Have you ever been stumped by the different purposes that the comma, semi-colon and the full-stop, or period, serve in expressing a writer's intent? Read the following short dialogue that these three cousins had and you will find out more about their close relationship.
(Big Cousin Brother, Full-Stop, chanced upon Semi-Colon and her young sibling, Comma having an interesting conversation at the coffee-shop, just down the street from the block of flats they lived in. He decided to join in.)
Comma: Hey, Col, I never said you are not important!
Semi-Colon: Oh yeah?! Then, what does it mean when you accuse me of confusing people... that, that, people don't like to use me. That they rather use you than...
Comma: Oh, come on, Col. I am just stating a fact. People find me less confusing, but that doesn't mean you are not important. Both of us are!
(Just then, Full-Stop drew out a chair at their table and plopped down with a heavy sigh.)
Full-Stop: Really?! You gals are at it again? Look, I am going to do what I was born to do - put a full-stop to all this nonsense right here and now! So, listen carefully because this is the last time I am going to do it, period! Col, my Semi-Colon dude, you've got the best of both worlds since you've both me and Comma in you. Just take a look below:
I am the one that completes the sentences and allows the reader or speaker to pause a bit longer than when Comma comes in. Humans can't go on and on; they need time to take a breather, short and long, and to process multiple ideas. Take for instance the following:
I went to the Gardens by the Bay.
The full-stop here indicates that one piece of information is given for you to process at one go. The sentence, or one complete thought, has ended here.
I went to the Gardens by the Bay (1), and, while visiting the conservatories (2), saw many species of plant-life (3).
Here, our dear Comma plays the important role of separating the added information found in (2) from the two main ideas, which are found in (1) and (3)
Now, let's come to you, Semi-Colon.
I went to the Gardens by the Bay (1); I consider it a learning adventure during which I came across so many different kinds of plants and trees (2).
You, my cousin, in reality helps to make a sentence clear and you also show how two sentences, or complete thoughts, are actually related to each other. (1) is a complete thought. (2) is another complete thought but it is related to (1); hence, it shows that while the earlier idea in (1) can stand on its own, the writer is not done with the idea. He or she wants to continue by adding another, related, idea to it.
Just go over the last explanation more carefully and try to figure out why the commas, semi-colon and full-stops, or periods, were used. We will provide an explanation in the next post.
(Big Cousin Brother, Full-Stop, chanced upon Semi-Colon and her young sibling, Comma having an interesting conversation at the coffee-shop, just down the street from the block of flats they lived in. He decided to join in.)
Comma: Hey, Col, I never said you are not important!
Semi-Colon: Oh yeah?! Then, what does it mean when you accuse me of confusing people... that, that, people don't like to use me. That they rather use you than...
Comma: Oh, come on, Col. I am just stating a fact. People find me less confusing, but that doesn't mean you are not important. Both of us are!
(Just then, Full-Stop drew out a chair at their table and plopped down with a heavy sigh.)
Full-Stop: Really?! You gals are at it again? Look, I am going to do what I was born to do - put a full-stop to all this nonsense right here and now! So, listen carefully because this is the last time I am going to do it, period! Col, my Semi-Colon dude, you've got the best of both worlds since you've both me and Comma in you. Just take a look below:
. + , = ;
I am the one that completes the sentences and allows the reader or speaker to pause a bit longer than when Comma comes in. Humans can't go on and on; they need time to take a breather, short and long, and to process multiple ideas. Take for instance the following:
I went to the Gardens by the Bay.
The full-stop here indicates that one piece of information is given for you to process at one go. The sentence, or one complete thought, has ended here.
I went to the Gardens by the Bay (1), and, while visiting the conservatories (2), saw many species of plant-life (3).
Here, our dear Comma plays the important role of separating the added information found in (2) from the two main ideas, which are found in (1) and (3)
Now, let's come to you, Semi-Colon.
I went to the Gardens by the Bay (1); I consider it a learning adventure during which I came across so many different kinds of plants and trees (2).
You, my cousin, in reality helps to make a sentence clear and you also show how two sentences, or complete thoughts, are actually related to each other. (1) is a complete thought. (2) is another complete thought but it is related to (1); hence, it shows that while the earlier idea in (1) can stand on its own, the writer is not done with the idea. He or she wants to continue by adding another, related, idea to it.
Just go over the last explanation more carefully and try to figure out why the commas, semi-colon and full-stops, or periods, were used. We will provide an explanation in the next post.
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