
of possessive case of noun.
For example:
John’s mother; Guliba’s book;
sailors’ throats
Sometimes, in case of date
For example:
’95 ( instead of 1665 or 1995)
In summary,
However,
To begin,
Furthermore,
Instead,
Firstly,
Secondly,
3) Never use excessive punctuation!!!!! This will not create a greater sense of urgency or strong emotion, especially in formal writing.
Example: May I ask you a question?
Punctuation errors of IELTS writing
We have been checking many writing tasks from
students and one of the very common mistakes even advanced learners can make is
wrong punctuation.
Hence, we are writing this article with the aim
to improve your writing skills, especially for those who usually make this kind
of mistake.
1) The last word ends in a
period
For example: "C.E.O." is an abbreviation of Chief Executive Officer and ends in a period.
Correct: I know that C.E.O. He used to be my boss.
Wrong: I know that C.E.O.. He used to be my boss.
2) Comma after the following phrases:For example: "C.E.O." is an abbreviation of Chief Executive Officer and ends in a period.
Correct: I know that C.E.O. He used to be my boss.
Wrong: I know that C.E.O.. He used to be my boss.
In summary,
However,
To begin,
Furthermore,
Instead,
Firstly,
Secondly,
Even advanced IELTS learners can also make
these mistakes.
3) Never use excessive punctuation!!!!! This will not create a greater sense of urgency or strong emotion, especially in formal writing.
4) Spacing after punctuation:
after a period or comma, you have to put a space.
For example: "To begin, happiness is hard to be defined as different people may have very different concepts of happiness."
After "To begin", we have to put a space.
For example: "To begin, happiness is hard to be defined as different people may have very different concepts of happiness."
After "To begin", we have to put a space.
5) Periods and commas always
go inside of quotation marks.
Example: "I think you're great."
Example: "I think you're great."
6) When doing this
"..." you should use only 3 dots.
7) When using dashes, use two
in a row.
Example: Punctuation -- 9 Rules.
Example: Punctuation -- 9 Rules.
8) Use no spaces on either
side of a hyphen.
Example: We need twenty-four boxes.
9) Use a question mark only after a direct question.Example: We need twenty-four boxes.
Example: May I ask you a question?
