the word punctuation
TRANSCRIPT
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The word Punctuation,
derived from the Latin word
Punctun, a point, means theright use of putting in Points
or Stops in writing.
Proper Punctuation is very
important and can make allthe difference between
communicating your
message and creating a
communication gap. Itserves the purpose of
improving the clarity of asentence (through the use of
a full stop, comma, colon,
semi-colon and brackets),indicating words that are
not a statement (question
mark, exclamation mark,quotation mark), showing
how words relate to one
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another (apostrophe,
hyphen) and indicating that
a group of letters is anabbreviation (full stop) or
that letters are missing
(apostrophe).
History records thatimproper punctuation has
even made the difference
between life and death.
The following are the
principle Punctuation marks:
1. Full Stop
2. Comma
3. Semicolon
4. Colon
http://www.english-for-students.com/Full-Stop.htmlhttp://www.english-for-students.com/Comma.htmlhttp://www.english-for-students.com/Semicolon.htmlhttp://www.english-for-students.com/Colon.htmlhttp://www.english-for-students.com/Colon.htmlhttp://www.english-for-students.com/Semicolon.htmlhttp://www.english-for-students.com/Comma.htmlhttp://www.english-for-students.com/Full-Stop.html -
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5. Quesion Mark
6. Exclamation Mark
7. Quotation Mark
8. Hyphen
9. Apostrophe
10. Dash
11. Parentheses
The Full Stop is also
referred to as aperiodorpointor full point. The
primary use of this
punctuation mark ( . ) is
to make the end of a
http://www.english-for-students.com/Question-Mark.htmlhttp://www.english-for-students.com/Exclamation-Mark.htmlhttp://www.english-for-students.com/Quotation-Mark.htmlhttp://www.english-for-students.com/Hyphen.htmlhttp://www.english-for-students.com/Apostrophe.htmlhttp://www.english-for-students.com/Dash.htmlhttp://www.english-for-students.com/Parentheses.htmlhttp://www.english-for-students.com/Parentheses.htmlhttp://www.english-for-students.com/Dash.htmlhttp://www.english-for-students.com/Apostrophe.htmlhttp://www.english-for-students.com/Hyphen.htmlhttp://www.english-for-students.com/Quotation-Mark.htmlhttp://www.english-for-students.com/Exclamation-Mark.htmlhttp://www.english-for-students.com/Question-Mark.html -
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declarative sentence (one
that states a fact) or an
imperative sentence (one
that gives a command or
states a request).
Examples:
Declarative sentence:
People stopped visiting
theatres after the rates
were nearly doubled.
Nell was dead.
England formed an
alliance with Germany.
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Imperative Sentence:
Please pass me the salt.
Full Stops are also used infew abbreviations: Sept.,
i.e., etc. and et al. among
others.
The Full Stop can be used
in abbreviation, but this
practice is omitted in
modern style.
Examples:
He has completed M.A.
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The U.N.O is not
responsible for this kind of
crime against humankind.
If a sentence ends with aquestion mark or an
exclamation mark, one
does not use a Full Stop
after this, as the questionmark or the exclamation
mark already contains a
Full Stop within itself.
Examples:
He has completed M.A.
The U.N.O is not
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responsible for this kind of
crime against humankind.
If a sentence ends with a
question mark or an
exclamation mark, one does
not use a Full Stop after this,
as the question mark or the
exclamation mark already
contains a Full Stop within
itself.
The Comma ( , ) is meant to
add detail to the structure of
sentences and to make their
meaning clear by indicatingwords that either do or donot belong together. The
Comma usually represents
the natural break andpauses that a person makes
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while speaking and it
operates at phrase level and
word level.
Phrase level:
A Comma should be used to
make off parts of a sentencethat are separated by
conjunctions (and, but, yet,
etc.). The use of a Comma is
particularly important whenthere is a change in or a
repetition of the subject.
Example:
He was a habitual liar,
which is why people never
believed what he said.
Word level:
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A Comma is almost always
used to separate adjectiveshaving the same range of
reference coming before a
noun.
Examples:
It was dark, cold,
moonless night.
Adolph Hitler was a
ruthless, power-hungry,maniacal person.
Between a pair of adjectives,the comma can be replaced
by and to impart a stronger
effect.
Example:
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Adolph Hitler was a
ruthless and power-hungry,maniacal person.
When the adjectives have adifferent range of reference
(e.g., size and color) orwhen the last adjective has
a closer relation to the noun,
the comma is omitted.
Examples:
He wore a loose khaki
uniform.
He was a crazy old man.
Commas are used toseparate items in a list or
sequence.
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Example:
The guests were served
biscuits, pastries, pea-nuts,
and tea.
In the above example, acomma has been used
before the word and, which
few authorities believe is
unnecessary and shouldtherefore be avoided. In
many cases, however, acomma before the word and
helps ensure clarity.
Whether to use a commabefore the word and or not
would therefore depend
upon the structure of thesentence.
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However, the comma must
be left out between nouns
that occur together in thesame grammatical role in a
sentence (termed
apposition).
Example:
His son Ajay went on to
become a pilot.
But a comma needs to be
used when the noun is anadditional piece of
information that could be
deleted from a sentencewithout affecting the
meaning.
Example:
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His son, Ajay, went on to
become a pilot.
His son went on to become
a pilot.
Summary
The Comma is used
a. To separate the series of
words in the sameconstruction:
Examples:
England, Italy, Germanyand Spain formed an
alliance.
He lost lands, money,
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reputation and friends.
b. To separate each pair ofwords connected by and:
Examples:
We should be devout andhumble, cheerful and
serene.
High and low, rich andpoor, wise and fool, must all
die.
NOTE:
A Comma is generally not
used before the word
preceded by and.
c. To mark off a noun or
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phrase in Apposition:
Examples:
Paul, the apostle, was
beheaded in the reign ofNero.
Milton, the great English,
poet was blind.
Pandit Nehru, the firstPrime Minister of India, died
in 1964.
d. To mark off words used in
addressing people:
Examples:
Come into the garden,
Maud.
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How are you Mohan?
Lord of this universe,
shield us and guide us.
NOTE:
But when the words are
emphatic, we ought to use
the Note of Exclamation.
Example:
Monster! By thee my child
is devoured.
e. To mark of two or more
adjectives or adverbs
coming together:
Examples:
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The girl, beautiful and
intelligent, did not turn upfor the examinations.
Then, at length, tardyjustice was done to the
memory of Oliver.
f. To mark of the direct
quotation from the rest of
the sentence:
Examples:
Exactly so, said Alice.
He said to his disciples,
Watch and pray.
Go then, said the
Minister.
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Semicolon is one of the
trickiest signs to use for
writers, which is why you
will find its usage the
least. However if properly
used, the it can be one ofthe most useful and
significant punctuation
marks.
The Semicolon ( ; ) is
basically a Punctuation
mark that indicates a
more pronounced pausethan that indicated by a
Comma but less important
than that of a Full Stop. In
essence, it divides two
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parts of a sentence that
balances each other, and
could stand independently
too.
For instance, consider thissentence.
He seemed in a foul
mood. So, I fled the scene.
The above two sentences
make perfect sense by
themselves. However, wecould use a Semicolon to
join these conveniently.
He seemed in a foul
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mood; so, I fled the scene.
The Semicolon can also be
used to replace a Comma
in a sentence in order to
indicate a strongerdivision. However, it
cannot be used if two
thoughts are not
connected in some way orthe other. it also cannot
be employed if one of the
sentences is not a
complete one in itself.
This sign represents a
pause of greater
importance than that
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shown by the Comma.
a. Semicolon is used to
separate the clauses of
Compound sentence, when
they contain a comma.
Example:
He was brave, largehearted man; we all
respected him.
b. Semicolon is used toseparate the series of
loosely related clauses.
Examples:
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Her court was pure; her
life serene.
God gave her peace; her
land reposed.
Today we love what
tomorrow we hate; today
we seek what tomorrowwe shun.
Unlike its cousin-the
semicolon, the Colon ( : )
is used more often in
formal print, but not as
frequently in daily writing.
The Colon is a Punctuation
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mark that is used to
precede a list of items, a
quotation or an expansion
or explanation. While a
semicolon links two
balanced statements, thispunctuation mark flows
conveniently from the first
statement to the second.
Usually, it links a generalor introductory statement
to an example, or a cause
to an effect or a premise
with a conclusion.
For Example, consider the
following sentence:
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The tour operator said
his package included: to
and fro air fair, a
complimentary drink on
arrival, breakfast, eveningsnacks and dinner, hotel
accommodation.
It is used sometimes toindicate more emphasis in
indirect speech.
Example:
The madman screamed:
I am not mad! The voice
of God commanded me to
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slay.
Besides, in American
English, it is used in the
initial greeting of a letter.
Example:
Dear Mr. Randhawa:
However, in British or
Indian English, a Comma
is used:
Dear Mr. Randhawa,
But by far, the most
common use of a Colon is
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to indicate to the reader
that a list of items follows:
Example:
The schoolchildren weretold to bring the following
items for the picnic: a
torch, a sleeping bag, two
sets of night clothes, threepanties/underwear, water
bottle, three hankies and a
lunch box.
There are other uses of a
Colon too.
It is used to divide the
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title of the book from the
subtitle.
Example:
Communication: OralCommunication
It is used to make a
difference between thehours and minutes when
writing the time.
Example:
Now the time is: 02: 25
pm
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It is used in differentiating
the chapter and verse in
the Bible or The
Bhagavad-Gita and other
similar instances.
Example:
Bible: The Book of
Nehemiah
Colon is used to introduce
a quotation.
Examples:
Bacon says: Reading
makes full man, writing an
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exact man, speaking a
ready man
Before enumeration :
Examples:
The principle parts of
English are: present tense,
past tense and pastparticiple.
The three students who
came to the seminar are:Clinton, Bush and Maud.
Between sentences
grammatically
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independent but closely
connected in sense:
Examples:
Study to acquire thehabit of thinking: No study
is more important.
A Question Mark ( ? ) is
mainly used to indicate adirect question.
Example:
Are you reading this
book?
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Have you completed
your exercises?
What is your name?
What is your native?
Are you ready?
Why is the train cominglate?
It can also be used in a
sentence that ends with aquestion.
Example:
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You are involved in
crime too, arent you?
It is sometimes also used
when a question is worded
like a statement.
Example:
I wonder if its worthcalling him?
In instances where there
is doubt or uncertaintyabout a name, date or
word,it is used to indicate
this.
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Example:
Mullah Nasruddin (?
1208-1284) was one of
the worlds most loved
tricksters.
The Question mark,
preceding the year of birth
indicates that MullahNasruddins year of birth
is uncertain.
And although it may seemlike an error, a series of
questions that are not
complete should have this
mark after each fragment.
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Example:
Can you believe that he
is an inveterate liar? Or
that he is not working? Orthat he had never taken
up a job in the first place?
Or that he never ever has
any money?
However, question marks
should not be used in few
situations where it mayseem that the use is
required. The exceptions
include indirect questions,
where the question is
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reported rather than
directly expressed.
Example:
He inquired what time itwas.
Rhetorical questions (a
question asked for effector to make a statement
rather than to elicit
information) also may not
require this Mark.
Why ducks sleep on one
leg.
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How the tiger got its
stripes.
Rhetorical questions do
not require this Mark since
they are simply meant foreffect and do not call for
an answer.
The Exclamation Mark ( ! )is simply a punctuation
mark that indicates an
exclamation. The
statement could also be
one expressing shock or
surprise. In essence, this
mark indicates in writing
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what one would verbally
say by shouting or
speaking strongly, either
to attract attention or to
emphasis a point.
There are quite a few
ways to use this mark. For
instance, a parents
warning the child andtrying to enforce discipline
might say:
Behave yourself!
Or you could indicate the
expression of a strong
feeling of surprise,
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absurdity, approval,
disapproval, regret and a
host of other emotions.
What a terrible thing to
do!
How crazy of him to
have done such a thing!
Where the hell is he?!
In the above examples,
words like how or whatprecede the sentence. The
last sentence is preceded
by where, and ends with a
question mark as well as
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an exclamation mark,
which is one of the rare
usages. Such a sentence
denotes both the element
of questioning and of
surprise.
You could also use this
Mark to express a wish or
a felling of regret.
The kids would have
loved to tag along!
If only you had informed
me in advance!
A note of caution, though,
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is that in day-to-day
writing, this mark is used
sparingly. Using it too
often detracts from proper
usage. Besides, it will be
counterproductive toattempt adding a false
sense of drama or
excitement to a style of
writing that is routine,unexciting or prosaic.
The Quotation Mark ( )
& ( ) is also called an
Inverted Comma. It
consists of the double and
the single quotation marks
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as shown above. This
mark is used either to
mark the beginning and
the end of quotation or
title or to indicate slang
usage or words that arejargon.
The most common use is
to tell the reader the exactwords spoken by a person,
which is called direct
quotation.
For Example:
He told me, I will come
to work an hour late
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today.
The above sentence is
direct quote. As an
indirect quote, it would be
stated in this way.
He told me that he
would come to work an
hour late today.
In the above example, the
quotation marks are not
used since it is an indirectstatement. Although both
sentences convey exactly
the same meaning, in the
first instance it is said that
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the person quoted has
spoken directly.
In common writing, only
the double quotation
marks is used. However,in the print media, both
the double and single
quotation marks are used
depending upon thecontext in which they are
used.
The usage in Britain andAmerica differs, but we
shall restrict ourselves to
one kind only. Single
quotes are usually used to
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indicate a quote with a
quote or to indicate that
the person quoted has
expressed a sentiment
mentally rather than
verbally.
For instance:
Seethe told, whyshould I help you out,
Rajesh informed Hamish.
In the above sentence,Rajesh speaks directly to
Hamish and tell him what
Seethe told him.
Therefore, Seethes
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directly quoted words are
used in single quotation
marks.
The simple rule of thump
is that if the direct quotesare in double quotation
marks, any quote within
this quote will be in single
quotation marks.
The rule will also apply
vice versa, i.e., a direct
quote in single quotationmarks that includes
another quote within
would then have the
inclusive quote in double
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quotation marks.
The common error made
with quotation marks is
that users tend to put the
punctuation marks afterclosing the quotes.
Example:
. He was furious and told
me, Get lost!
The above sentence withthe punctuation marks is
incorrect. The correct
usage would be with the
exclamation mark coming
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before the quotes are
closed.
. He was furious and told
me, Get lost!
The only time one could
use the punctuation mark
after the quotes is when
the quote is incomplete.
. Gila was furious and
swore that she would get
even with me at all cost.
In this example, Gilas
words have not been
quoted directly or
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completely. Just few of
her words have been
quoted word for word and
are indicated in double
quotes. In such instances,
closing the double quoteafter the punctuation
mark would be incorrect.
The above rules reflect the
usual usage.
When quoted words are
broken up or interrupted
by reporting verb such assay, said, told, informed
etc., the quotation marks
would be given in this
manner.
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What I would love to
have, Ram told Seta, is a
steaming hot cup ofcoffee.
In this instance, note the
usage of the commasbefore closing the first
double quote and after
Seta, since both sentences
connect the same thought.However, if they were two
independent thoughts, the
sentence would be written
in this manner.
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Example:
There was something
that I would love to have,
Ram told Seta. And thatis steaming hot cup of
coffee.
The beauty of the aboveexample, though, lies in
the fact that it could be
used following the rules of
the previous example andwould still not read amiss,
purely because the
conjunctive word and has
been used.
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There was something
that I would love to have,
Ram told Seta, and that is
steaming hot cup of
coffee.
Another rule to remember
with quotes (which is a
common error even mediapundits and editors make)
is that when a person is
speaking and it runs
several paragraphs,successive paragraphs will
all have the opening mark,
but the closing mark will
only be used in the last
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paragraph. Closing the
mark after each paragraph
when the same person is
speaking is incorrect and
will create confusion in
the readers mind whetherthe same person is
speaking or different
persons have been quoted.
Single or double marks are
also used to indicate the
title of a movie, book,
article, poem, serial, etc.In such instances, there is
no fixed rule and
depending on personal
preference or an in-house
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style, single or double
marks mat be used.
However, there are many
who prefer not to use
these marks to indicatetitles and instead use
italics for this purpose.
Single or double marks arealso used when indicating
slang terms and jargon or
words from other
languages other thanEnglish.
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A Hyphen ( - ) is a sign
that is used to join words
to indicate that they have
a combined meaning or
that they are
grammatically linked, or toindicate a word that has
been split up at the end of
the line. In print, this
mark is half the length ofa dash. In actual writing,
though, there is a little
noticeable difference
between a Dash and aHyphen. However, the
purpose of both these
signs is exactly the
opposite.
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The dash is used to
separate words or a group
of words, while this mark
is used to link words or
parts of words.
This is used to join two or
more words in order to
form a single word (calleda compound word):
Good-for-nothing
Free-for-all
Sweet-and-sour
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Multi-purpose
Passer-by, man-of-war,
jack-of-all-trades etc
Passers-by should bekept away from this
function.
Or to join words that havea grammatical relationship
which form a compound:
Point-blank
Load-bearing
However, even at the end
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of sentences, always avoid
hyphening acronyms,
numbers, contractions and
internet or email
addresses.The Apostrophe ( ) is apunctuation mark that is
used to indicate either
possession (e.g., Rajahs
book) or the omission ofletters or numbers (e.g.,
cant, August 04).
This is used more in
Contractions.
Singular nouns indicate
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the possessive by adding
s:
The tigers roar
indicating one tiger
Plural nouns indicate the
possessive by adding this
mark after the s:
The tigers roar-
indicating more than one
tiger
If the plural noun ends in
an alphabet other than s,
the possessive is indicated
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by adding s:
The kittens meowing
indicating more than one
cat
While this mark has a
specific use, many misuse
it more often. Forinstance, ordinary plural
words do not need this
mark, many end up using
it here.
Examples:
Prices
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Worrys
Movies
The correct usage withthese plural forms would
read:
Prices
Worries
Movies
This is also used in
contractions (cant for can
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not), which is where
people also tend to get
confused.
The most common
confusion is with thepossessive whose with
whos.
Whos is simply acontraction of who is.
Example:
Whos fault is it?
The above sentence is
incorrect. The correct
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usage is:
Whose fault is it?
Another problem the usersface is with names that
end with an s.
Example:
Thomas
Charles
Vilas
Ulnas
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The confusion here has
much to do with the
awkward sound that
results. In such cases, you
could either write thenames:
Thomas or Thomass
Charles or Charless
Vilas or Vilass
Ulnas or Ulnass
However, it is preferable
to use the second option
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in such cases.
Apostrophes should not be
used in the pronouns hers,
its, ours, yours and theirs.
This would be incorrect
way to end the letter:
Yours truly
The correct way would be:
Yours truly
Likewise, watch out for:
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its and its
Its (without an
apostrophe) is a
possessive that denotes
belonging to it.
Example:
The dog is expecting itsdinner.
Its (with an apostrophe)
is a contraction of it is.
Example:
The dog is expecting its
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dinner.
In the above two
examples, the first
sentence is correct.
For other examples of
Contractions with an
apostrophe, Click Here !
In the case of this mark,
you have to ensure that
you do not misuse the
words.
A Dash ( - ) allows a
writer to introduce
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informality in writing or to
add emphasis, by allowing
a sudden change in
thought or tone.
For example:
Let us go to the market
and do some shopping.
Ive run out of hankiesand could do with a set of
new-oops! I just recalled-
today is Monday and the
markets this side of thetown are closed.
This sign indicates to
readers that the speakers
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train of thought has been
suddenly interrupted by
something important that
hes just recalled.
In published writing, thereare two kinds: the shorter
one is called en-dash. And
the longer one is called
em-dash. Most word-processing programmes
can distinguish between
the two lengths. But in
day-to-day writing nosuch distinction is made.
Even many DTP (desk top
publishing) houses and
editorial persons do not
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know the difference.
In printing, the en-dash
has certain specific uses
(e.g., to indicate a range
of numbers or dates, as in1935037), whereas the
em-dash is the one that is
generally used to serve
the purpose of regulation.
A pair of dashes is used to
indicate asides and
parentheses, whichindicates a more distinct
break than would be
possible with commas:
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He was an excellent
writer-although he had
never gone to school-and
had learnt the three Rs at
home.
As a general rule, when
the em-dash is used (as in
the above example) there
is no space between thedash and the words.
However, if an en-dash is
used, a single character
space is left on either side.For instance, the same
sentence would appear
this way with en-dash.
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He was an excellent
writer - although he had
never gone to school - and
had learnt the three Rs athome.
Although in many cases a
colon could be used topunctuate a sentence and
achieve the same effect, in
general it is better to
reserve the colon forformal writing.
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The Brackets that are
almost always used in
writing are the round
Brackets or Parentheses
().
Round Brackets are used
when the writer wants to
indicate explanations and
additional information orcommends.
Hamish was upset with
Deepak and felt like givinghim a piece of his mind (to
cut him down to size) in
the presence of the
others. However, he
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refrained from doing so
(he did not wish to
precipitate matters).
Or they are used to show
optional words that implydoubt or caution:
There are many (hidden)
dangers on the roadahead, and he knew this
for sure.
The round brackets arealso used to give
statistical information or
reference.
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The Second World War
(1939-1945) was the
bloodiest conflict in
human history.
Square brackets [] areused very rarely. The
usage is restricted to
occasions when some
additional information hasbeen provided, often by
some one other than the
writer (usually an editor)
of the original text, toclarify an obscure point or
to add extra information
that facilitates better
understanding or ease of
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reading.
Anil Ambani claims that
Ambani brothers are not
inheritors [of Dhirubhai
Ambanis legacy] butpartners.
Parentheses are used to
separate from main part ofthe sentence, a phrase or
a clause which does not
grammatically belong to it.
Examples:
He gained from heaven
(it was all he wished) a
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friend.
He gave me his book
(Born to win) two days
back.
These are the most
common Punctuation
signs that new English
readers would encounteron the highway to
mastering English. Once
you master the usage of
these Punctuation marks,the written words would