Search results for 'tag:Semicolons tag:Commas' matching tags 'Semicolons' and 'Commas'

Re: colon dash

richard_s — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 21:35:26 GMT

'I hate him so much, he killed my dog' is a comma splice. Â This is considered bad punctuation; though many native speakers write like this without worrying about the fact that it's a comma splice. Â You have to put in the subordinator 'as' or 'because' to join those two clauses.

A comma spliceÂ is when two independent clauses are separated by a comma. Â You must separate independent clauses by coordinators, semicolons, orÂ full-stops.

Of course punctuation is a matter of personal style in the end. Â The rules are dictated by publishing companies, universities, and these days by the ELT industry, all of whom would claim that the above punctuation was a comma splice.

Re: Use of however (Guest:Sam)

richard_s — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 02:09:10 GMT

Yes, 'however' is an adverb. Â More precisely, it is a 'conjunctive adverb'. Â You can use 'however' or 'but' in the example sentence, but 'however' is much more formal. Â 'But' is more casual. Â Note that 'but' will have a comma before it, and 'however' should have a semicolon before it and a comma after it. Â Also, note that we cannot use however between two nouns, only between two clauses. Â We tend to use 'however' in formal writing for more important connections and 'but' in formal writing for less noteworthy connections.

Re: please help

richard_s — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 00:13:58 GMT

Due to is a preposition, so the first clause should be a prepositional phrase (remember that you can't use modals in prepositional phrases, so you will have to change cannotÂ to not be able to. Â The verb in the clause needs to be in gerund form. You need a comma after the prepositional phrase, not a semicolon. Â

There are only 50% good included 500pcsÂ doesn't make sense. Â Probably included should be including, but I am not sure what this sentence means.

Re: Punctuation within quotes?

Anonymous — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 16:06:53 GMT

These punctuation marks (the British call them inverted commas) come in two forms, double and single. The double quotation marks (opening â and closing â) are used to enclose the words of a direct quotation: She said, âIâll never see you again.â (They are never used in indirect quotation: She said sheâd never see him again.) They are also used to enclose words or phrases quoted from others or words that may be slang or that are in some other way being used peculiarly: The speaker tried to put a favorable âspinâ on his denial. The âpacification planâ was in fact simply a euphemism for a bloody conquest. But be sparing: most editors discourage the use of such quotation marks for effect rather than for a substantive reason, and overuse of these marks in any writing is affected.	1
Convention also calls for double quotation marks around the titles of short stories, short poems, short musical compositions, and the names of plays, chapters in books, and radio and television programs: Frostâs âThe Road Not Taken,â âEye Witness News.â (Titles of longer works usually require italics instead, and sometimes the decision is arbitrary or simply conventional: books of the Bible, for example, are almost always italicized rather than placed in quotation marks, and the same is true of the titles of Shakespeareâs plays.)	2
A key problem with quotation marks is which other marks of punctuation go inside the closing quotation mark(s) and which belong outside. In the United States, most stylebooks and most editors follow these rules: periods and commas belong inside, colons and semicolons outside. Other marksâquestion mark, dash, and exclamation point, for exampleâgo inside when they belong with the quoted material, outside when they belong to the main sentence. British editorial conventions differ.	3
When quoting a long passage of two or more paragraphs, the usual procedure in written American English is to use no quotation marks and instead to set off the entire passage of quoted matter by indenting it. If you decide to use quotation marks instead, however, the usual procedure is to begin each paragraph of the long quotation with quotation marks but to use a closing quotation mark only at the end of the final sentence in the quoted passage. In any event, use only one of these methods with any given quotation. See also POETRY.	4
British publishers frequently use single quotation marks (opening â and closing â) where Americans use double quotation marks. In American writing, however, single quotation marks are restricted mainly to enclosing a quotation within a quotation: The dealer said, âIâm sorry, I thought you said âI pass.ââ Note that a period goes inside both final quotation marks when the two quotations end together.

Re: Dear Friends,

richard_s — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 10:26:57 GMT

The aquatics centre will have a total capacity of 22,500, out of which 17,500 seats will be for the diving and pool competition(,) and the other 5,000 will be in the water polo section of the centre.

Notes:

Capitals - only capitalise the first letter of a sentence of names of things (proper nouns).

to seat - it is unusual to use total and to seat together. Â They don't collocate. We either say a total capacity of...Â orÂ a capacity to seat...

Punctuation - the semicolon use is incorrect there. Â You need a comma. Â Out of which actually begins a (dependent) relative clause which is the object of a preposition. Â Use semicolons when you are separating independent clauses.

the rest - the restÂ means all of the other seats. Â We don't use it with a number because it means all that is left. Â We use the otherÂ with a number to achieve the same meaning.

will be put up for - this seems wrong here though I am not exactly sure of your meaning. Â In this case, forÂ seems more logical.

Re: Help with semicolon

Mister Micawber — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 06:15:02 GMT

.
Hello HogDog-- and welcome to EF.

No, they are mostly wrong. Only the last one is correct. The first one should be a colon and the others commas, like this:

Emergency supplies are a necessity. You will want to bring: signaling devices, something reflective such as a small mirror or compact disk, a whistle and cylumine light-sticks, and a rain poncho or a space blanket to accommodate unforeseen changes in the climate; also, matches and a striker pad could prove very useful if stuck somewhere for the night.

Lists use semicolons only when there are internal commas, as in:

I have homes in Nome, Alaska; Miami, Florida; San Francisco, Calfornia; and El Paso, Texas.

Re: Comma Question-"and therefore," or "and, therefore,"

Anonymous — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 19:21:14 GMT

However, therefore, moreover, and other words like them are conjunctive adverbs. They go between two complete thoughts. When you want to use one of these words, you have two good choices. Check to see if you have a complete thought on both sides of the "conjunctive adverb." If you do, then you can use a period to make two sentences, or you can use a semicolon after the first complete thought.

GOOD: Basketball is my favorite sport. However, table tennis is where I excel.

ALSO GOOD: Basketball is my favorite sport; however, table tennis is where I excel.

BAD: Basketball is my favorite sport, however table tennis is where I excel.

ALSO BAD: Basketball is my favorite sport, however, table tennis is where I excel.

Re: HER DIARY/ HIS DIARY

Avangi — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 16:14:04 GMT

Hi.

In view of the "but" phrase in the first paragraph, I'd be inclined to say, "I thought he might be upset by*** etc." (optional)

I'd delete "that" after "suggested."

I don't think you "keep absent." I'd suggest "but he seemed quiet and absent," OR "but he kept quiet and seemed absent."

comma splice after "I loved him." Use two sentences, or a conjunction, or some other device.

Some would discourage the semicolon after "behavior," but it's okay by me.

Not sure I'd use a comma in "I love you, too." You use so few commas, it seems out of place, or out of style.

Probably a dash after "as if I had lost him." Most likely the sentence as is would be considered ungrammatical.

I think "absent" is rare. I wouldn't use it twice in such a short span.

In your last paragraph, the first sentence is too bloody long. Well, maybe not too long. It expresses a series of three or four different actions (or thoughts) taking place over a period of time. Let the reader catch his breath.

You have three "I decided's" in the last paragraph - a little monotonous.

Also, I'd suggest beginning a new paragraph with the second "I decided."

Running the "but he had fallen asleep" into the previous sentence spoils the drama. You need some kind of a break or bridge between.

English is your native language, Right? Good stuff! The diary thing shows that your really do have a sense of drama - and irony. - A.

*** Edit. I'm not sure what to advise here. "At" would go with the adjective and "by" would go with the passive verb. It depends how you look at it. I guess that means you may use either "at" or "by."

1)How can we correct the sentence:

Belly — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 13:19:06 GMT

1)How can we correct the sentence:

When the eggs hatch, the young turtles go off to take care of themselves, being that female turtles do not nurture their young

a) add "on the other hand" at the beginning

b) insert " as a result" at the bginning"

c) change the comma to semicolon

d) change "hatch" to "hatched"

e) change "being that"-> "because"

The answer was e. But I have never seen a "because" after comma

2) The meaning of his words was even more elusive in his own country than either Europe or Latin America ( the underscore is a wrong phrase)

Can we replace the underscored phrase with "either in Europe or Latin Am" or " in either Europe or Latin Am"?

3) On my preparing for exam, I came up with this sentence:

Spot the error:

Kelly is proud of her own abilities to mediate disputes more than any of her other strength. No error

The answer was C ( as the book says) but here is its explanation:

"Does the subordinate clause fit within the context of the sentenc? ( A) uses the correct verb tense and the verb agrees w/ subject Kelly. (B) shows the correct feminine sing. pronoun, referring to Kelly (C) shows the correct infi. form of the verb mediate.

So what is the answer??

4) here is part of a math question I couldn't find out why:

Which is the graph of y= -(x-2)2 (2 outside the bracket means square)?

Graphs drawn below.

And here was the solution:

If f(x) = -x2 , the given equation, y= -(x-2)2, represents f(x-2)

How come they got the last line?

Re: Memos show Clinton Turmoil Part 1

Feebs11 — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 12:47:13 GMT

Question: I would have written ''Clinton's turmoil''. Why didn't the author use apostrophe? It is a headline - they do not use standard grammar.

Question: Why is semicolon used instead of comma to separate the email addresses above? Addresses are better separated by semicolons - it establishes that they are different.

Question: Clinton didn't embrace Penn's approach because she did not consider it seriously. Therefore, what campaign aides were saying is redundant. They are the people to whom the journalists talked in order to find out what is happening.