ENGL 015: Assignment 2

A Few Points of Punctuation

Point 1

Use colons to give more detail and to start lists.

Point 1

To give more detail:

“I hated him for one reason: he murdered my brother.”

Point 1

To give more detail:

“I hated him for one reason: he murdered my brother.”

Point 1

To start a list:

“He took only three things with him: a watch, a Bible,

and a gun.”

Point 1

To start a list:

“He took only three things with him: a watch, a Bible,

and a gun.”

Point 2

Use semi-colons to connect sentences.

Point 2

Although it was raining outside; King Lear still wandered around

the countryside.

Point 2

It was raining outside; King Lear still wandered around the countryside.

It was raining outside; nevertheless, King Lear still wandered around the

countryside.

Point 2

But remember: you don’t have to use semi-colons.

It was raining outside, but King Lear still wandered around the countryside.

Although it was raining outside, King Lear still wandered around the

countryside.

Point 3

The only other thing you use semi-colons for is dividing items in a list.

Point 3

Usually, this will be a list that starts with a colon.

“We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain

unalienable rights; that among these rights...”

Point 3

Using a semi-colon helps when the items in the list are long, or need commas inside them.

He made two claims: that the law was unjust, tyrannical, and short-sighted; and that it would be impossible to enforce.