grammar rewind

Sentence Combining Usingthe Colon and the Semicolon

Variety in sentence construction adds sophistication to your writing.

Monday, May 1, 2023

Review of Sentence Basics

• The sentence is the basic unit of meaning in English

• Every sentence must be coherent, expressing a single thought or a relationship between thoughts

• Every sentence must contain a subject and a predicate

• What error is found in every bullet point on this slide?

Monday, May 1, 2023 CM & FM Matthew 1

Subjects

• A subject is the thing the sentence is talking about. It can be simple or compound.– Bob ate the apple.– Peter and Pam are happily married. – What did Ron eat yesterday? – Frank, the butcher’s son, Herbert, the rock star,

Penelope, the aspiring actress, and Tonia, the student body president, complained.

– Jane sings.


Predicates

• A predicate is what the sentence says about the subject. Predicates, like subjects, can be simple or complex.– Bob ate the apple.– Peter ate two loaves of day-old bread, gobbled three

questionable chicken legs, nibbled fourteen rotten plums, drank a liter of soda, wolfed down a pizza he found in the trash, and devoured the Snickers bar he found in bomb shelter rations.

– Jane sings and dances.– Jane and Bob love eating and singing.


Varying sentence structure• Many students stick to simple sentences because they

are safe, but without a variety of sentence structures, writing can sound very simplistic. (Note that short simple sentences can occasionally be effective when used to show emphasis, and to show a change of pace.)– I like plums. I don’t like liver. My mother likes liver. She eats

anything. She grew up in a small town. Her family was poor. They didn’t have money for meat. Especially good cuts of beef. But sometimes they could afford liver. So my mother learned to like liver. (Note that not all of these sentences are correct: the last three are sentence fragments.)


Conjunctions

• F• A• N• B• O• Y• S


Conjunctions

• The main coordinating conjunctions are and, but and or. Nor, for, so and yet can also be used as coordinating conjunctions; they might add variety to your writing, but it is more difficult to use them correctly.

• Coordinating conjunctions combine elements that have the same value. When a conjunction combines two independent clauses, it must be fortified with a comma.


Combining with conjunctions– Bob and Jane smiled. (Two Nouns/Subjects)– Jane ran and swam. (Verbs)– The sleigh ran over the river and through the woods.

(Prepositional Phrases)– Peter, the farmer, and Judy, the beautician, ran the

local dairy for twenty years. (Noun with appositive)– Petronille was the fan’s favorite and the judges

darling. (Object of the sentence/Predicate noun)(Note that none of these coordinating conjunctions require a comma before the conjunction.)


Nouns in a series

– Note that when items are listed in a series, you can replace the word ‘and’ with a comma. You cannot replace ‘and’ with a comma between the last two items in the series, so you need not add the comma. Sounds confusing, but it simple to understand when you see the following examples.

– The sleigh ran over the river, around the town, between the towers, and through the woods.

– Jackie, Tito, Jermaine, Marlon, and Michael were pop icons.


Independent Clauses

• An independent clause is basically a simple sentence. It contains a subject and a predicate.– Bob ate the apple.– You should run around the park.

• (Note: There is a type of sentence called a command which has an implied subject you.)– Eat the apple.– Run!


Exclamations

– WRITE THIS DOWN:I WILL NOT USE EXCLAMATION POINTS IN FORMAL WRITING!


Combining Independent Clauses

• When combining two independent clauses, neither a comma nor a conjunction is strong enough to do the job alone, so usually they do the job together, just as they have in this sentence.

X A comma splice is not a complete sentence, it attempts to combine two independent clauses with a comma alone, just as this incorrect sentence has done.


Combining Independent Clauses

X A run-on sentence isn’t just a sentence that runs on for too long but it is a mistake because it combines two independent clauses with a conjunction and no comma, just as this incorrect sentence has done.

- Actually, a good writer can write a really long sentence which is far to long to be easily comprehensible, even if it is, strictly speaking, correct; some writers actually make a career out of writing brilliant, yet annoyingly long sentences that last for half a page while adding little or nothing to the content of the story or essay they are writing, and thought some people might say that this makes little rhetorical sense, others would argue that it demonstrates a certain genius which manifests itself in only the rarest of authors, the kind of which comes along every century or so, or perhaps even less frequently if one takes into account that many of these ‘brilliant’ authors are only briefly famous and do not stand the test of time as Shakespeare, Dickens or, though I hate to admit it, Austen have done; such sentences, as you have probably surmised, demonstrate a certain level of ability – some would say arrogance – on the part of the author while being so incomprehensible that they are hardly worth the effort the reader takes to decipher them.


Semicolons

• The semicolon is stronger than a comma. It has the ability to combine two independent clauses which are closely related.– Bob ate the apple; Jane ate the fig.– I like the colors the painter used; I don’t like the

subject matter.– I went to Harvard; Penelope went to Yale.– My parents wanted me to go to study law; I had

subjects in mind.


Colons• Colons, like semicolons, combine two independent

clauses which are closely related, but in the case of the colon the second clause explains the first. As a result you can sometimes test the use of the colon by replacing it with the subordinating conjunction ‘because’. Using a colon adds a bit of emphasis to the second clause. – Bob ate the apple: he was hungry.– The reasons for the fight were many: for years the boys had

been feuding over math grades, their favorite football clubs, their favorite colors, and their love for Judy, the beautician from slide seven.


Incorrect Uses of the Colon• It is incorrect to put a dash after a colon.

X Bob ate the apple:- he was hungry.• In spite of what some word processors will tell you, there

are two spaces after a colon just as there are after a period. This keeps a paragraph from looking too crowded and jammed up.

• Though colons are often used to introduce lists, it is technically incorrect to use them for anything other than sentence combining. However, this use is very common, so it is probably fine to use it in informal writing.X Ruth ate three kinds of fruit: apples, oranges, and pears.


Comparing a Well-Coordinated Paragraph

• I like plums. I don’t like liver. My mother likes liver. She eats anything. She grew up in a small town. Her family was poor. They didn’t have money for good cuts of beef. But sometimes they could afford liver. So my mother learned to like liver. My mother says I should be happy that I can have liver every Friday. I think I’ll stick to plums.

• I like plums, but I don’t like liver. My mother likes liver: she eats anything. She grew up in a small town, and her family was poor. They didn’t have money for good cuts of beef, but sometimes they could afford liver, so my mother learned to like liver. My mother says I should be happy that I can have liver every Friday;I think I’ll stick to plums.



Using the Colon Incorrectly• Now let’s look at a sentence that uses the colon incorrectly:

• The five things crucial to remember when leaving on your dive boat are: fins, BCD, tank, weight and mask.

• The five things crucial to remember when leaving on your dive boat are. :fins, BCD, tank, weight and mask.

• In this example, when we delete the information following the colon (fins, BCD, tank, weights and mask), we see that ‘The five crucial things to remember when leaving on your dive boat are’ remains, and this cannot stand alone; we cannot place a period after ‘are’ , so we should NOT use the colon.

Using Colons to Introduce Series and Lists

• We can use colons to set up lists or series of items when we want to emphasize them. That is, we use the colon to point to the information that comes after it.

• The list is often an appositive that renames or defines some part of the information that comes before the colon.

• The information can be presented as either a horizontal list or as a vertical list

• The main rule for using colons still applies: the information that comes before the colon must be a complete sentence.

Monday, May 1, 2023 Source: 'Academic Center' tutoring and Testing at UHV or www.uhv.edu/ac 19

Horizontal Lists• Let’s look at an example:

• Keiko plans on bringing several items to the homebase party: cokes, napkins, plates and forks.

• The horizontal list above following the colon is an appositive that more specifically defines the items that Keiko will bring to the homebase party. Please note that we can place a period after party, so the sentence would still make sense.

• Let’s take a look at a sentence punctuated incorrectly:• Keiko plans on bringing: cokes, napkins, plates and forks.

• The example above shows the incorrect use of the colon. If we delete the information following the colon, the remainder of the sentence will not make sense: the remaining information is a fragment.

• Keiko plans on bringing. : cokes, napkins, plates and forks.


Using Colons to Introduce Quotations

• By now you will see the pattern emerging, and if you have missed it, then let me say it again: : the information before the colon must be a complete sentence.

• For example: Soo Hee expresses her concern about heart disease: “Deaths from heart disease in America will increase by five times in the next twenty years.”

• It is important to remember that the information before the colon should add to the reader’s understanding of the quotation – it should set up a context for or explain something about the quotation.

• This is even more important when you are setting up a block quotation.• For example:

In the novel, Night, Elie is a religious boy who answers Moishe , when he is asked a question: “Why did I pray? Strange question. Why did I live? Why did I breath?” (Wiesel 4). Later in the story, he begins to question God’s decisions. He begins to forsake God: “Blessed be God’s name? …Why, but why would I bless Him? Every fiber in me rebelled. Because He caused thousands of children to burn in His mass graves” (Wiesel 67).


Punctuating Quotations

Direct and indirect speech

Punctuation and Quotations

• Quotation marks enclose only a direct quotation – – one that repeats a person’s ex-

act words

– ExampleDIRECT QUOTATION Pete said, “My toast is burned.” (his exact words)

– ExampleINDIRECT QUOTATION Pete said that his toast was burned. (someone else’s words)


• Capitalize the first word of every direct quotation because it is the first word of the speaker’s sentence.– Example

Bernie replied, “My math book is in the car.”

• Do not capitalize an indirect quotation.– Example

Bernie replied that his math book was in the car.

Parenthetical Citations

in disgustingly gross detail.

Huh?

We use parenthetical citations to give credit to the people’s

thoughts we use.

We give credit for:

direct quotes

paraphrasing

summarizing

The general, garden variety citation:

We see Scout admit that she lies to her father when she says, “I said I could like it very much, which was a lie, but one must lie under certain circumstances” (Lee 128).

Two things to note:We see Scout admit that she lies to her father when she

says, “I said I could like it very much, which was a lie, but one must lie under certain circumstances” (Lee 128).

1. The author’s name and

page number appear

without a “p” or comma

• we know the number

is a page

• we don’t need a

comma, either

2. Punctuation appears outside the quotation

“Certain circumstances:”When the quotation has pertinent

punctuation in it that changes the meaning if omittedThe older waiter in Hemingway's "A Clean,

Well-Lighted Place" asks himself, "What did he fear?" (79).

But notice, there is still a closing punctuation mark after the citation

Speaking of Hemingway…You might have noticed that the citation

didn’t have an author in it! The older waiter in Hemingway's "A Clean, Well-

Lighted Place" asks himself, "What did he fear?" (79).

That’s because I already gave the author credit!Do you see it?

Trickery:Citing the author this way

(in the sentence itself) accomplishes two things:

1. it cites the author (duh)

2. it varies your sentence structure automatically for you!

this = good

writing

What about those pesky internet sources?

Cite the author, forget the page number(no pages

in cyberspace)


No author? Should you really use the site?

if no one takes credit for it, is it a credible site?

If you must, citethe website


If you MUST use one without an author, use the article title:

Internet Example (Preferable)

There is no truth to the rumor that al-Qaeda has poisoned the Coca-Cola supply in our country

(“Coca-Cola No Al Queda”).

Internet Example (Preferable)

What if there

is no title?

Internet example (no title?):There is no truth to the rumor that al-

Qaeda has poisoned the Coca-Cola supply in our country (snopes.com).

Note:• I did not give the complete URL, only a snippet

• the complete URL goes in your reference page

•Also note that the good folks at “snopes.com” DO take credit for their work•Their names are Barbara and David Mickelson and they do a nice job fact-checking…

But again,Try to use as few

unaccredited web pages as humanly possible

Source validity is a huge concern when the source takes no credit for their work

Side note:

NEVER let a quote stand alone! It must have an

entrance OR an exit

NEVERNEVER NEVER

NEVER

Multiple authors:If more than one

author wrote your article, they need to be cited.

This applies to: less than three authors

If less than or including three, cite them all!

Multiple authors example: There has been a drastic increase in

frivolous lawsuits in the United States in the last ten years (Dewey, Cheatum and Howe 45).

Note all authors credited with last name only.

More than three authors?Bust out the Latin stick!

“et al” is your pal!“et al” literally

translates to “and others”

Cite the first author, then slap an “et al” after it!only applies to

references with more than three authors!

Finally, the interview sources: Cite the last

name of the interviewee

Then that it was an interview

Interview example:As junior students, we were told that this

paper is “dummy proof and it’s impossible to do wrong if you try” (Lesh interview).

Note the same rules apply:1. no comma2. punctuation outside of the

parentheses

SO THERE YOU GO:IN TEXT (Parenthetical) CITATIONS

EASY


• Put a comma between the explanatory word like he said or she said and the quotation mark in a direct quotation.– Example

Bernie replied, “My math book is in the car.”

• Do not use any commas to report indirect speech.– Example

Bernie replied that his math book was in the car.


• When a quotation is interrupted by explanatory words, use two sets of quotation marks.– Example

“A thing of beauty,” wrote John Keats, “is a joy forever.”


• Separate each part of the quotation from the interrupting phrase with marks of punctuation before and after the phrase. If the second part of the quotation is a complete sentence, begin it with a capital letter.– Example

“It wasn’t just that Babe Ruth hit more home runs that anybody else,” said Red Smith. “He hit them better, higher, and farther.”


• Concluding periods and commas always go inside quotation marks.

– Examples: • “I always enjoy speaking to

students,” began the speaker.• The speaker began, “I always

enjoy speaking to the students.”• She said, “I have lost my

book.”


• When a question is involved, decide if it is a direct quotation or indirect quotation.– Direct quotation

Roy asked, “When did you arrive?” (Roy’s words)

– Indirect quotationRoy asked when I arrived. (someone else’s words)


• Question mark goes inside the quote to show the quotation is a question.– Example

Mother asked, “Did you feed the dog?” The quotation is a question. The sentence is not.

• Question mark goes outside the quotation mark to show that the entire sentence, but not the quotation, is a question.– Example

Didn’t Mother say, “Don’t feed the dog”? (The entire sentence is a question; the quotation is not.)


• If both the sentence and the quotation are questions, put the question mark inside the quotation mark.– Example

Didn’t Mother ask, “Did you feed the dog?”

• Only one ending punctuation mark is used. Ever. Period. Exclamation point! Really? Yes.


• When a quoted question is at the beginning of a sentence, put the question mark at the end of the question. Do not use a comma. The question mark (or exclamation point) displaces the comma normally required.– Example

“When do we eat?” asked Terry.– Example

“Watch out for the child!” shouted Fred.

• Only one ending punctuation mark is used. Does this sound familiar?

• Use single quotation marks for quotes within quotes. Note that the period goes inside all quote marks. – Example

He said, "Danea said, 'Do not treat me that way.'"

– ExamplePresident John F. Kennedy said, “I am the one person who can truthfully say, ‘I got my job through the New York Times.’”


• Do not use quotation marks with quoted material that is more than three lines in length. The format for that will be another lesson.

• Although technically this is possible, please do not use colons or semi-colons with quotations. The rules are just too complicated for colons and semi-colons now. They are not used frequently.



• In our book No Way Out, the publisher has chosen to use single-quotation marks through the text.

• This is a British method.• The most important thing is that

the opening and closing quotation marks match each other.

• For World Lit, please use double-quotation marks and single marks within the double, when necessary.

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