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Punctuation Basics
Using Full Stops (.), Commas (,), Colons (:) and Semi-Colons (;)

Punctuation Matters! Compare…

A woman, without her man, is nothing. A woman: without her, man is
nothing.
Let's eat Mum! Let's eat, Mum!

I would like to thank my parents, Kira and God. I would like to thank my
parents, Kira, and God.

Many people find punctuation tough and, if it is not your strong point, you risk
producing substandard written work. Your content might be interesting, your
vocabulary might be rich, but if you cannot punctuate properly, your text will be hard
to read and will look unprofessional.

In this document, we look at full stops, commas, colons, and semicolons – punctuation
that adds pauses and which helps you to keep your sentences under control.

1. What Is Punctuation?

Punctuation is the use of special marks to enable readers to understand a piece

of writing . Good punctuation follows the rhythms of speech, telling the reader to
pause at the right points and to organize the information in the document that he or
she is reading. It reduces misunderstandings and makes the writing clear.

Tip:
A good way to check that you've punctuated your written work accurately is to read it
aloud. If you feel the need to pause anywhere, consider adding a comma.

Some rules of punctuation are fixed, while others vary in the way that they are used
between countries and organizations. Remember that the rules are there to
aid communication ; they're not there just for their own sake.

When you overlook, forget, or wrongly apply the rules, the words you write can give
quite the wrong idea. For example:

I enjoy cooking my family and my cat.

I spoke to my sisters Mike and Paul.

Adding the correct punctuation clarifies both sentences:

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I enjoy cooking, my family, and my cat.

I spoke to my sisters, Mike, and Paul.

Tip:
If you're really struggling with a paragraph or sentence that has complex punctuation
issues, rewrite it. Two or three short, clear sentences are better than a long, awkward
one. If in doubt, keep it simple.

2. When to Use Commas

Commas break sentences up into smaller parts that are easier to understand. They
signify natural pauses, segregate pieces of information, and separate items in a list,
whether nouns or adjectives.

a) Pausing for Breath

You can use a comma to insert a natural break between two parts of a sentence, or to
join two short sentences. For example:

He ran down the street as fast as he could, and she ran after him.

Here, the comma (together with "and") joins the two sentences "He ran down the
street as fast as he could" and "She ran after him." Commas of this kind reflect the
fact that you sometimes need to pause your train of thought to make sense of the
words.

b) Starting sentences with a dependent clause

When starting a sentence with a dependent clause (e.g. "If you are not sure about this,
…"; "When I graduate,…"; "Having finally arrived in town,…"), use a comma after it.
For example:

If you are not sure about this, let me know. When I graduate, I'll go
travelling.

Follow the same policy with introductory phrases. For example:

Having finally arrived in town, we went shopping.

c) Avoiding Confusion

Always add a comma if it helps avoid confusion. For example:

Last Sunday, evening classes were cancelled.

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Without the comma, this sentence could also mean that last Sunday evening, (all)
classes were cancelled.

Or this beauty, which appeared in the Times of London about a documentary by Peter
Ustinov:

Highlights of his [documentary] include encounters with Nelson Mandela, an

800-year-old demigod and a dildo collector.

Without a comma after "demigod", it sounds like Nelson Mandela is an 800-year-old

demigod… and a dildo collector.

d) Inserting Additional Information

Commas are also useful when you want to insert groups of words that add new
information to a sentence, but which don't change its basic meaning. For example:

Michael, who was taller than James, was the eldest of the children.
"Michael was the eldest of the children" makes sense on its own, but commas allow
you to add the fact that "Michael was taller than James" without simply sticking it
awkwardly on the end of the sentence.

Commas can help you to clarify meaning, too. For example…

David's brother George is an architect.

…shows that David has a brother called George, who is an architect. The meaning of
the sentence wouldn't be significantly different if you left out the name "George." On
the other hand, the commas in…

David's brother, George, is an architect.

…tell you that David has only one brother, called George, and that he's an architect –
a subtle difference.

You can also use commas to separate parts of a sentence that are there just for
emphasis, as in:

Steel, of course, is denser than wood.

Lastly, a comma is needed after "However" whenever you use it to mean "on the other
hand." For example:

However, steel is less dense than lead.

e) Separating Items in Lists

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You can also use commas to separate items in lists, but how you do it may depend on
where you are in the world or on the style rules of your organization.

One fixed rule is that lists of three or more items need a comma between the first and
second items. A comma is also needed between the second and third items if the list
has four items, and so on. Using or omitting a comma before the final "and" is where
disagreements arise. This final comma is called the serial comma or the Oxford
comma. So, you could write:

I always have eggs, toast and coffee for breakfast. Or: I always have
eggs, toast, and coffee for breakfast.

They are both right. The important thing is to be consistent in your use.

The same rules apply to lists of adjectives as to lists of nouns. So:

The meeting was long, intense, and productive.

3. When NOT to Use Commas

a) Run-on sentences

Many inexperienced writers run two independent clauses (sentences that make sense
on their own) together by using a comma instead of a full stop. This results in the
dreaded run-on sentence or, more technically, a comma splice.

Incorrect: He walked all the way home, he shut the door, there was a
lot of noise outside, he needed quiet.

There are several simple remedies:

Correct: He walked all the way home. He shut the door. There was a lot
of noise outside, and he needed quiet.
Correct: After he walked all the way home, he shut the door. He
needed quiet, but there was a lot of noise outside.
Correct: He walked all the way home. He shut the door; there was a lot
of noise outside, and he needed quiet.

b) Between Subject and Verb

Writers often unnecessarily place a comma between what is called the 'subject' of a
sentence and the verb, especially when the subject is longer than just a couple of
words. For example:

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Incorrect: Some of the greatest writers in the history of English literature ,

have been women.
Incorrect: The growth in the field of environmental accounting , reflects our
growing disillusionment with traditional models.
Incorrect: An agreement to change the company's policy on overtime , was
made at the meeting.

In fact, there should be no comma between these two elements. A comma indicates a
break in the sentence and since the subject is linked to the verb (the subject carries
out the action described by the verb) it is incorrect to have a break between these two
elements.

The correct punctuation of these sentences is:

Some of the greatest writers in the history of English literature have been
women.
The growth in the field of environmental accounting reflects our growing
disillusionment with traditional models.
An agreement to change the company's policy on overtime was made at the
meeting.

Commas should not be inserted between the subject of a sentence and the verb.

For a visual summary about the use of the comma, see graph at the end of
this document.

4. When to Use Full Stops and Other End Marks

A full stop marks the end of a complete sentence that is not a question or an
exclamation. It looks like other marks such as decimal points (as in "2.5") and
abbreviation points (as in "U.S.A." or "etc."), but it does a different job. It ends a unit of
sense and marks a similar, but longer, pause in the reading process than commas do.

You can also use full stops at the end of phrases that are not full sentences, although
you won't usually do this in business writing. For example:

I like to break my writing up. You know, for effect.

a) Question Marks
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Question marks are there for when you're asking for a response, as in:

Should I bring all the documentation to the meeting?

Take care to use question marks only at the end of sentences that form direct
questions, and not after asking indirect questions. So:

Is Leah going to see the CEO? Or: I wonder whether Leah is going to
see the CEO.
…are punctuated correctly, but "I wonder whether Leah is going to see the
CEO?" is incorrect.

Tip:
Using question marks accurately is particularly important in emails. Readers often
scan them quickly to pick out questions that may require action.

b) Exclamation Marks

Exclamation marks are useful when you want to indicate shock, surprise, anger, or
emphasis. But, be sure to use them sparingly, and only one at a time. They can make
your writing seem overexcited or frivolous – especially if you combine them with
question marks – and you'll likely want your professional writing to be measured and
serious.

5. When to Use Colons and Semicolons

Colons and semicolons indicate pauses in a sentence that are stronger than the pause
marked by a comma, but not as final as that marked by a full stop. People often
confuse colons and semicolons, but the functions they perform are different.

a) Colons

The colon divides a sentence into two parts. The first part introduces an item, and the
second part says something more about it, defining, explaining or expanding the first
part. For example:

The problem is simple: we have no money.

You can use the colon to introduce a list:

The cost of tickets includes the following: transport, admission and

refreshments.
You can also use it to introduce quoted material:

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Pope's position is clear: "To err is human; to forgive, divine."

b) Semicolons

The semicolon indicates a pause between two complete sentences that has less force
than a full stop. It combines the two sentences into a single sentence made of two
closely related parts.

You can use a semicolon when:

 Two sentences are too closely related to be separated by a full stop.

 It works better than joining the two sentences with a comma and a conjunction
(a word like "and" or "but").

 The second part of the sentence doesn't specifically explain or expand upon the
second.

Here are some examples of the semicolon in action:

James sat in the kitchen; Frank went upstairs instead.

My first son was born in 1997; the second followed in 2000.
Call me tonight; you can give me a full update then.

You could leave each of these examples as two separate sentences, and they would
still make sense. Alternatively, you could join them with "and" and a comma. However,
they would sound more stilted, and less natural when spoken out loud.

Semicolons should also be used in place of commas before some connecting words
and phrases, such as "however," "therefore," and "for example," as in:

You should bring warm clothing; for example, gloves, sweaters, and
hats.

Key Points

Accurate punctuation ensures you are understood properly. Effective written

punctuation follows the patterns of speech, and you can test it by reading your work
aloud.

There are some firm punctuation rules to follow. Where you come across variations, as
with the serial comma, be consistent in your use.

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The most important punctuation marks that add pauses are the:
 Comma: breaks sentences into sections that are easier to understand, and allows
you to add extra information and to separate items in lists.
 Full stop: closes sentences, and marks a clear break between units of sense.
 Colon: separates a general item from something which expands or explains it.
 Semicolon: marks a break between two closely related sentences.
 Question mark: goes in place of a full stop when the sentence it ends is a direct
question.
 Exclamation mark: indicates shock, surprise, anger, or emphasis.

Sources (all retrieved 10 May 2020)

https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writing/punctuation/punctuation/index.html
https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/punctuation-basics.htm
https://7esl.com/comma/

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https://stancarey.wordpress.com/2014/09/15/oxford-commas-nelson-mandela-and-
stephen-king/
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/grammar/british-grammar/punctuation
https://unilearning.uow.edu.au/writing/3ai.html