PUNCTUATION MARKS

Punctuation marks on a page are similar to signs on a road. 
They guide you and direct you.

1.  A period ( . ) ends a declarative or imperative sentence.

            Listen to me. 

            I live in Kedah.   

            Please come here.   

            Eat your vegetables.

            Don’t drink and drive. 

            They don’t live in Penang.

2.  A question mark ( ? ) ends an interrogative sentence.

            Do you live in Pasadena?  

            Don’t you like chocolate ice cream?

3.  An exclamation mark  ( ! ) ends an exclamatory sentence

     (a sentence that contains a lot of emotion).

            Help!   Stop!   Don’t call me again!

4.  A  comma  ( , ) separates items in a list.

            I like coffee, soda, milk, and tea.     

           Sara, Maria, Robert and Steven will eat lunch. 

 

5.  A semicolon ( ; ) separates equal parts of a sentence.

            Mary is at home; Bob is at school.

            Give me a hamburger, with onions and lettuce; a coke, with a straw;

            and fries, with ketchup.

6.  A   colon ( : ) usually precedes a list.

            Bring these things with  you: a book, a pencil, and a dictionary.

7.  A dash ( – ) usually indicates a break in thought.

            I’ll have a hot dog with mustard – no, make that ketchup.

8.  A hyphen ( - ) separates syllables to make a word easier to read.

            co-ordinate        re-elect     pray-er

     *A hyphen also separates syllables when  it’s necessary  to continue 

       a word on the following  line.*

 

9.  Parentheses ( )  or a pair of dashes contain extra information.

            John (my brother) is coming to the party.

            John – my brother – is coming to the party.

10.  An ellipsis (...) shows that information is missing or deleted.

            “To be or not...the question.”  

       (“To be or not to be. That is the question.”)

11.  Quotation marks (“  ”) enclose the exact words of a person.

            Maria said, “Where are the keys?”

12.  An apostrophe ( ’ ) is a substitute for a letter or letters (in a contraction).

            isn’t = is not    can’t = cannot    don’t = do not    I’ll = I will    I’m = I am  

            He’s sick. = He is sick.

            Bob’s rich. = Bob is rich.    

            What’s new? = What is new? 

           They’ve worked. = They have worked.

            ’99 = 1999  

         * An apostrophe also shows possession.*

            This is Sara’s book.  (Don’t say:  This is the book of Sara.)    

            Where is the dog’s dish?

14.  Begin all sentences with a capital letter (i.e., capitalize the first word in all sentences)

        and end all sentences with a punctuation mark.  = Capitalize the first word in

        a sentence and finish the sentence with a punctuation mark.

Conjunctions in English sentences

Conjunction                              Sentence although                                Although he's very famous he is still nice. and                    I like tea and coffee. as               As I came she was leaving.               As you couldn't see the film, we'll tell you something                about it. because               She goes to the tennis club because she likes to play tennis.  but               He reads magazines but he doesn't like to read books. either               I'm sorry, Peter is ill and I can't come either.               We can either go to the cinema or to the cafe. even               She likes swimming, even in winter. even if               Don't drink any alcohol even if you drive carefully. even so               This book is very popular; even so, I don't like it. how               Do you know how to ride a snowboard? however               However we've lost the match.               They worked hard for the test, however, they failed. if               If they were older, they could go to the party. in case               Take your mobile with you in case you miss the bus. in spite of               He looks very fit in spite of his age. neither               They didn't go to the party, and neither did I.               Neither drinks nor food are allowed in this room. or               Do you like tea or coffee? otherwise               Look at the map, please. Otherwise you'll get lost. since               Since he's lost his money, he couldn't go to the restaurant. unless               Her baby cannot fall asleep unless she stays in the room. what               I don't know what to say. when               When you're in London, write an e-mail to me. whether               I'm going home whether you like it or not.
Personal pronouns, Possessive determiners, Possessive pronouns   Personal pronouns Possessive determiners Possessive pronouns Personal pronouns as subject (nominative) as object (accusative and dative) Possessive determiners Possessive pronouns I me my I you you your you he him his he she her her she it it its it we us our we you you your yours they them their theirs We have some books. The books are for us. These are our books. The books are ours.