Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
The full stop (Commonwealth English), period (North American English), or full point. is a punctuation mark used for several purposes, most often to mark the end of a declarative sentence (as distinguished from a question or exclamation).
Punctuation in the English language helps the reader to understand a sentence through visual means other than just the letters of the alphabet. [1] English punctuation has two complementary aspects: phonological punctuation, linked to how the sentence can be read aloud, particularly to pausing; [2] and grammatical punctuation, linked to the structure of the sentence. [3]
In British English, punctuation marks such as full stops and commas are placed inside the quotation mark only if they are part of what is being quoted, and placed outside the closing quotation mark if part of the containing sentence. In American English, however, such punctuation is generally placed inside the closing quotation mark regardless.
Terminal punctuation marks are also referred to as end marks [1] and stops. [2] In languages using the ISO basic Latin alphabet, terminal punctuation marks are defined as the period, the question mark, and the exclamation mark. [3] [4] These punctuation marks may bring sentences to a close. In their widest sense, terminal punctuation marks ...
German uses the exclamation mark for several things that English conveys with other punctuation: [33] [34] It is used at the end of imperative sentences even when not particularly emphatic: Ruf mich morgen an! (English: 'Call me tomorrow.') A normal period, as in English, is fairly common but is considered substandard.
There were a few things drilled into our heads back in English class: "Funner" isn't a word. Neither is "stupider." Don't start a sentence with a conjunction.
In English, the question mark typically occurs at the end of a sentence, where it replaces the full stop (period). However, the question mark may also occur at the end of a clause or phrase, where it replaces the comma (see also Question comma):
When placed at the end of a sentence, an ellipsis may be used to suggest melancholy or longing. [18] In newspaper and magazine columns, ellipses may separate items of a list instead of paragraph breaks. [2]: 21 Merriam-Webster's Manual for Writers and Editors uses a line of ellipsis to indicate omission of whole lines in a quoted poem. [2]: 147