Definition of punctuation Punctuation

/pʌˌŋkʧuejˈʃʌn/ - [pungkchueyshun] - punc•tu•a•tion

We found 8 definitions of punctuation from 6 different sources.

What does punctuation mean?

WordNet

Noun Plural: punctuations
punctuation - the marks used to clarify meaning by indicating separation of words into sentences and clauses and phrases
		punctuation mark
		mark the impression created by doing something unusual or extraordinary that people notice and remember; "it was in London that he made his mark"; "he left an indelible mark on the American theater"
		orthography, writing system a method of representing the sounds of a language by written or printed symbols
		ampersand a punctuation mark (&) used to represent conjunction (and)
		apostrophe the mark (') used to indicate the omission of one or more letters from a printed word
		brace a structural member used to stiffen a framework
		square bracket, bracket a support projecting from a wall (as to hold a shelf)
		angle bracket, bracket an L-shaped metal bracket
		colon the part of the large intestine between the cecum and the rectum; it extracts moisture from food residues before they are excreted
		comma anglewing butterfly with a comma-shaped mark on the underside of each hind wing
		exclamation mark, exclamation point a punctuation mark (!) used after an exclamation
		hyphen, dash a punctuation mark (-) used between parts of a compound word or between the syllables of a word when the word is divided at the end of a line of text
		parenthesis either of two punctuation marks (or) used to enclose textual material
		full point, full stop, period, stop, point a punctuation mark (.) placed at the end of a declarative sentence to indicate a full stop or after abbreviations; "in England they call a period a stop"
		interrogation point, question mark a punctuation mark (?) placed at the end of a sentence to indicate a question
		inverted comma, quotation mark, quote a punctuation mark used to attribute the enclosed text to someone else
		semicolon a punctuation mark (`;') used to connect independent clauses; indicates a closer relation than does a period
		separatrix, virgule, solidus, slash, diagonal, stroke a punctuation mark (/) used to separate related items of information
punctuation - the use of certain marks to clarify meaning of written material by grouping words grammatically into sentences and clauses and phrases
		grouping the activity of putting things together in groups
		orthography, writing system a method of representing the sounds of a language by written or printed symbols
punctuation - something that makes repeated and regular interruptions or divisions

= synonym
= antonym
= related word

Wiktionary

punctuation (Noun)
A set of symbols and marks which are used to clarify meaning in text by separating strings of words into clauses, phrases and sentences.

Webster DictionaryWebster's Unabridged Dictionary 📘

punctuation (n.)
The act or art of punctuating or pointing a writing or discourse; the art or mode of dividing literary composition into sentences, and members of a sentence, by means of points, so as to elucidate the author's meaning.

OmegaWiki DictionaryOmegaWiki Dictionary Ω

punctuation
The use of spacing, conventional signs, and certain typographical devices as aids to the understanding and the correct reading, both silently and aloud, of handwritten and printed texts.

Wikipedia

Rules of punctuation.

The use of punctuation in English can change from place to place and from time to time.

The use of these marks is often decided by a group or organization and then written down as a style guide. A newspaper may have a style guide to make their stories use the same rules (called consistency).

Some people become angry about what they call "bad" punctuation. The rules are really up to the writer to decide, as long as the meaning is clear. However, if the rules are not followed, a writer's work may seem to be poorly written.

Period or full stop.

A period, known as a full stop in some countries, looks like this:.

A period is used to end a sentence. It shows when an idea is finished.

A period can show numbers that are smaller than one. With money, a period is used to show the amount of money less than one dollar.

A period is used to show that a word has been made shorter. A word that is made shorter with a period is called an abbreviation.

Question mark.

A question mark looks like this: ?

Question marks are used when writing a question, to make an inquiry, or to ask something.

Exclamation mark.

An exclamation mark looks like this: !

An exclamation mark is used write about a strong emotion, or to write the words a person shouted. It can be used to make a statement stronger or more forceful.

An exclamation mark can be used with a question mark, to make a question more forceful.

Apostrophe.

An apostrophe looks like this: '

An apostrophe has two main uses.

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