E N G L I S H I

MUG SHOT RULES

FOCUS ON PUNCTUATIONSET 1

COMMAS

• Serial comma: When 3+ items are in a series, each is separated with a comma.• Ex. Lady, Bear, Maggie, and

Brandy

• Numbers: Numbers of 4+ digits long use commas to separate the numbers into groups of three.• Ex. $100,000

• Dates: In dates, the year is set off from the day and the rest of the sentence with a comma.• Ex. …on December 31, 1999,

that control returned to Panama.

COMMAS

• Address: The elements of an address or a place name are separated with commas. A zip code, however, is NOT preceded by a comma.• Ex. 209 Buena Vista Avenue, Northport, Nebraska 68409

• Independent clauses: Use a comma and a conjunction to separate two independent clauses.• Ex. The United States had controlled the land around the Panama

Canal since November 1903, but on December 31, 1999, that control returned to Panama.

• Parenthetical or contrasted elements: Parentheticals only provide extra information, so they should be set off with commas. They interrupt the flow of a sentence or appear at the end as afterthoughts.• Ex. Rutherford B. Hayes, the nineteenth president of the United

States, was born in Delaware, Ohio, in 1822 and, following a quite dramatic election, became president in March 1877 at age 54.

HYPHEN

• Hyphenate compound numbers from twenty-one to ninety-nine.• Ex. fifty-one miles

END PUNCTUATION

• Use a period to end all sentences except genuine exclamations or questions.• Ex. …you listed

the street address as 209 Buena Vista Drive.

APOSTROPHE

• Use an apostrophe to show ownership or to mark omissions in contractions.• Ex. …the dog’s

name used the most is Max.• Ex.: Dr. Mitchell’s

whole address is…

ABBREVIATION

• Use a period in the abbreviation of titles before and after proper names.• Ex. Dr. Mitchell’s

whole address is…• Ex. Mr. John

Stone, Rev. James Russo, Thomas Hines Jr.

INTRODUCTORY PHRASES

• Introductory phrases tell when, where, how, why, under what conditions the main action of the sentence occurred. It is set off with a comma.• Ex. After eight hours,

fifty-one miles, and three sets of locks, you can pass through the Panama Canal…

NONRESTRICTIVE PHRASE OR CLAUSE

• A nonrestrictive clause includes nonessential information. It is set off with commas. If you were to remove it from the sentence, the meaning of the sentence does not change dramatically.• Ex. …you can pass

through the Panama Canal, but first you have to pay a toll, which can be more than $100,000 for a a large cruise ship.

APPOSITIVE

• An appositive renames nouns and pronouns. It is set off with commas.• Ex. Rutherford B.

Hayes, the nineteenth president of the United States, was born in Delaware, Ohio…

USING THE RIGHT WORD

• A lot is two words, not one.• Ex. a lot ≠ alot

• Be careful when spelling the adverb quite, which means completely or really; otherwise, you may end up spelling the adjective quiet, which means free of noise.

PRACTICE

1. Eds country house which is located on thirteen acres was completely furnished with bats in the rafters mice in the kitchen and termites in the basement.

2. Thinking his motorcade drive through Dallas was routine President Kennedy smiled and waved at the crowds before being assassinated at the age of forty three

3. On December 12 1890 orders were sent out for the arrest of Sitting Bull the tribal chief of the Lakota Indians.

4. John Lennon a member of the Beatles who sold over 178000000 albums was born in Liverpool England in 1940 and he died in New York in 1980.

5. Please send the package to Dr Greg Tarvin at 708 Spring Street Washington Illinois 61571.