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Grammar Bytes!

Grammar Instruction with Attitude ©1997 - 2007 by Robin L. Simmons

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The first appropriate use of the semicolon is to connect two related sentences.

The pattern looks like this: Complete sentence + ; + complete

sentence .

Here is an example:

My eighty-one-year-old grandmother still rides her Harley motorcycle; her toy poodle balances in a basket between the handlebars.

You can also team up a semicolon with a transition to connect two complete sentences that are close in meaning.

The pattern looks like this: Complete sentence + ; + transition + , + complete sentence .

Check out this example: My father does not approve of his mother cruising around town on a Harley motorcycle; however, Grandma has never cared what anyone thinks.

Finally, use the semicolon to avoid confusion when you have complicated lists of items.

The pattern looks like this: Item + , + More Information + ; + Item + , + More Information + ; + and + Item + , + More Information

Read the following example:

On a Harley motorcycle, my grandmother and her poodle have traveled to Anchorage, Alaska; San Francisco, California; and Tijuana, Mexico.

Keep these three things in mind when you use a semicolon:

1. The two main clauses that the semicolon joins

should be closely related in meaning.

2. Don't capitalize the word that follows the semicolon unless that word is a proper noun, one that is always capitalized.

3. Limit your use of semicolons; you should not scatter them recklessly throughout your writing. Save them for special occasions.

Go to this site: http://tinyurl.com/Semicolonquiz Show me your score! (You’ll need at least a

70% to receive credit, so use your notes!)

Thanks to OWL, the Online Writing Lab from Purdue University,

for the following information.

Use a colon after a complete sentence in order to introduce one or more directly related ideas, such as a series of directions, a list, or a quotation or other comment illustrating or explaining the statement.

Proper colon usage looks like this:

General complete sentence: specification, amplification, or explanation.

Example: He had one goal: to pass the course.

The element following the colon can be a sentence, a phrase, a single word, a quotation; but the element before the colon must be a complete sentence.

Example: This first part must be a complete

sentence: not this part!

Correct: His beach equipment included the following items: a towel, a pair of sunglasses, and some sunscreen.

Incorrect: His beach equipment included: a

towel, a pair of sunglasses, and some sunscreen.

The daily newspaper contains four sections:

news, sports, entertainment, and classified ads.

Examples: This I know: Do or do not. There is no try. The four most beautiful words in our

common language: I told you so.

The rule was clear: no texting in class.

He said he would be at home by 5:30 p.m.

He always liked to refer to Genesis 1:18 when

starting a speech.

Space once between a colon and the next

word, when the colon is used between words. Do not space between numerals and a colon

when a colon is used to mark time or ratios.