Punctuation Business Vocabulary

-

hyphen

The actress Catherine Zeta-Jones has a hyphenated surname, meaning it has two parts joined by a hyphen.

—

dash

Writers can put a dash in the text if they want readers to pause for a moment when reading.

!

exclamation mark; exclamation point (N Am)

Exclamation marks are sometimes called exclamation points in North America.

#

sharp; pound sign

The sign for sharp in music is also called a pound sign if it's on a phone keypad or a computer keyboard.

&

ampersand

If you're writing a formal document, don't replace the word "and" with an ampersand.

•

bullet

If a list has bullets or dashes instead of numbers, it's an unordered list.

( )

(round) brackets; (round) parenthesis

After each song's title, put the composer's name in brackets.

*

asterisk

If a word or phrase is followed by an asterisk, it usually means there's a note about it further down.

,

comma

If you use two or more adjectives in a row, shouldn't you put commas between them?

.

1 full stop; period 2 point

Put a full stop at the end of the sentence.

...

ellipsis points; ellipsis dots

Why do you think the writer ended the sentence with ellipsis points instead of a full stop?

/

slash; oblique (Br)

has two slashes. Can you see them?

:

colon

A colon can introduce a list, a quotation or an explanatory clause.

;

semicolon

For a slightly longer pause, use a semicolon instead of a comma.

?

question mark

Are question marks used in other languages as well?

[ ]

(square) brackets; (square) parenthesis

When I edit a document, I put notes on the text inside square brackets.

\

backslash

The backslash is only used in computer commands, isn't it?

__

underline; also to underline (v.)

I've checked the document and underlined the parts that need correcting.

“ ”

quotation marks; inverted commas

Our teacher said, “Don't forget to use quotation marks when you're writing dialogue.”

†

dagger

If you want to add a second footnote, use a dagger instead of an asterisk.