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What is a colon and a hyphen called?
In Britain the exclamation mark is sometimes referred to as a dog’s prick, and that, further, the combination of a colon and a dash (:—), out of fashion now but long used to represent a restful pause, is known as a dog’s bollocks. Modern style guides seem intent on banishing its usage to history.
How do you use a colon and a hyphen in a sentence?
Colons and dashes are treated the same way: They both go outside quotation marks….Colons and Dashes Relative to Quotation Marks
- The new suspect was Aardvark’s “best friend”: Squiggly.
- The new suspect was Aardvark’s “best friend”—Squiggly.
- The new suspect was Aardvark’s “best friend,” Squiggly.
Can you use a colon and a dash together?
But first please note the following: the colon is never preceded by a white space; it is always followed by a single white space in normal use, and it is never, never, never followed by a hyphen or a dash — in spite of what you might have been taught in school.
What is a semi colon used for?
Use a semicolon to replace a period between related sentences when the second sentence starts with either a conjunctive adverb or a transitional expression, such as for example, for instance, that is, besides, accordingly, furthermore, otherwise, however, thus, therefore.
Do you capitalize word after colon?
When a colon introduces a list of things, do not capitalize the first word after the colon unless it is a proper noun. When a colon introduces a phrase or an incomplete sentence that is meant to add information to the sentence before it, do not capitalize the first word after the colon unless it is a proper noun.
What is colon in grammar?
Colons are punctuation marks used to signal when what comes next is directly related to the previous sentence. They are used after complete sentences. It is especially important to remember that a colon is not used after a sentence fragment.
Why use a dash instead of a colon?
Use an em dash instead of a colon when you want to emphasize the conclusion of your sentence without giving it all of the connotations that a colon brings. A dash can add “extra” information and is more flexible in this way. It is also less formal than a colon.
What is the proper way to use a colon?
A colon is used to give emphasis, present dialogue, introduce lists or text, and clarify composition titles. Emphasis—Capitalize the first word after the colon only if it is a proper noun or the start of a complete sentence. (She had one love: Western Michigan University.)
How do you write a list after a colon?
When listing items one by one, one per line, following a colon, capitalization and ending punctuation are optional when using single words or phrases preceded by letters, numbers, or bullet points. If each point is a complete sentence, capitalize the first word and end the sentence with appropriate ending punctuation.
What does the Oxford English Dictionary call a colon after a dash?
According to Nick Marten’s The Secret History of Typography in the Oxford English Dictionary, a colon followed by a dash is a typographical mark that the Oxford English Dictionary refers to as the dog’s bollocks:
Is it proper to use a colon followed by a hyphen?
The enacting formula of UK Acts of Parliaments (e.g. here’s a recent example) ends with a colon followed by what appears to be an em-dash. Looking around this page, colon + hyphen appears to be common to a number of Commonwealth and British territories, though there are exceptions to that rule (e.g. Phillipines).
Where does the word colon come from in punctuation?
From this usage, in palaeography, a colon is a clause or group of clauses written as a line in a manuscript. In the punctuation system devised by Aristophanes of Byzantium in the 3rd century BC, the end of such a clause was thought to occasion a medium-length breath and was marked by a middot ⟨ · ⟩.
Which is correct a semicolon or a colon?
The confusion surrounding semicolon vs. colon vs. dash is understandable, but once you’ve learned the basics, the answer is usually clear. There’s rarely a situation where either a semicolon or a colon can be correct; it’s typically one or the other.