Punctuation
has three important functions:
1. phonetic: this is very important, since punctuation marks the rhythm, pauses, and tone inflexions in a
written document;
2. grammatical: punctuation is used in direct style; to form interrogations; to mark emphatic content; to
highlight syntactic elements displaced from their natural positions; and to build the structure of the sentences,
complex sentences, paragraphs, documents; etc.;
3. semantic: punctuation helps understanding the meaning of particular words/phrases by
marking/highlighting them differently than normal text, using italics, underline, bolds, capitals, etc.
Little explanations are needed. The most important aspect in English is the meaning. In order to send a
clear message, the author may insert punctuation marks (ex. commas) even if that is against grammatical rules--no
true grammar critic will ever object. However, "bending" grammatical rules to accommodate the meaning
may be done only accidentally; if things are repetitive in nature, they become grammatical mistakes.
Lastly, the minimum of grammatical punctuation marks needs to be there. For example, I mentioned briefly
somewhere in this pages about relative clauses. Those relative clauses are, possibly, one of the toughest
issue in English grammar: relative restrictive clauses are never marked by commas; relative descriptive
clause may be marked by commas, and my advise is, do add those commas to prevent confusion.
Any author of scientific or literary documents knows that punctuation is tremendously important, and all of them
are looking feverishly to find good information to help them out. Some books, say, The Chicago Manual of Style, is
way too thick: the punctuation topics are scattered on about 1600 pages--that is not good. Not to mention the book
fails to explain some "truly" important issues. That is done with intention, or by lack of knowledge;
because they are not explained, we are free to speculate. In order to help the readers, the Punctuation chapter in
Logically Structured English Grammar presents all punctuation aspects in details, in
hundreds of examples, taking into account typographical conventions highlighted in few books (The Chicago Manual
of Style, Oxford Guide to Style, etc.) and also the English grammar orthographical rules.
BRIEF HISTORY
In 1890 one page of punctuation rules was printed in Chicago, in order to limit authors' wild imagination. Those
rules were imposed by the printing industry, and they were first assembled in a book, in 1906. Today, The
Chicago Manual of Style has reached the 15th Edition, and it is a thick, important book. You could purchase it
if you follow this link:
http://www.press.uchicago.edu/Misc/Chicago/cmosfaq/about.html
What you should know about The Chicago Manual of Style is, the rules it contains are not arbitrary: they
were written according to the English grammar rules, plus few generally accepted typographic conventions.
In this page I will touch generally only few punctuation aspects described in The Chicago Manual of Style,
but taking as "true rules" the English grammar ones. Do not worry, my friend: both of them are
identical. Besides, The Chicago Manual of Style is only a recommendation: it does not, and it cannot,
substitute to the English grammar rules.
In addition, please be aware there are many other excellent books dedicated to Style and Punctuation; for example:
"Webster's Style Manual", "The Oxford Guide to Style", etc.
NOTE
Psychologically, the average reader ignores punctuation, at first. However, if the meaning of a complex
sentence is obscure or difficult to understand, the reader can use only punctuation to help him out. The problem
is, many times the minimum amount of the required punctuation is missing, and that is a clear indication of poor
literary quality.
GENERAL (AND CONVENTIONAL) RULE
It is best (and it is also recommended) to use the minimum necessary amount of punctuation marks/symbols
in any literary document. In other words, do not abuse punctuation, but also do not ignore the minimum
necessary amount of punctuation marks.
The basic structure employed to present punctuation is:
1. Comma
2. Semicolon
3. Colon
4. Period
5. Question Mark
6. Exclamation Mark/Point
7. Points of Ellipsis
8. Dash
9. Parenthesis and Brackets
10. Quotation Marks
11. Apostrophe and Possessives
12. Hyphen
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ATTENTION
These Grammar Notes are not sufficient to understand the topics presented. For accurate and detailed
information we recommend Logically Structured English Grammar book.
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Comma is the most used punctuation element. It has two main functions, both very important:
1. it marks a brief pause (sometimes needed to explain the meaning);
2. it marks particular sentence elements, displaced elements, appositions, nominative of address, and it may
segregate clauses in complex sentences.
Generally, there is a strong tendency to limit drastically the number of commas, but that is not always a good
thing.
Comma is used:
1. after each element in a series of elements of the same kind;
2. to isolate elements/parts of the sentence which have been displaced from their default positions;
3. to isolate introductory elements/phrases, including introductory adverbs: consequently; however; of course;
possibly; therefore; also; too; incidentally;
4. to isolate exclamations, interjections, and words as are: yes; no; My Dear;
6. to introduce a short dialog in Direct Style--generally, one single complex sentence, and no longer that two
written lines;
7. to avoid ambiguity.
Additional comma use considerations:
1. Clauses in coordination relations are not (necessarily) marked by commas if they are short;
2. Subjective, direct object, or prepositional object clauses in a complex sentence are not marked by commas;
3. Relative adverbial and apposition clauses are isolated by commas, because they could be missing without
changing the meaning;
4. Adverbial of time, place, and conditional clauses are marked by commas when they are ahead of the main clause,
and not when they come after--unless accentuation is needed/wanted.
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Fragment
from LSEG: using commas.
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Semicolon sets a pause longer than comma, and shorter than period (full stop).
Again, it is better to take control of this punctuation element and use it appropriately instead of
neglecting it.
Semicolon is used to:
1. to separate two or more long clauses having coordination relations--each clause has full meaning, and
each refers to the same subject;
2. to point out the meaning of some conjunctions, sentence elements, or complex sentence components, by
introducing a bit longer pause ahead of them.
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Fragment
from LSEG: using semicolon.
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Phonetically, the colon is a brief pause, slightly longer than semicolon, but shorter then period
(full stop).
Colon is used:
1. to explain abbreviations;
2. before a long enumeration;
3. before sentences containing Direct Style;
4. at the end of a clause which is going to be explained in the following clause;
5. before an example;
6. when we want to mark a phonetic pause, longer than semicolon and shorter than period.
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Fragment
from LSEG: using colon.
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What we name period today was known as "full stop" sometime ago. It marks the end of a sentence or
a complex sentence and it is expressed as a bit longer pause.
Period is used:
1. at the end of a sentence which is not an emphatic or interrogative one;
2. after abbreviations.
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The question mark introduces a particular tone for the entire sentence. It is used in Direct Style
interrogations, and not (necessarily) in indirect style.
Examples:
"Are you all right, Miss Henderson?" (direct style interrogation)
I asked Miss Henderson if she was all right. (indirect style interrogation)
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The exclamation mark (or exclamation point) is used after:
1. interjections;
2. words biased by strong emotional content;
3. sentences having strong emotional content;
4. to mark an order (command).
Examples:
Oh!
Well!
This is unbelievable!
Shut up!
Yes!
To his total surprise Ms. Hutchins agreed, and he signed--very happy!--the contract.
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Points of Ellipsis have two functions:
1. To mark hesitant speech, lack of attention, or deep concentration/thoughts on topics different than
the ones expressed. On occasions, the hesitation is intentional, trying to suggest implicitly understood
situations, words, or facts.
The Chicago Manual of Style recommends, points of ellipsis are marked as ( . . . ) with a space before
(and after).
Examples:
"As I was saying, this is not a common behavior . . . In fact, it is highly unusual to . . ."
"Are you referring to . . .?"
"Yes."
2. To mark missing words
Example:
The boar is a wild animal living in . . . Two times a year the hoards of boar met and they
. . . for about five months.
The Chicago Manual of Style is fairly ambiguous regarding the use of points of ellipsis; therefore, LSEG is
highly recommended to clarify this topic.
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The use of the "dash" has few particularities specific to North American English. They are well
presented in The Chicago Manual of Style, although little caution is required when using them, as it
is highlighted in LSEG. The following particular dashes are presented here:
1. the "en" dash
2. the "em" dash
Using the "en" dash
The "en" dash is a bit longer than the hyphen, and it is a typographical not a fundamental
orthographic mark. Two functions are important [I used a normal hyphen to illustrate the examples here]:
1. to mark the absence of "to" in special constructions like:
Monday-Friday (It should be read as "Monday to Friday")
January-June
1935-1957
2. In combination with figures and capital letters:
AM-FM
A-6
MIG-25
Because it is a special typographic mark, the en dash is not much used. In addition, the en dash
is easily confused for the em dash--which is very much used. Use en dashes with great caution.
Using the "em" dash
The "em" dash is a relatively modern addition, and specific to English. It is a special
typographic character, but it may be found in most Word Editors because it is employed a lot. In this page
(only) the following symbols are used:
# -- for 1 em dash
# --- for 2 em dashes
# ---- for 3 em dashes
One em dash is used:
1. to mark a sudden/abrupt change in speech/thought;
2. to mark a voluntary/involuntary abrupt interruption of speech;
3. instead of commas or parenthesis;
4. before a conclusive, final clause.
Two em dashes are used to mark missing letters. Three em dashes are used to mark missing words.
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Parentheses and (square) brackets have many functions, such as:
1. they introduce additional explanations which could be safely omitted;
2. they make reference to paragraphs, sections, etc;
3. they are used in juridical papers;
4. they could be used to present particular situations. For example, translated words.
Example:
He loved Giconda more than his life [Giconda means "the wife of Francisco del Gicondo"
in (small talk) Italian].
Parentheses and brackets complicate the reading of a literary document a lot. If possible, try to avoid
them, and particularly nesting parentheses. They are used mostly in specialty documents, as are the grammar
ones, to present additional information. The alternative to a pair of parentheses is a pair of commas or a
pair of "em" dashes.
Literally, nesting parentheses may take the following acceptable forms:
( ( ) ); ( [ ] ); [ ( ) ].
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Quotation marks are very important. Before anything, they mark direct style. To summarize, their
functions are:
1. to highlight a word, or to point out that it is written as spoken
Examples:
The so called "intelligentsia" it is not necessarily an "elite".
2. to introduce dialogs, or direct style
Examples:
She inquired: "Are you absolutely certain, John? What if you are wrong?"
3. to include quotations within quotations
Example:
John said: "My father shouted 'Come here', and I did just that."
The conventional rule is, the succession of quotations within quotations should be limited to maximum
three levels. The order of using nested quotation marks is: double, simple, double [this order is
reversed in UK: simple, double, simple].
4. to include a very short quotation
Example:
"That was when I opened that door and I answered 'Yes', then he ran away."
An important issue is to include the sentence-end marks (such as the period, comma, exclamation mark, or the
question mark) within quotations. That is done in dialogs, and it is not (generally) done in brief direct
style expressions embedded in indirect style.
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Apostrophe is an important punctuation mark. Spoken English is simply decimated by shortcuts, and the
apostrophe helps marking/forming them.
The apostrophe is used to:
1. to mark the absence of few letters or syllables in contractions
Examples:
Didn't instead of "did not". Couldn't instead of "could not". Isn't
instead of "is not". Haven't instead of "have not". It's instead of
"it is".
2. to form synthetic (Saxon) genitive case of the nouns
Examples:
Britain's team
Players' Club
Ladies' Fashion
3. to present "as close to real as possible" bad or impaired spoken English
Examples:
"That ain't good, aye?"
"Come on B'uce, take that b'oom and give it a t'y, man! Get a g'ip, man!"
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Hyphen has few nice functions:
1. It is used to mark (some) compound nouns
Examples:
Blue-eyed; dining-room; son-in-law; bell-boy; etc.
2. It is used to mark (some) custom compound nouns, new adjectives, custom adverbs, etc.
Examples:
Big-daddy; quick-fingers; death-slow; etc.
3. It is used to break words into syllables, or into spelled letters
Examples:
"Can-you-talk-Ghe-the?"
This is just beauti-
ful.
G-h-e-t-h-e D-a-k-k-a
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