Punctuation Help.
I.
COMMAS
1.
Compound Sentence: Put a comma before coordinating
conjunctions in a compound sentence. Coordinating
conjunctions include for, and, nor, but, or, yet, &
so. Use the mnemonic device FANBOYS to rememer
which words are coordinating conjunctions.
My
brother loves to play football, but I usually prefer to
play baseball.
Students
at this campus work extremely hard, so they deserve a
great job once they graduate.
2.
Introductory Element: Put a comma after introductory
words, phrases, or clauses.
For
the sake of argument, John played the devil's advocate.
After
my mom delivered the cookies for me, my roommates ate all
of them.
Note:
Prepositional phrases of three words or less are not
followed by a comma.
After
breakfast we hiked. At the ballgame we all cheered.
3.
Interrupter: Put commas around interupters unless the
information is essential to the sentence. Interupters
sometimes come at the end of a sentence.
The
Prince of Tides, a novel by Pat Conroy, is set in
Charleston, South Carolina.
A
common interrupter is the appositive, a noun or phrase
which explains or identifies a preceding noun, pronoun,
or word group acting as a noun.
Eric
Swallow, the new soccer coach, stresses academics.
Mark,
a wrestler, loves working out every day of the week.
4.
Series: Put a comma between items in a series.
I
bought books, notepads, and pens for the upcoming
semester.
I
studied, ate a snack, took a nap, and watched TV after
lunch.
5.
Contrasting elements: Use a comma or commas to set
off phrases expressing contrast.
His
academic credentials, not his cadet rank, earned him a
high-paying job after graduation.
II.
SEMICOLONS
1.
Use a semicolon (;) to join two independent clauses that
are closely related.
I
grew up wanting to become a Marine Corps Officer; I
wanted to become the best.
2.
Use a semicolon to join two independent clauses when the
second clause begins with a conjunctive adverb. Place a
semicolon before the conjunctive adverb and a comma after
it. Conjunctive adverbs include: therefore, however,
nevertheless, consequently, in fact, moreover, in
addition.
I
felt I had to continue the Marine tradition; therefore, I
enrolled at The Citadel.
3.
Use a semicolon to separate a series with internal
punctuation.
During
the holidays, I love to send out greeting cards; shop for
my brothers, sisters, and cousins; and eat out frequently
at restaurants.
III.
COLONS
1.
Use a colon (:) to introduce a list that comes at the end
of a sentence.
I
looked at my brother anew over the holidays. I noticed
several things: his compassion, his sense of humor, and
his outgoing personality.
2.
Use a colon to introduce one or more sentences quoted
from speech or writing.
In
the opening of his novel Scaramouche, Raphael Sabatini
describes his hero "He was born with the gift of
laughter and a sense that the world was mad."
3.
Use a colon to introduce a long example or explanation
related to something just mentioned.
The
animals have a good many of our practical skills: some
insects make pretty fair architects, and beavers know a
great deal about engineering.
IV.
APOSTROPHES
1. To
make a singular or plural noun show possession, add 's.
eye
of the storm / the storm's eye
coat
of the girl / the girl's coat
pay
of an hour / an hour's pay
work
of a week / a week's work
request
of the boss / the boss's request or the boss' request
promise
of Chris / Chris's promise or Chris' promise
novels
of Dickens / Dickens's novels or Dickens' novels
house
of James / James's house or James' house
coats
of the children / the children's coats
rifles
of the men / the men's rifles
flight
of the geese / the geese's flight
2.
However, if the noun is plural and already ends in
"s," add only an apostrophe (').
coats
of the parents / the parents' coats
rifles
of the soldiers / the soldiers' rifles
wings
of the birds / the birds wings
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