RULES OF
PUNCTUATION
Fachinetti Valentina
Mariana Mussetta
Lengua Inglesa-UTN
FULL STOP

Put a full stop at the end of a statement or command:
Flowers are beautiful in spring.

Abbreviations
A full stop may end an abbreviation or a person´s initials.
Mr. R. Smith
When the abbreviation consist of capitals, it is common to omit
the full stop:
BBC
COMMA

Use a comma to separate items in a series.
I´m taking Spanish, English, physics and economics.

Use a comma to separate the parts of dates and addresses.
The Smith Family lives at 3234 Atlantic Avenue,
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 6611. They moved there on
January 1, 1990

Use a comma after most time order expressions.
First, I got up. Next, I had breakfast.
COMMA

Use a comma after subordinate phrases at the beginning of
a sentence.
If it rains, we´ll change our plans.

Use a comma round the name of a person spoken to.
How are you, John?

Use commas to separate non-essential phrases from the
main sentence.
Jacob, who is 80, is in hospital.
COMMA

Use a comma after some sentence connectors.
I hate jogging. Therefore, I never do it.
Jack loves Jean; however, she loves Roger.

Use a comma to separate a direct quotation from the rest of
the sentences.
“I cannot attend”, he said.

Use a comma to prevent misreading.
Before eating, the dog barked three times.
COLON

Use a colon to introduce a list.
Bring the following equipment: a tent, a sleeping bag and
matches.

Use a colon between numbers to show time.
4:15 p m

Use a colon between two independent clauses when the
second one explains the first. There is only one thing to say:
He did not deserve it.

Use a colon to formally introduce a quotation.
Raymond scarily said: “Hot water. Burn baby”
SEMICOLON

Use semicolon to separate main clauses not (usually) joined
by a conjunction, which are considered so closely connected
as to belong to one sentence. It is used in the middle of a
sentence because it connects two thoughts which are
closely related: I´m working late tonight; don´t expect me
for dinner.

Use semicolon instead of commas to separate from each
other parts of a sentence which are already separated by
commas: There are two facts to consider: first, the weather;
second, the expense.
SEMICOLON

Use a semicolon between items in a series when the items
themselves contain commas.
Present at the meeting were Charles Jones, chairperson;
Lydia
Jones,
treasurer.
vice-chairperson;
and
Roger
Smaltz,
DASH

Use dashes to emphasize an interruption within a
sentence: Be home on time—no later than midnight—or I´ll
be worried.

Use a dash to set off abrupt parenthetical elements.
He took the letter angrily—or was she really happy—when
the letter carrier arrived.

Use a dash to set off or a brief summary.
There is a poem I love more than any other--The Wasteland.
HYPHEN( NOTE. THE HYPHEN IS HALF
THE LENGTH OF THE DASH)

Use a hyphen to divide between syllables.

Use a hyphen to form compound word and numbers.
Mother-in-law. Sixty-one.
PARENTHESES

Use parentheses for words not strictly related to the main
thought of the sentence. He said he had never seen the sea
before (but I think he was joking)

Use parentheses to enclose figures numbering items in a
series. The government tried to (1) increase employment,
(2) reduce inflation, and (3) cut taxes.
ITALICS

Underlining and italic type indicate the same thing: the
word or words are being distinguished or emphasized.
Italicize names of books: War and Peace.
Plays: Hamlet.
Pamphlets: The truth about Alcoholism.
Television and radio programs: 60 Minutes
ITALICS
Periodicals: Time.
Movies: Star Wars.
Works of visual art: the Mona Lisa.

Italicize names of ships, aircrafts, spacecrafts, and trains.
Queen Elizabeth

Use italics for foreign words and phrases that have not yet
been accepted into English. The piéce de resistance was his
poached fish with hollandaise sauce.
ITALICS

Use italics to call attention to words as words and letters as
letters.
The word fluffy reminds me of a cloud.
The teacher said, “ Now put the letter X in the margin”
CAPITALS

Capitalize the first letter of the first word of a sentence.

Capitalize the first word of a direct quotation: He cautioned
them, “Don´t stop!”

Capitalize the word I: I live in Villa Maria.

Capitalize
names
documents,
and
Victorian Era.
of
ages:
important
Declaration
historical
of
events,
Independence,
CAPITALS

Capitalize the deity, place names, street names, people´s
names, organization names, brand names, languages and
specific course names: God and His universe, Blue Ridge
Mountains, Forty-second Street, Spanish, History II.

Capitalize the days of the weeks, months and special
holidays: January, Monday, Christmas.
CAPITALS

Capitalize east, west, north and south only when they are
used as sections of the country; not at directions: Rod Lewis
lived in the East for three years.

In a title capitalize the first word and each content word:
The Curious Incident of the Dog at the Night-Time.

Capitalize titles when they are accompany a name: Capitan
T. J. Williams.
EXCERPTS FROM CONTRAST AND
COMPARISON ESSAY

The curious life of Christopher and Rainman. (Title)

Christopher, a 15 years old boy, is the main character of
the novel The Curious Incident of the dog at the Night
Time.

On the contrary, Raymond who has been living in a special
institution has not the same support a family can give;

On the other side, Rain Man, a man in
his 40s called
Raymond, is the main character of the film Rain Man
WORKS CONSULTED

Diamond, Harriet and Dutwin Phyllis. Grammar in Plain
English. Barron´s Educational Series, Inc. 1989

Fowler, H. Ramsey and Jane E. Aron. The Little Brown
Handbook. Fifth edition. Harper Collins Publishers 1992.

Horney, A S with A P Cowie and Oxford Advanced Learner´s
Dictionary of Current English A C Gimson.. OUP 1974.

Oshima, Alice and Ann Hogue. Introduction to Academic
Writing. Second Edition. Longman 1997.

Thomas, B.J. Elementary Vocabulary. Longman 1990.

Smalley and Ruetter. Refining Composition Skills. Rhetoric
and Grammar. 4th Edition.