PUNCTUATION

Punctuation makes writing clear and effective. Thoughts are expressed more clearly. 
The following are the common marks of Punctuation. 

1. The Full Stop (.):

The full stop is used -

• (a) at the end of assertive and imperative sentences. e.g. She lives in a hut. Please come in.
• ( b) After initials and abbreviations. e.g., P.V. Narasimha Rao, Dr., km., a.m., U.S.A., etc.

2. The Question Mark (?):

This is used:

• At the end of questions, statements ending with a question mark or words or sentences that indicate a question.
e.g., Where is your house?
She is pretty, isn't she? They're coming tomorrow?
When?

3. The Exclamation Point (!):

This is used:

• After a word, phrase or sentence expressing a strong feeling.
e.g., Hurrah! We have won. How beautiful the rain is! Such enormous pumpkins!

4. The Comma (,):

This is used:

• a) to separate long coordinate clauses of a compound sentence. e.g., It is not certain if he will come now, but you can wait all the same.
• b) between words, phrases, or clauses in a series. e.g., (i) Everyone went except Ram, Mohan and Govinda. (ii) Nair is the accountant, Deshpande is the sales manager, and Sharma is the advertising executive.
• c) To set off phrases, clauses, or phrases in apposition which are not essential to the meaning of the sentence. Eg., Shila, clever as she was, answered his questions patiently. Gokarna, the office clerk, put his books away.
• d) to set off coordinate phrases that modify the same noun. e.g., His fingers are as long as, but darker than, mine are.
• e) between parts of a sentence suggesting contrast or comparison. e.g.. The more you eat, the sicker you will get.
• f) To set off words that introduce a sentence. e.g.. (i) Yes, he has the money. (ii) Of course, we shall be going there.
• g) To set off the name of the person spoken to. e.g., Ninad, your father has come to see you.
• h) To set off a short quotation from the rest of the sentence. e.g., "We could go," said John, "But first we will have to tell father."

5. The Apostrophe ('):

This is used:

• (a) to form the possessive of a noun. e.g., the boy's parents, the cows' food, Abhishek's story.
• (b) to show the omission of a letter or words, e.g., didn't (did not) one o'clock (one of the clock)

6. Quotation Marks OR Inverted Commas (""):

These are used:

• (a) to separate direct speech from the rest of the sentence. e.g., "Where did they go?" asked the writer.
• (b) to mark out titles of stories, poems, etc. "The Romance of the Mail-Runner."
• (c) to enclose quoted words or phrases within a sentence. e.g.. Without even so much as a "sorry" he went away.

7. The Hyphen (-):

This is used:

• a)when spelling out compound numbers between 21 and 99. e.g., thirty-three, sixty-eighth.
• (b) when writing out fractions used as adjectives (not as nouns), eg, one-third piece.
• (c ) after prefixes such as "all", "ex" and "self." e.g., all-American, ex-cadet, self-appointed.
• ( d) between parts of compound adjectives when it appears before the word it describes. e.g., up-to-date material, hard-working person, well-known personality. But: She is well known.
• (e) between parts of some compound nouns: e.g., father-in-law, stay-at-home, great-grandfather.

8. The Dash (-):

• (a) to indicate a sudden change or break in thought. e.g., I am sure he will agree-but no, he is so self-willed.
• (b) to suggest halting or hesitant speech. e.g., "I-I-can't imagine-er-what I would have done without you," he mumbled.
• (c) to emphasise or define a part of a sentence. e.g., Martina-that grand lady of lawn tennis-is making a comeback.

9. Capital Letters:

These are used to begin:

• (a) proper nouns. e.g., Hari Nair, Delhi, the Himalayas.
• (b) proper nouns that function as adjectives. e.g., Chinese peasant, the Socratic method, the Indian farmer
• (c) the pronoun "I" and the interjection "O". e.g., O you my dear students, I have no personal gain in this matter. (Note: Do not capitalise these words when they are preceded by possessives such as my, your, their, etc). e.g., He told me that my father and your uncle would visit us today.
• (e) titles. e.g., Governor, General, Treasurer, etc.
• (f) personified nouns. e.g., The North wind invited Hail to the giant's garden.
• g) nouns and pronouns that refer to a specific Supreme Being. e.g., God, Krishna, Allah, Lord, Zeus; Trust in Him for He is good.
• (h) specific branches, departments and other divisions of government. e.g., Parliament, Sansad Bhavan, Rajya Sabha, Supreme Court. 
• (i) specific awards. e.g., the Nobel Prize, the Param Vir Chakra.
• (j) the days of the week, the months of the year and holidays. e.g., Wednesday, January, Diwali.
• (k) The first word of a direct quotation. e.g., "You can go," he said. "But see that you return soon."