Punctuation is used to create sense, clarity and stress in sentences. You use punctuation marks to structure and organise your writing.
You can quickly see why punctuation is important if you try and read this text which has no punctuation at all:
perhaps you dont always need to use commas periods colons etc to make sentences clear when i am in a hurry tired cold lazy or angry i sometimes leave out punctuation marks grammar is stupid i can write without it and dont need it my uncle Harry once said he was not very clever and i never understood a word he wrote to me i think ill learn some punctuation not too much enough to write to Uncle Harry he needs some help
Now let's see if punctuating it makes a difference!
Perhaps you don't always need to use commas, periods, colons etc. to make sentences clear. When I am in a hurry, tired, cold, lazy, or angry I sometimes leave out punctuation marks. "Grammar is stupid! I can write without it and don't need it," my uncle Harry once said. He was not very clever, and I never understood a word he wrote to me. I think I'll learn some punctuation - not too much, enough to write to Uncle Harry. He needs some help!
Use the pages in this punctuation section to learn how to make your English clearer and better organised.
Punctuation rules in English
- The period (or full stop in British English)
- The comma
- The exclamation mark
- The question mark
- The colon
- The semicolon
- The quotation mark
- The apostrophe
- The hyphen and the dash
- Parentheses and brackets