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Open Writing Lab

Learn the rules and usage of commas, semicolons, colons, lists, and quotation marks in writing. Improve your punctuation skills for clearer communication.

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Open Writing Lab

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  1. Open Writing Lab Punctuation 20.05.2011 CGB

  2. It’s a wise dog that scratches its own fleas. PANDA. Large black-and-white bear-like mammal, native to China. Eats, shoots and leaves.

  3. Commas • Semicolons and colons • Lists • Quotation marks

  4. COMMA (1-7) *Use commas when not using one makes it difficult to understand the meaning of the sentence.

  5. COMMA (2-7) • Commas are used after an introductory element. • Use commas in lists.* (NB (i) serial / Oxford / Harvard comma, (ii) sometimes semicolons) • Commas set off extraneous information; information that can be deleted. • Commas are used in statements that are joined by a conjunction (and, or, but, while and yet). (NB splice comma)

  6. COMMA (3-7) • Exampleof 1 (after an introductory element) In the first case, the data showed … Whentwoequallyefficacious and safe treatmentsareavailable, thepatient’spreferenceshould be takenintoaccount.

  7. COMMA (4-7) • Exampleof 2 (in lists) She is a tall, red-haired girl. Serial comma / Oxford / Harvard comma: The flag is red, white, and blue. Note – in shortsentencestheserialcommacan be dropped: The flag is re, white and blue. My favourite sandwiches are chicken, bacon, and ham and cheese.

  8. COMMA (5-7) • Exampleof 3 (extraneousinformation) The cells, whichhadbeen sent to us by the lab, wereinfected. Raymond Turner, a mammalogist, describedtwo species. NOT: The species, Bombyxmori, is distinguished from …

  9. COMMA (6-7) • Exampleof 4 (statements joined by a conjunction) for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so The survey wascompleted in June 1983, and themapwaspublished in July 1984. BUT Wefinished in June and themapappeared in December. *becausethesentence is short, thecommacan be dropped

  10. COMMA (7-7) Splice comma • A comma splice occurs when only a comma separates clauses that could each stand alone as a sentence. • To correct a comma splice, you can insert a semicolon or period, or connect the clauses clearly with a word such as ‘and’ or ‘because’, or restructure the sentence. • Examples: I wasstronglyattracted to her, shehadspecialqualities. It is nearly half past five, we cannot reach town before dark. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comma_splice

  11. SEMICOLONS & COLONS (1-3) • Semicolons join sentences instead of conjunctions such as ‘and’ or ‘but’. • Using a semicolon implies a close relationship between the information in the two sentences. The uppermost formation, first identified by Smith, is sandstone; the next lower, identified by Jones, is shale. Slow-stop mutants complete one round of replication; they cannot start another. In men the most important causative factor is a high-fat diet; in women, an oestrogen deficiency.

  12. SEMICOLONS & COLONS (2-3) A colon joins two independent clauses where the second clause interprets or amplifies the first. It may also introduce a list. Smith could not speak: he was drunk. We had second thoughts about the first run: the data lacked the needed precision. The lectures covered three topics: carbohydrates, proteins, and lipids. AND NOT: The lectures covered: carbohydrates, proteins, and lipids. * There must be a complete sentence before the colon.

  13. SEMICOLONS & COLONS (3-3) Note the changes in nuance of meaning: Tom locked himself in the garden shed. England lost to Argentina. (two events, perhaps, but not necessarily connected) Tom locked himself in the garden shed; England lost to Argentina. (two events connected somehow, may only be loosely) Tom locked himself in the garden shed: England lost to Argentina. (two events, clearly linked causally)

  14. LISTS • Use a colon to introduce the list itemsonly if list is preceeded by a completesentence. • Use a semicolonbetween list itemswhenthe material is complex. His ethnographic studies concentrated on three groups: Chinese, Japanese, and Taiwanese; French, Germans, and Austrians; and Inuit, Mexicans, and Peruvians.

  15. QUOTATION MARKS NB Differences in American and British English • American: commas and periods are almost always placed inside closing quotation marks AND in nested quotations, “” is for the main quote, while ‘’ is for the nested quotation • British style is often called logical punctuation! “Carefree,” in general, means “free from care or anxiety.” (American) “Carefree”, in general, means “free from care or anxiety”. (British) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quotation_mark

  16. More … http://folk.uib.no/gmset/writing/practical_tips/punctuation.html CGB’s Open Writing Lab http://folk.uib.no/gmset/writing/open_writing_lab.html

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