OTHER PUNCTUATION
The following “rules” are simplified for your convenience and will be correct most of the
time. However, as writing becomes more complex, the punctuation may also become more
complicated or complex.
COLON (:)
Use the colon at the end of a complete statement to introduce a list, a long quotation, or an
explanation.
List
The following were my best jobs: journalist, newspaper editor, English professor, and
attendant in a state mental hospital.
Long Quotation
Thoreau explains in Walden: "I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to
front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not,
when I came to die, discover that I had not lived."
Explanation
There are two junior high schools in our city: O'Leary and Robert Stuart.
PARENTHESES ( )
Parentheses are used to set off extra or incidental information from the rest of the sentence:
The section of this book on the medical dangers of smoking (pages 35 to 72) is outdated.
Today at Jakers (my favorite place to eat in Twin Falls), the server who brought our drinks
asked me to go to a movie tonight.
NOTE: Use parentheses sparingly in your writing.
HYPHEN (-)
Use a hyphen with two or more words that act as a single unit describing a noun.
The fast-talking English teacher was so good that he went into politics.
(Fast and talking combine to describe the English teacher.)
He is known for his well-rounded personality.
When Tom Cruise removed his blue-tinted shades, the cameraman saw the angry look in his
eyes.
DASH (--)
A dash signals a degree of pause longer than a comma but not as complete as a period. Use
a dash to set off words for dramatic effect:
I decided not to date him again--once was more than enough.
Some of the students--I won't mention them by name--didn't take the last exam.
It was so windy that the VW passed him on the highway--overhead.
NOTE: Don’t confuse the hyphen with the dash. The dash is formed on the keyboard by
striking the hyphen twice (--). In handwriting, the dash is as long as two letters would be.
Be careful not to overuse dashes.
SEMICOLON (;)
The primary use of the semicolon is to indicate the break between two complete thoughts.
However, another use of the semicolon is to separate off items in a series when the items
contain commas. Here are some examples:
Winning prizes at the Idaho Quilter's Derby were: Becky Sills, Jerome, star pattern; Sally
Hunt, Twin Falls, crazy pattern; and James Krebs, Kimberly, round-the-world pattern.
The following books must be read for the course: The Color Purple, by Alice Walker;
Orlando, byVirginia Wolf; and Emma, by Jane Austin.
Though the following rule is rarely needed anymore, we include it for the sake of completion.
Use a hyphen to divide a word at the end of a line of writing or typing. When you need to
divide a word at the end of the line, divide it between syllables. Use you dictionary to be
sure of correct syllable divisions.
When Melinda lifted up the hood of her 1985 Pontiac Le Mans, she realized that one of the new radiator hoses had broken.
NOTE: Do not divide words of one syllable. Do not divide a word if you can avoid doing so.