4th Class English Capitalization and Punctuation Punctuation

Real Life Example

Learning English punctuation is an important skill, especially if you?ll be doing a lot of writing assignments in school punctuation is used to create sense, clarity and stress in sentences.  

Historical Preview

Early uses of punctuation in English literature included the works of poets, playwrights and writers to help clarify otherwise confusing statements. It wasn?t until the 17th century that the complete roster of punctuation we use today was finished.  

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

This lesson will help you to:

understand punctuation.

learn about different types of punctuations

know about usage of punctuations.  

QUICK CONCEPT REVIEW

Learning English punctuation is an important skill of acquiring a complete grammatical knowledge. Punctuation is used to create sense, clarity and stress in sentences. It means the right use of putting in points or stops in writing. The following are the principal stops:-

(1) Full Stop or Period (.)

(2) Comma (,)

(3) Semicolon (;)

(4) Colon (:)

(5) Note of Interrogation or Question Marks (?)

(6) Note of Exclamation or Exclamation Marks (!)

(7) Dash (_)

(8) Parenthesis ( )

(9) Inverted Commas or Quotation Marks (" ")  

FULL STOPS AND COMMAS

Full stops are used at the end of a sentence to inform the reader that the sentence is finished and that he should take a moment before reading the next one.

Example: Honesty is the best policy. Please shut the door. The teacher is teaching the pupils. A comma informs the reader to pause before continuing the sentence. Unlike a period, the sentence is not over but simply being paused for a moment. Example: Health, wealth and peace go together. I bought bread, butter, eggs and milk from the market.           

QUESTION AND EXCLAMATION MARKS

Like a full stop, a question mark finishes a sentence. Unlike a full stop, a question mark turns the sentence into a question rather than a statement.               

Example: What are you writing in your copy? He said, "Who is there?"                                     

An exclamation point also ends a sentence like a full stop, but the sentence is turned into an exclamation rather than a simple statement. Readers should read a sentence with an exclamation mark with excitement.           

Example: Bravo! We have won the match. Alas! His dog is dead.  

COLONS AND SEMICOLONS

A semicolon connects two free-standing but related sentences where the conjunction has been left out. Semicolons are typically used before introduction words such as namely, however, therefore, that is, for example or for instance. Example: God gave her peace; her land reposed. A colon is used before a sentence that expands on the previous one. Colons are often used before listing items. Example: Shakespeare says: "Sweet are the uses of adversity."  

APOSTROPHES AND PARENTHESES

An apostrophe is used in a contraction in place of the letter that has been removed. "It's" uses an apostrophe to replace the "i" in "is." "It's" is a contraction of "it is." Parentheses are used to enclosed clarifying statements. Someone might use parentheses (if they thought it was necessary) to help clarify or expand on a sentence. If parentheses are used in a narrative, the sentence must also make sense if the words in the parentheses were not included.

DASH

It is used to indicate an abrupt stop or change of thought or to resume a scattered subject. Example: Friends, companions, relatives---all deserted him.