Punctuation - Definition and How to Use with Examples

‘ilikeicecream’ – Do you understand what this is? Is it a word, a sentence or a phrase? But consider this:
‘I like ice cream.’ Now, do you get it? That is how important punctuation is. Writing nothing at all will be
better than writing a sentence with no punctuation. Learning all about parts of speech, tenses, sentence
structure, direct and indirect speech, active and passive voice and different types of sentences, without
knowing how to use the right punctuation marks in the right places will make all of it useless. So, to help
you with it, this article will introduce you to what punctuation is, the different punctuation marks in the
English language and how to use them.

What Is Punctuation? – Meaning and Definition

Punctuation is as important or rather a little more important than the words you use, the way you
structure your sentences, and the content you are trying to convey. The term ‘punctuation’ refers to the
system that allows a writer to let the audience know where the sentences end, where there is a short
pause or a long pause, and also to show if the writer is questioning, explaining or providing some extra
information. Since the writer is not directly speaking to the audience, punctuation is the only way to
make the reader see it the way the author put it.

Punctuation, according to the Oxford Learner’s Dictionary, is defined as “the marks used in writing that
divide sentences and phrases; the system of using these marks.” The Merriam-Webster Dictionary
defines punctuation as “the act or practice of inserting standardized marks or signs in written matter to
clarify the meaning and separate structural units.” According to the Cambridge Dictionary, the term
‘punctuation’ is defined as “(the use of) special symbols that you add to writing to separate phrases and
sentences to show that something is a question, etc.”, and “punctuation is the use of symbols such as
full stops or periods, commas, or question marks to divide written words into sentences and clauses”,
according to the Collins Dictionary.

The Punctuation Marks in English Grammar

In English grammar, there are multiple punctuation marks that are used in order to make your writing
look sensible and easy to understand. A punctuation mark is defined as “a sign or mark used in writing to
divide sentences and phrases”, according to the Oxford Learner’s Dictionary. Let us take a look at the
various punctuation marks in English grammar.

Period/Full stop

Comma

Colon

Semicolon

Apostrophe
Quotation marks

Hyphen

Dash

Parentheses

Slash

Exclamation mark

Question mark

Ellipsis

Furthermore, it is also important you understand that using capital letters and spaces are also an
integral part of punctuation.
Using Punctuation in Sentences – Examples

Using punctuation is vital to make your writing look professional, logical and well-founded. Using no
punctuation at all will not make sense; overuse of punctuation can make your writing look distorted and
vague.

Have a look at the following table to understand each punctuation mark and to see how they can be
used in sentences.