Colons, Semicolons, & Punctuation

Colons Colons ( : ) are used: Before a list of words, phrases or clauses. In front of him were the following: mince pies, holly and other delicious delights. In this example the items in the list are separated by commas. Remember: you do not put a comma before the word and.

Semi-colons If the items in the list are longer than one or two words separate them with a semi-colon. The attractions of the park included: a new roundabout; a short pony ride; a long slide and an ice-cream stall.

Semicolons You’ll usually find several questions dealing with semicolons on the English Test. The main functions of a semicolon that you should know for the test are its ability to join related independent clauses and its use in a series.

Independent Clauses Semicolons are commonly used to separate two related but independent clauses. Julie ate five brownies; Eileen ate seven. Josh needed to buy peas; he ran to the market.

Semicolon Explanation In the previous examples, the semicolon functions as a “weak period.” It suggests a short pause before moving to a less-related thought. Generally, a period between these independent clauses would work just as well, so the ACT won’t offer you a choice between a semicolon and a period.

Independent Clauses with a Transition Frequently, you will see two independent clauses joined by a semicolon and a transitional adverb (such as however, consequently, furthermore, nevertheless, etc.) Julie ate five brownies; however, Eileen ate seven. Josh needed to buy peas; thus, he ran to the market.

Semicolons: A series The semicolon replaces the comma as a structural backbone of a series if the items already contain commas. The tennis tournament featured the surprise comeback player, King, who dropped out last year due to injuries; the up-and-coming star Popp, who dominated the junior tour; and the current favorite, Farrington, who won five of the last six tournaments.

A full stop is used at the end because it is the end of the sentence. Colons Colons and semi-colons are also used in a bulleted list. Equipment required for PE: Shorts; T-shirt; Pumps. A full stop is used at the end because it is the end of the sentence.

Colons A colon is also used in a glossary between a word and its definition. Connective: a word used to join two parts of a sentence. Adjective: a word which describes a noun.

Semi-colons John liked jelly and Sam just loved ice cream. Semi-colons can be used to join clauses in a sentence. Sometimes they take the place of connectives. John liked jelly and Sam just loved ice cream. This sentence could be written: John liked jelly; Sam just loved ice cream. It was a dark night and the moon hid behind a cloud. It was a dark night; the moon hid behind a cloud.

Recap Colons: Semi-colons: introduce a list; link two clauses, when the second one gives more information about the first. Semi-colons: separate longer items in a list; link two clauses which are closely related. Act as connectives between two clauses of equal weight.

Other punctuation The English test rarely test punctuation marks other than those already listed. However, in the odd case that test writers do throw in some other punctuation errors, you should know what to expect. The ACT officially states that it covers, in addition the previously mentioned punctuation, parenthesis, dashes, periods, question marks, and exclamation points. Click HERE for the video link.