Monday, September 25, 2017

Punctuation Mark Monday: The colon

The colon expands on the sentence that precedes it, often introducing a list that demonstrates or elaborates whatever was previously stated.

EXAMPLES

There are many reasons for poor written communication: lack of planning, poor grammar, misuse of punctuation marks, and insufficient vocabulary.
He collected a strange assortment of items: bird's eggs, stamps, bottle tops, string, and buttons.
Peter had an eclectic taste in music: latin, jazz, country and western, pop, blues, and classical.
He had just one fault: an enormous ego.

The colon is also used to divide the hour from the minutes in writing a time in English.

EXAMPLES

4:15 = "four fifteen"
6:45 = "six fourty-five"

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