semicolon
7
3.7
- noun
- /ˈsɛmɪˌkoʊlən/
:
punto y coma
- I often find that a semicolon is the best choice for linking independent clauses in my writing.
- comma and semicolon
- semicolon and colon
- semicolon or period
He's like, he sends me a spreadsheet, grammar:; I use semicolons where there should be colons, commas where there should be periods.
- He's like, he sends me a spreadsheet, grammar:; I use semicolons where there should be colons, commas where there should be periods.
Examples
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For pauses, there is (in order from smallest pause to largest) the semicolon, the comma, and the period.
Blog text (3) -
A dash pushes readers forward, a semicolon slows us down, a comma asks us to pause briefly, and a colon stops us short.
Academic text (1997) -
I have probably lost a thousand dollars for his every semicolon over the past twenty years.
Fiction book (1996) -
Change a period to a semicolon.
Academic text (2011) -
The semicolon was first used in a 1734 letter to British Parliament...
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The semicolon finishes an idea and leads the mover into the next statement.
Academic text (1997) -
I'm sure they were arguing over the relative merits of a semicolon, a colon, or an em dash as the proper punctuation for a sentence.
Academic text (2016) -
More complicated sentences will follow as writing competence increases and will demand the use of commas, semicolons, and colons for independent and dependent clauses.
Academic text (2002) -
In her essay, she used a semicolon to connect two closely related ideas.
-
The recipe called for a list of ingredients: flour, sugar, and eggs; it also specified the use of a semicolon to separate the items.
How Strong
Surface Forms
Morphology
Etymology
Semicolon comes from semi- meaning 'half' and colon meaning 'part' or 'section'. So a semicolon is like a 'half-colon' that gives a stronger pause than a comma but is not a full stop.