Punctuations

Punctuation

Punctuation is the name for marks used in writing text. They are to help understanding and the correct reading. They includes marks, not words, that help the structure of a sentence and help the reader understand or navigate that sentence.

The  common punctuation marks used in English are:

• .  is a period or full stop
• , is a comma
• ? is a question mark
• ! is an exclamation mark
• ‘ is an apostrophe or single quote mark
• “ is a quotation mark/inverted comma
• : is a colon
• ; is a semicolon
• … is an ellipsis mark
• – is a hyphen
• – is an en dash
• — is an em dash
• ( ) are parentheses or curved brackets
• [ ] are brackets or square brackets.

Importance for Punctuation

(a) It helps the reader  to know where sentences begin or end.

(b) They also can help you understand when to breathe or pause when reading a sentence.

(c) It makes writing and sentences clear, effective, and understandable.

(d) It helps to convey ideas to your reader by guiding them through your language, sentences, and thoughts.

Period or full stop (.)

A mark used to end a sentence, when the sentence is not a question or statement or it is used at the end of a complete declarative sentence.

(1) The dog sat outside the door.

(2) I like to eat pizza very much.

(3) I have a very big teddy bear.

(4) She brought many fruits and vegetables from the market.

(5) My mother never allow me to play video games.

(6) My favorite color is pink.

(7) She is a very good singer.

(8) Rohan is suffering  from high fever.

(9) Leopard is a very dangerous animal.

(10) The wind is blowing very fast.

(11) We are learning Solar System.

(12) They are playing football.

(13) The coffee is very hot.

(14) The stars twinkle at night.

(15) Rohit and Mohan are best friends.

(16) Rahul bought a bunch of flowers for me.

(17) Arjun exercises everyday.

(18) Mysore Pak is a famous sweet of Southern India.

(19) There are 5 Oceans in the world.

(20) The Taj Mahal is a beautiful monument.

Comma (,) 

A comma is a punctuation mark used to help the reader by separating parts of a sentence. It sometimes corresponds to a pause in speech. In other words, it is used mainly to indicate a brief pause.

It is used to separate things in a list, two sentences with a conjunction, parts of the sentences and to indicate a pause in a sentence or question.

(1) Despite the fact it is raining, I still want to go to the zoo.

(2) My favorite sports are football, tennis, swimming and gymnastics.

(3) Rita , Meena and Rahul are excited to go in a school trip.

(4) He is a strong, healthy man.

(5) Mrs Paul gave her property to her son and daughter equally.

(6) He walked all the way home, and he shut the door.

(7) John, my friend, is 28 years old.

(8) I really wanted cereal this morning, but i didn’t have any milk.

(9) Yesterday afternoon, I went to my grandmother’s house.

(10) My favorite fruits are apple, mango, cherry and banana.

(11) The long, sparkly dress was perfect for the dance.

(12) Mohan likes reading, dancing and playing piano.

(13) The giant had a large head, hairy ears and two big, beady eyes.

(14) John completed his homework, packed his bags and went to sleep

(15) It’s an old car , but it’s very reliable.

(16) I need to buy a dress, so I am going to the mall.

(17)  We were out of milk, so I went to the store.

(18) The pet store has cats, dogs, hamsters, fish, and turtles.

(19) My mom will pack my lunch, and my dad will take me to school.

(20) At the sound of starting gun, the race began.

Question Mark (?)

The question mark is a punctuation mark that indicates an interrogative clause or phrase in many languages. The question mark is used at the end of a direct question. The main purpose of question is to indicate that a sentence is a question. Direct questions often (but not always) begin with a wh- word (who, what, when, where, why).

(1) What are you doing?

(2) Where were you going?

(3) What is your name?

(4) Where is my pen?

(5) How are you?

(6) Why were you crying?

(7) How do I complete my tasks?

(8) What is the answer of this question?

(9) How do you do your assignments ?

(10) Who is our Chief Minister?

(11) How should I solve this query ?

(12) When will train come at the platform?

(13) When will it rain today?

(14) Where is your bicycle?

(15) How do you do ?

(16) Why did you come here?

(17) Where is your uncle?

(18) How come you have three cars?

(19) What do yo mean by democracy?

(20) where do penguins live?

Exclamation mark (!)

It is used to show strong emotion at the end of a sentence or after an interjection.  It expresses high levels of emotion or excitement. Exclamations always begin with ‘what’ or ‘how’ and are usually punctuated by an Exclamation mark (!). It is also used at the end of short interjections such as “Wow!” or “Ouch!” and to draw attention to a fact or opinion

Examples

(1) What a beautiful day!

(2) How well he  listens!

(3) I am so angry right now!

(4) You are such a fool!

(5) How exciting this holiday has been!

(6) Wow! Its raining outside!

(7) How lovely of you to come!

(8) What a lovely bouquet of flowers!

(9) Fantastic, let’s go on a long trip!

(10) What a lovely dress you are wearing!

(11) Ouch! That was so hot.

(12) I can’t wait to go to Disneyland !

(13) Oh God ! I forgot to do my homework again.

(14) Yes! We want to go to the party!

(15) Oh God ! That movie was so scary !

(16) Jane told me that you’re having a baby!

(17) Yes, I will marry you!

(18) Get out of my way!

(19) Oh! You already bought a new car.

(20) The storm is coming!

Apostrophe (‘) mark

A contraction is a shortened form of a word (or group of words) that omits certain letters or sounds. In a contraction, an apostrophe represents missing letters. In other words, it is used to show possession, to construct contractions and to make odd plurals.

He would = He’d

I have = I’ve

They are = They’re

You cannot = You can’t

n’t = not

I’m = I am

It’s = It is

For most singular nouns, add apostrophe+s

For most plural nouns, add only an apostrophe

For plural nouns that do not end in s, add apostrophe+s

Examples

(1) We met at John’s party.

(2) He doesn’t like to swim.

(3) The work is due to start in two weeks’ time.

(4) who’s there in the backyard?

(5) He’s always on time.

(6) We’re going to have a lot of fun with our new games.

(7) The children’s room was very dirty.

(8) She wasn’t a brave girl.

(9) Thomas’s brother was injured in the accident.

(10) I don’t like burn crackers.

(11) Let’s have fun together.

(12) She’d like to go in the temple.

(13) The squirrel’s nuts were stashed in a hollow tree.

(14) I can’t believe its raining today.

(15) I’m planning to buy a new house.

(16) If  Ramesh would’ve paid attention in class, he would have passed the exams.

(17) The dog’s tail wagged rapidly

(18) Who’s your boss?

(19) Don’t try to be over smart.

(20) It’s raining in Mumbai right now.

Quotation Marks or Inverted commas (“)

Quotation Marks are used for set of speech, a quotation, a phrase or a word.

For example 

• Ravi said, “I really like when it’s raining outside.
• He told her bonjour, “good day,” when they met.
• He said, “we don’t care.”
• He asked, “Will you be my friend?”
• The Policeman said “Stop”

Parentheses ()

Parentheses are used to set off additional information.

For example 

• The Chief minister (and his assistant) traveled by private jet.
• The teacher (with her students) visited the library. 
• Mohan (last year’s runner up) is expected to win this time.
• Employees ( and their spouse) are invited at the annual function.
• Nobody (including you) are allowed to come here.

Colon (:)

Colon is used after a complete statement to introduce a series of items.

For example 

• I want the these items: butter, sugar and flour.
• There are three primary colors : red, green and blue.
• Never forget : think before you speak.
• The world is a stage : play your role well.
• I just want you to remember: monthly exam is on next Wednesday.

Semicolon (;)

Semicolon is used to link two independent clauses that are closely related.

For example 

• Call me tomorrow; you can give me an answer then.
• Come on friends; there is always solution to a problem.
• Rajesh is getting bald; his hair is getting thinner and thinner.
• Let’s go to the library; there are many books in it.
• You should stop eating so much junk food; you will have to go on a diet.

Ellipsis mark (…)

Ellipsis mark is used to indicate a pause or a trailing off of thought.

For example 

• I don’t know…l’m not sure.
• “Yesterday… we voted the bill.”
• Jealousy… is a mental illness.
• Our proposal has been rejected…
• We lost the game…

Hyphen (-)

Hyphen is used to connect two words into a compound word.

For example

• truck-driver
• ice-cream
• sign-in
• mother-in-law
• brother-in-law