Grammar Portfolio

Let's Learn Grammar!

(Now in alphabetical order!)

This is a small compilation of punctuation that I have used throughout this site. The goal of this page is to help you learn how to use certain symbols and punctuation that appear in the English language with efficiency. Alright! Off we go, then.

Abbreviations:

The decision to abbreviate (as well as how you abbreviate) depends on what format you are writing in. Certain formats, like MLA, require you abbreviate a certain way. MLA will typically have you abbreviate without periods, but sometimes it is a good idea to so that your abbreviation doesn't get confused with another word (capitalizing the letters in the acronym can help differentiate between an abbreviation and a common word, like U.S).

Sample sentence: Breed-specific legislation, or BSL, is any law or ordinance that bans or restricts dogs of a certain breed. (Report)


Apostrophes:

To remember if something needs an apostrophe, ask yourself these questions:
1.) Is it a contraction? (It is, would have) 2.) Does the subject have a possesion? (Mary's shoe)

If the answer is yes, then it needs an apostrophe. (Keep in mind the exception to this rule is the word "its". If it is not an contraction of "it is" then it does not get an apostrophe, even if it is possessive.)

Sample Sentence: Implementing ordinances and education programs like this is certainly costly, but the" fees go toward the cost for. . .humane education and other services " (Ready) and they allow for Calgary's Animal Control division to run virtually free of funds from the city government. (Proposal)


Brackets:

Brackets are used when you want to modify what someone said so that it will fit the context of the sentence introducing the quote. They also serve to identify where you have made changes to a quote. In the quote down below I needed to clarify what we were talking about.

Sample Sentence: According to the article "Justice for the Vick-tims" by Ledy VanKavage, she states "84% of the [fatal dog attacks in 2006] involved reckless owners whose dogs were abused or neglected; were interacting with unsupervised children; or were not humanely controlled or contained."(Report)


Capital Letters:

When creating a title you have to remember that most small words do not have to be capitalized. For example: a, an, the, in, on, of, by, for, to, from, and, but, yet, for, nor, or, so. UNLESS one of these words starts your title. Just like beginning a new sentence.

Sample Sentence: The Truth About Dogs and Sex


Colons:

Colons are like a bridge. You use them when you want to know what else there is to a sentence.

Sample Sentence: One other thing to note: The stress of being on a leash can make dogs feel vulnerable. (Meet and Greet)




Commas with a series:

I have always thought that there should only be one 'and' in a sentence. If you find that you can use 'and' more than once, like in the making of a list of items, consider a comma instead.

Sample Sentence: Jesse bent down to snap the slimy, dirty, wet, grass-covered ball into the chuck-it. (Memoir)


Commas with additional clauses:

A coordinating conjunction is like the phrase 'where there's smoke, there's fire'. It shows a connection between two clauses. Just like smoke and fire are typically associated with one another.

Sample Sentence: I understand that there are people out there who, for various reasons, do not want to fix their dogs. (The Truth About Dogs and Sex)

Commas with parenthetical elements:

A parenthetical element causes separation within the sentence but not to the same extreme point that parentheses and em dashes do.

Sample Sentence: How would one go about telling someone, politely, that their dog is about to get themselves tussled again because she is baring her teeth at other dogs? (Lip Twitching)


Commas with quotations:

When quoting, the comma lets you know that something is coming up that isn't yours. It makes the quote stand out as something important. When you quote without using a comma it helps to integrate the saying smoothly into your sentence.

Sample Sentence: John Garcia . . . believes that, "[y]ou can't just make the blanket statement that such-and-such a breed will bite you. ... To say that a certain breed is bad or evil — like Pit bulls — is like saying that every Caucasian male is Jefferey Dahmer" (Report)


Ellipses:

Ellipses are either used as a hesitation in a sentence or as an omission in a quote. You always use three dots with a space in between each dot unless the omission occurs at the end of a complete sentence. Then you include the period at the end of the sentence, so you end up with four dots as seen below.

Sample Sentence: "[y]ou can't just make the blanket statement that such-and-such a breed will bite you. . . . To say that a certain breed is bad or evil  — like Pit bulls —  is like saying that every Caucasian male is Jefferey Dahmer" (Bechtel 13) (Report)


Em Dashes:

Em dashes can be used in place of certain commas. They can be used when you want to put emphasis on a phrase. They are like a TV break from your homework. They cause you to deviate for a little while, but in the end (hopefully) you end up going back to your homework. The easiest way I have found to get an em dash to appear in Microsoft Word is the key combination crtl+alt+Num Lock+-(the minus key). Unfortunately, this combo only works if you have a number pad or a 10-key.

Sample Sentence: I decided to go over her leg again and I found it — covered by fur — a gash about an inch and a half long and it was oozing blood. (Memoir)

En Dashes:

En dashes are used when you have a group of words or a phrase that you need to join together, without using a hyphen. An en dash is slightly shorter than an em dash. You can get an en dash to appear when typing by using the combo alt+0150.

Sample Sentence: The purpose of this blog is to educate the dog park–going masses on the basics of dog body language and communication so that we, as owners and dog lovers, can learn to communicate with our pets more efficiently and so that we can learn to recognize the warning signs in our dog's body-language. (About)


Fragments:

A fragment is most effective when it is short and to the point, but the reader has to understand that it is in reaction to something before or after the fragment. Otherwise, they will get confused and think you don't know how to write proper sentences.

Sample Sentence: We tried going to sleep. But she is incredibly persistent . . . and spoiled, and we eventually gave in. Every night, for ten days. She was right, she fit. Barely. (Memoir)

Hyphens:

Hyphens are used when you want to bring words closer together. They can also be used when you want to separate them. If hyphens were a cat in the Best Friends - UT rescue program they would be described as "Sassy" (instead of bi-polar).

Sample Sentence: Numerous cities and counties across the U.S have enacted breed-specific legislation since 1980. (Report)


Parentheses:

Parentheses are like a whisper. You say something for the whole room to hear and then you lean in close to the person next to you to tell them a secret. If your secret does not interrupt your announcement to the whole room, then the period goes inside the parentheses. If it interrupts you announcement to the whole room, then there doesn't need to be a period within the parentheses. If the secret comes at the end of your announcement, then the period goes on the outside of the parentheses.

Sample Sentence: When she has her sights set on a ball, nothing else matters. She will ignore demands for recall, whistling, crazy noises, (probably even a tornado) when she has her sights set on her ball. (Memoir)

Semicolons:

You use a semicolon when you have sentences that are like brother and sister. You use one in place of a period when you have two sentences next to each other that are closely related in topic.

Sample Sentence: I affectionately reefer to her as a ball whore; she'll do anything for a ball. (Memoir)

I hope you enjoyed these short tips on how properly use different types of punctuation. Hopefully it was informative and you are now more comfortable with things like a semi-colon.