Punctuation in English

1
Punctuation in English
, . ( ) -- -
Proper punctuation makes a text clear to
understand. Wrongly placed punctuation marks can
make a sentence ambiguous or even change the
meaning.
2
Comma (,)
Used between two independent clauses with
different subjects if they are part of a series
or are joined by and, but so and or.
The reactor was out of control, the content
overheated, and the safety valve failed. The
work is normally done by the computer, but the
technician must understand the operating system.
3
Comma (,)
Is used to separate a non-defining relative
clause from the rest of the sentence. In this
case you must use which or who (but not that)
Brass, which is an alloy of copper and zinc, is
used to make bolts and screws. ! The experiments
that were described in the previous section were
part of a series that was conducted over a range
of mode mixes.
4
Comma (,)
The Slovene rule of placing a comma before ker,
ki, ko, da, ce, does not apply in English. The
following examples are all wrong
On the Earth are a lot of places, where we can
find minerals. On the continental slope is a
zone, which is very rich with oil. He proved,
that the substance would not disintegrate after
heating.
5
Slovene rules do not apply in English
It is also good, because we use household
products and students learn , that household
materials can also be used in a
laboratory. Seventh graders think, that drugs
are harmful. They do not know, that drugs are
also used in medicine.
6
Comma (,)
A comma is used when we enumerate (list) items in
a series
The liquids we analysed were neat methanol, neat
ethanol, methanol with 10 percent water, and
ethanol with 10 percent water.
Some writers leave out the comma before the last
item, but then there is a danger of ambiguity.
7
Comma (,)
Is used to separate linking words and phrases
from the rest of the sentence. E.g. similarly,
on he other hand, however, nevertheless
On the other hand, the chances of success are
great. His greatest contribution, however, will
be in the development of..
8
Comma (,)
It is often essential to separate the initial
phase to avoid confusion or ambiguity e.g. Afte
r eating a sticky deposit called plaque adheres
to tooth surface. After eating bacteria in the
plaque produce high concentrations of
acids. After eating the pH of the saliva which is
normally 6.7 increases.
After placing a comma the meaning becomes clear
After eating, a sticky deposit, called plaque,
adheres to toot surface. After eating, bacteria
in the plaque produce high concentrations of
acids After eating, the pH of the saliva, which
is normally 6.7, increases.
9
Colon ()
The colon is used before the list of items, often
preceded by a word like namely, such as, as
follows, the following,
There are four categories of nutrients, such
as.. The article describes the following ...
10
Semi-colon ()
The semi-colon is weaker than a full stop, but
stronger than a comma. It is used to join two
independent but closely related sentences.
This section will consider communication
electronics another section will be devoted to
computer electronics.
11
Dash (--)
A dash can be used in the same way as round
brackets to add extra, less important
information.
Mechanical design technician are the
communicators of industry. They prepare -- of
supervise the preparation of -- assembly drawings.
12
Hyphen (-)
Hyphens are used to join words to make new words.
American English uses rather fewer hyphens than
British English. The rules are complicated and
vary. If in doubt, check the dictionary.
E.g. hands-on experience problem-solving
skills two-dimensional shapes half-time non-existe
nt self-study
13
Apostrophe ()
Used in Saxon genetive
One scientist
In this paper, Zarkas method is described
Two scientists
Iwan and Moellers (1976) work appears to be the
first publication...
14
Apostrophe ()
No apostrophe used With famous discoveries,
inventions e.g.
Apostrophe used with laws, theories, theorems,
diseases, principles
Curie point Doppler effect Bunsen burner
Boyles law Darwins theory Pascals
theorem Parkinsons disease