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Using punctuation

Techniques > Use of language > Using punctuation

Punctuation is one of those things that when you get it wrong can irritate and confuse. So here's a quick page of reminders. A famous punctuation test on which you may want to prove your mettle is as follows:

King Richard walked and talked ten minutes after he was dead

Apostrophe: shows possession and missing letters.
Colon: causal connection, presaging lists and strong contrast.
Comma: creating separation and pauses in sentences.
Dash: significantly separated aside.
Ellipsis...: for tension-building pause.
Hyphen: connecting words together.
Parentheses: conspiratorial aside.
Period: ending sentences and in abbreviations.
Quotation marks: showing speech and 'different' words.
Semicolon: separation of related text and lists.

Here's the answer to the punctuation puzzle at the beginning of the page. It's in white text, so select it to highlight it and thus see it (and if all else fails, try 'View Source' from the window menu system).

King Richard walked and talked. Ten minutes after, he was dead.

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