1. Full stop 
2. Comma
3. Apostrophe 
4. Question mark 
5. Exclamation mark
6. Quotation marks 
7. Hyphen 
8. Dash
9. Round brackets 
10. Ellipsis 
11. Colon 
12. Semicolon 

Full stop
A full stop is also known as a period. It is a dot that comes at the end of a sentence. This indicates that the reader should stop here. Every declarative sentence must end with a full stop.

A full sentence begins with a capital letter and ends with a full stop.

➜ E.g. I went to the park today.

A full stop can also be used in an abbreviation e.g. Mister Smith can be abbreviated to Mr. Smith. 

Comma
A comma can be used for a few different reasons.

To separate items in a list
When a sentence contains a list of three or more items, then we need to put a comma after each item. The ‘item’ can be a noun, verb, or adjective phrase.
The Oxford comma is the comma that comes just before the word ‘and’. Some people prefer to use the Oxford comma while others prefer not to use it; however, either way, is correct.

➜ E.g. Jay bought apples, bananas, oranges, and grapes. ⟶ Oxford comma

➜ E.g. Jay bought apples, bananas, oranges and grapes. ⟶ No Oxford comma

To join two independent clauses
We can use a comma to separate two independent clauses joined by a coordinating conjunction. An independent clause is a clause that makes sense on its own as a full sentence.

I was late to school. ⟶ This is an independent clause.

I missed the bus. ⟶ This is an independent clause.

Instead of having two independent clauses, we can join them together using a coordinating conjunction.
The coordinating conjunctions are: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, & so.

➜ E.g. I was late to school, because I missed the bus.

The comma comes just before the coordinating conjunction.
It is important to remember that a comma is not strong enough to join two independent clauses without a coordinating conjunction. This grammatical mistake is known as a comma splice. Instead, we use a semicolon or a full stop.

To join a dependent clause and an independent clause
As previously noted, an independent clause is a clause that makes sense on its own as a full sentence. On the other hand, a dependent clause is a clause that doesn’t make sense on its own.

I enjoy playing basketball. ⟶ This is an independent clause.  

Although I am not very good. ⟶ This is a dependent clause.  

When the independent clause comes first, then we do not need to add a comma to join the two clauses.

➜ E.g. I enjoy playing basketball although I am not very good at it.

When the dependent clauses come first, then we must place a comma between the clauses.

➜ E.g. Although I am not very good at it, I enjoy playing basketball.

Separate extra information
A comma can be used to separate any words or phrases from the rest of the sentence that isn’t essential to the sentence’s meaning.

➜ E.g. Ann, who is a short woman, reached the books from the top shelf.

The part ‘who is a short woman’ does not change the meaning of the sentence. It just adds extra information; therefore, it’s correct to use a comma to separate this information from the rest of the sentence.

Before direct speech
A comma can be used to separate a quotation from the rest of the sentence.
If the sentence doesn’t begin with the direct speech, then the comma is placed just before the quotation begins.

➜ E.g. Jane said, “I want to go to the shopping centre.”

Now let’s look at the rules for when the sentence begins with the direct speech. In British English, the comma goes after closing the quotation marks whereas in American English the comma goes before closing the quotation marks.

➜ E.g. “I want to go to the shopping centre”, she said. 🇬🇧

➜ E.g. “I want to go to the shopping centre,” she said. 🇺🇸

These rules only apply when the quote doesn’t end with a question mark or an exclamation mark.

➜ E.g. “Have you eaten?” she asked.

Following a transition word
Sentences can often begin with an introduction connecting it to the previous sentence – this makes the transition between the two sentences smoother.

➜ E.g. Jim forgot to do his homework. Therefore, he got into trouble. 

Apostrophe
An apostrophe can be used to indicate ownership or a missing letter.

To show ownership
An apostrophe can be used to help us to identify who owns what. 

➜ E.g. Jenny’s bag is blue.

The apostrophe followed by the letter s indicates that the blue bag belongs to Jenny.

So when do we use just an apostrophe?

When do we use an apostrophe followed by S?

What’s the rule when two people own the same thing?

Click here to learn more about the rules of how to use an apostrophe to show ownership.

Contraction
Contractions are used to shorten words in everyday speech and informal writing.

➜ E.g. I don’t like swimming. 

The apostrophe indicates the missing letter ‘o’.

Click here to learn more about how to use an apostrophe form contractions.

Question mark
A question mark indicates the end of a question. Therefore it is used at the end of an interrogative sentence.

➜ E.g. Did you pass the English exam?

➜ E.g. What time do you start work?

Exclamation mark
An exclamation mark indicates the end of a dramatic statement or sentence. It can show different emotions depending on the meaning of the sentence, such as surprise, happiness, anger, or a sense of urgency, etc.

➜ E.g. It’s so lovely to see you! ⇾ This indicates happiness.

Quotation marks
Quotation marks are also known as speech marks. They indicate direct speech; therefore, the reader can identify when the characters in a story are talking.
Double quotation marks (“ ”) are used to indicate direct speech. Remember that you always need to capitalise the first word in a complete quotation.
If the sentence doesn’t begin with the direct speech then the comma is placed just before the quotation begins.

➜ E.g. Jane said, “I want to go to the shopping centre.”

Now let’s look at the rules for when the sentence begins with the direct speech. In British English, the comma goes after closing the quotation marks whereas in American English the comma goes before closing the quotation marks.
These rules only apply when the quote doesn’t end with a question mark or an exclamation mark.

➜ E.g. “I need to tell you a secret”, whispered Lucy. 🇬🇧

➜ E.g. “I need to tell you a secret,” whispered Lucy. 🇺🇸

We must place an exclamation mark or a question mark just before the closing quotation mark if the punctuation applies to the quotation itself.

➜ E.g. Kim shouted, “Listen to me now!” ⇾ Here the exclamation mark indicated the strong emotion in what Kim said; therefore, it goes within the quotation. The exclamation mark also ends the sentence; therefore, a full stop is not required after the closing quotation mark.

➜ E.g. Jay asked, “Where is the park?” ⇾ Here the question is “where is the park?”, therefore, the question mark goes within the quotation. The question mark also ends the sentence; therefore, a full stop is not required after the closing quotation mark.

We must place an exclamation mark or a question mark outside the closing quotation marks when the punctuation applies to the whole sentence.

➜ E.g. Did you hear Joshua whisper to Alex, “I cheated in the exam”?

Lastly, we used single quotation marks when there is a quotation within a quotation.

➜ E.g. Yesterday Jenny said, “Did you hear Joshua whisper to Alex, ‘I cheated in the exam?’”

Hyphen
A hyphen is used to join words together to form a compound word. A compound word consists of two or more words joined together to make a new word. The new word has a new meaning.

➜ E.g. Tina is hard–working.

Dash
There are two types of dashes: em dash and en dash.
The em dash is longer and is used to indicate emphasis or extra information in a sentence. It usually replaces commas, brackets, and colons.

➜ E.g. I can’t wait to see Lee — my best friend — on Friday.

The en dash is shorter, and it is used to indicate a period of time, a range of numbers, or a distance.

➜ E.g. In class, we read pages 50–70. 

Round brackets
Round brackets are also known as parentheses. They are used to indicate emphasis or extra information in a sentence. In most cases, the sentence would still make sense if we removed the brackets.

➜ E.g. Adam (the team captain) is very friendly.

This sentence would still make sense if we removed the brackets e.g. Adam is very friendly. 

Ellipsis
An ellipsis consists of 3 dots. It is used to show a pause, omitted words, or to add effect to a sentence.

To show a pause
➜ E.g. “Sorry…I forgot to do my homework”, said Adam.

The ellipsis here indicates a pause. The pause can show that Adam is thinking or hesitating about what he is going to say next.

To show omitted words
➜ E.g. Hope is being able to see…light despite…the darkness.

The original quote is: Hope is being able to see that there is light despite all the darkness. – Desmond Tutu

The ellipses show where the words have been missed out from the original quote. We can do this when we want to quote what someone has said but want to change the sentence to get the main point across.

To add effect
➜ E.g. “I wish I had known that sooner…” sighed Tim.

In this example, the ellipsis creates an effect that makes the writing more interesting. The suspense created when Tim trails off into silence grabs the reader’s attention and ultimately makes the reader want to find out more. 

Colon
A colon can be used for several different reasons.
It can be used to introduce a list or an example, to introduce an explanation, to separate independent clauses, before a direct quote.

To introduce a list or an example
A colon introduces a list when the list comes after a complete sentence.

➜ E.g. I bought all the ingredients: flour, eggs, butter, and sugar.

To introduce an explanation
A colon introduces an explanation that provides further clarification in a sentence.

➜ E.g. He had one problem: he didn’t have time to finish his work.

To separate independent clauses
A colon can separate independent clauses when the second clause is directly related to the first clause. The emphasis is on the second clause. The second clause could be a definition, summary, or explanation of the first clause.
A semicolon or a full stop can also be used between two independent clauses that are related.

➜ E.g. They will not make it home in time: the roads are icy.

Before direct speech
A colon is used to introduce a quote in a sentence.

➜ E.g. He shouted: “Listen to me!”

Semicolon
A semicolon is used to connect clauses, and it is used in a sentence containing a list.

Connect independent clauses
A semicolon can be used to connect closely related independent clauses which are not joined by a coordinating conjunction. An independent clause is a clause that makes sense on its own as a full sentence.

➜ E.g. I played on the swing. She played on the slide. ⟶ Both sentences are examples of independent clauses, but they are closely related, so I can either connect them using a semicolon or a comma followed by a coordinating conjunction.

✔︎ I played on the swing; she played on the slide.

✔︎ I played on the swing, and she played on the slide.

We can also use a semicolon to connect closely related independent clauses joined by a conjunctive adverb. Some examples of conjunctive adverbs are: therefore, however, then, otherwise, etc.

➜ E.g. I missed the bus; therefore, I was late for school.

A sentence containing a list
A semicolon can be used to separate items in a list if the items are long or contain internal punctuation. This helps the reader to distinguish between the items in the list.

➜ E.g. I have been on holiday to Turkey, Italy, Greece, and France.
In this sentence, it is correct to use commas to separate between each country.

However, if I want to list the cities and the countries, it would be correct to use a semicolon because there are already commas in the list. The semicolons help to separate these into groups.

➜ E.g. I have been on holiday to Ankara, Turkey; Rome, Italy; Athens, Greece; and Paris, France.

It would not be correct to use commas between the cities and countries because the reader may not know the capital cities of each country and therefore may get confused.

➜ E.g. I have been on holiday to Ankara, Turkey, Rome, Italy, Athens, Greece, Paris, and France.