Techniques for working on your writing
Today we discuses about the second key concept of language studies that is called punctuation.
Punctuation
When we speak we can help the listener to understand through the use of gestures, facial expression and body language. We can also use pauses, hesitations and repetitions to add to the force of what we are saying and to make sure that the listener has understood what we are trying to communicate.
When we are writing we have to use different mechanisms to do the same work. This is where punctuation comes in. It allows us to divide up our ideas into manageable chunks so that the reader understands what we are trying to say.
The most commonly used punctuation marks which students have difficulties with are full stop, commas, colons, semicolons, and apostrophes. Last time we discuss only two of them such as full stop and commas and today we discuss remaining punctuation.
Semicolons:
Semicolons have two common uses. First, they are used to separate items in a list after a colon. Second, they can indicate a particular kind of relationship and connection between two parts of a sentence. They are useful to use when the second part of the sentence is still integrally related to the first; in such as case the use of a full stop would appear too final. At the same time, if you use a semicolon you are indicating a more important break within a sentence than you would if you just used a comma. A semicolon can also be used instead of 'and' when you are connecting two parts of sentence.
Colons:
Traditionally, the colon is used within sentence when the second part of the sentence expands upon the first. Another use of the colon is to introduce a list and the items in the list are then separated by semicolons. Colons are used to introduce a separate part of s text such as a short quote.
Apostrophe:
One of the most common confusions that students experience with apostrophes is the distinction between "its" and "it's". This causes a lot of difficulties for the students because the two forms look so similar but actually have completely different meanings. It's is a contraction of 'it is'. Instead pf writing 'it is' in full the 'i' of is omitted and and apostrophe used in its place. Contraction are common in English and replace parts of the verbs 'to be' and 'to have' which have been omitted.
Semicolons:
Semicolons have two common uses. First, they are used to separate items in a list after a colon. Second, they can indicate a particular kind of relationship and connection between two parts of a sentence. They are useful to use when the second part of the sentence is still integrally related to the first; in such as case the use of a full stop would appear too final. At the same time, if you use a semicolon you are indicating a more important break within a sentence than you would if you just used a comma. A semicolon can also be used instead of 'and' when you are connecting two parts of sentence.
Colons:
Traditionally, the colon is used within sentence when the second part of the sentence expands upon the first. Another use of the colon is to introduce a list and the items in the list are then separated by semicolons. Colons are used to introduce a separate part of s text such as a short quote.
Apostrophe:
One of the most common confusions that students experience with apostrophes is the distinction between "its" and "it's". This causes a lot of difficulties for the students because the two forms look so similar but actually have completely different meanings. It's is a contraction of 'it is'. Instead pf writing 'it is' in full the 'i' of is omitted and and apostrophe used in its place. Contraction are common in English and replace parts of the verbs 'to be' and 'to have' which have been omitted.
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