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Top secret punctuation tips

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Page 1: Top secret punctuation tips

CORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATIONCORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATION

http://www.punctuationchecker.orghttp://www.punctuationchecker.org

Page 2: Top secret punctuation tips

CORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATIONCORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATION

o Punctuation Cheat Sheeto Using Proper Capitalization o Using End-of-Sentence Punctuation Markso Using Commas o Using Colons and Semicolons o Using Hyphens and Dasheso Using Apostrophes o Using Slasheso Using Miscellaneous Punctuation Marks

o Punctuation Cheat Sheeto Using Proper Capitalization o Using End-of-Sentence Punctuation Markso Using Commas o Using Colons and Semicolons o Using Hyphens and Dasheso Using Apostrophes o Using Slasheso Using Miscellaneous Punctuation Marks

0909 PARTS OF PUNCTUATION PARTS OF PUNCTUATION

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Page 3: Top secret punctuation tips

CORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATIONCORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATION

Add Your Title hereAdd Your Title here

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Page 4: Top secret punctuation tips

CORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATIONCORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATION

o Always start a sentence with a capital letter.o Use capital letters to start proper nouns and titles.o Use capital letters for acronyms.

Using Proper Capitalization Using Proper Capitalization

Examples:o She invited her friend over after school.o Genghis Khan quickly became the most powerful man in Asia. o The CIA and the NSA are just two of the USA's many intelligence

agencies.

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Page 5: Top secret punctuation tips

CORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATIONCORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATION

o Use a period to end declarative sentences and statements.

o Use a question mark to end questions.

o Use an exclamation point to end exclamatory sentences.

Using End of Sentence Punctuation MarksUsing End of Sentence Punctuation Marks

Examples:o The accessibility of the computer has increased tremendously

over the past several years.o What has humanity done about the growing concern of global

warming?o Eek! You scared me!

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Page 6: Top secret punctuation tips

CORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATIONCORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATION

o Use a comma to indicate a break or pause within a sentence.

o Use the comma when listing items in a series.

o Use a comma to separate two or more adjectives describing a noun.

Using Commas Using Commas

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Examples:o Bill Gates, CEO of Microsoft, is the developer of the operating system known as Windows.

o The fruit basket contained apples, bananas, and oranges.

o The computer store was filled with video games, computer hardware and other electronic paraphernalia.

o The powerful, resonating sound caught our attention.

Page 7: Top secret punctuation tips

CORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATIONCORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATION

oUse a comma to separate one geographical area from another that is located inside.

o Use a comma to separate an introductory phrase from the rest of the sentence.

o Use the comma to separate two independent clauses.

Using Commas Using Commas

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Examples:oI am originally from Hola, Tana River County, Kenya.oAfter the show, John and I went out to dinner.oRyan went to the beach yesterday, but he forgot his sunscreen.

Page 8: Top secret punctuation tips

CORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATIONCORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATION

o Use a comma when making a direct address.

o Use a comma to separate direct quotations from the sentence introducing them.

Using Commas Using Commas

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Examples:oAmber, could you come here for a moment?o While I was at his house, John asked, "Do you want anything to eat?“o While I was at his house, John asked me if I wanted anything to eat.

Page 9: Top secret punctuation tips

CORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATIONCORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATION

o Use a semicolon to separate two related but independent clauses.

o Use a semicolon to separate a complex series of items.o Use the colon to introduce a list.

Using Colons and Semicolons Using Colons and Semicolons

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Examples:o People continue to worry about the future; our failure to conserve resources has put the world at risk.o I went to the show with Jake, my close friend; his friend, Jane; and her best friend, Jenna.o The professor has given me three options: to retake the exam, to accept the extra credit assignment, or to fail the class.

Page 10: Top secret punctuation tips

CORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATIONCORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATION

o Use a colon to introduce a new concept or example.o Use a colon to separate parts of a title.

Using Colons and Semicolons Using Colons and Semicolons

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Examples:o There's only one person old enough to remember that wedding: grandma.o Fred's favorite movie was The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, though Stacy preferred its sequel, The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers.

Page 11: Top secret punctuation tips

CORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATIONCORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATION

o Use a hyphen when adding a prefix to some words.o Use hyphens when creating compound words from several

smaller words.o Use a hyphen when writing numbers out as words.

Using Hyphens and DashesUsing Hyphens and Dashes

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Examples:o Cara is his ex-girlfriend.o The up-to-date newspaper reporters were quick to jump on the latest scandal.o There are fifty-two playing cards in a deck.

Page 12: Top secret punctuation tips

CORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATIONCORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATION

o Use a dash when making a brief interruption within a statement.o Use a hyphen to split a word between two lines.

Using Hyphens and DashesUsing Hyphens and Dashes

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Examples:o An introductory clause is a brief phrase that comes — yes, you guessed it — at the beginning of a sentence.o This is the end of our sentence — or so we thought. o No matter what else he tried, he just couldn't get the novel's elect- -rifying surprise ending out of his head.

Page 13: Top secret punctuation tips

CORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATIONCORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATION

o Use the apostrophe together with the letter s to indicate possession.

o Use the single quotation mark within a regular quotation to indicate a quotation within a quotation.

Using ApostrophesUsing Apostrophes

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Examples:o The hamster's water tube needs to be refilled.o In the pet store, the hamsters' bedding needed to be changed.o These children's test scores are the highest in the nation.o Friends of hers explained that it's her idea, not theirs, to refill the hamster's water tube and change its bedding.

Page 14: Top secret punctuation tips

CORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATIONCORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATION

o Don't use apostrophes with s to make a plural noun from a singular.

Using ApostrophesUsing Apostrophes

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Examples:o Ali said, "Anna told me, 'I wasn't sure if you wanted to come!'“

o CORRECT - apple → apples

INCORRECT - apple → apple's

Page 15: Top secret punctuation tips

CORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATIONCORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATION

o Use the slash to separate and and or, when appropriate.o Use the slash when quoting lyrics and poetry to denote a line

break.o Also use the slash to replace the word and to join two nouns.

Using SlashesUsing Slashes

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Examples:o To register, you will need your driver's license and/or your birth certificate.o Row, row, row your boat / Gently down the stream. / Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily, / Life is but a dream.o"The student and part-time employee has very little free time." →

"The student/part-time employee has very little free time."

Page 16: Top secret punctuation tips

CORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATIONCORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATION

o Use the double quotation mark ( " ) to enclose a direct quotation, whether spoke by a person or taken from a written source.

o Use parentheses to clarify.

Using Miscellaneous Punctuation MarksUsing Miscellaneous Punctuation Marks

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Examples: o "I can't wait to see him perform!" John exclaimed. According to the article, the value of the dollar in developing nations is "strongly influenced by its aesthetic value, rather than its face value.“o Steve Case (AOL's former CEO) resigned from the Time-Warner board of directors in 2005.

Page 17: Top secret punctuation tips

CORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATIONCORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATION

o Use parentheses to denote an afterthought.o Use parentheses for personal comments.

Using Miscellaneous Punctuation MarksUsing Miscellaneous Punctuation Marks

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Examples: o You will need a flashlight for the camping trip (don't forget the batteries!).o Most grammarians believe that parentheses and commas are always interchangeable (I disagree).

Page 18: Top secret punctuation tips

CORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATIONCORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATION

o Use brackets to signify an editor's note in a regular piece of writing.

o Use braces to denote a numeric set in mathematics.

Using Miscellaneous Punctuation MarksUsing Miscellaneous Punctuation Marks

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Examples: o "[The blast] was absolutely devastating," said Susan Smith, a local bystander at the scene of the incident.o The set of numbers in this problem are: { 1, 2, 5, 10, 20 }

Choose your favorite utensil { fork, knife, spoon } and bring it to me.

Page 19: Top secret punctuation tips

CORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATIONCORRECT USE OF ENGLISH PUNCTUATION

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