Our Friend, the Semicolon

CapitalCommunityCollege

Our Friend, the Semicolon

Letsbeginwithasimplesentence:
Grandmastaysuptoolate.

CapitalCommunityCollege

Our Friend, the Semicolon

Nowletsexpandonthatabit:
Grandmastaysuptoolate.Shesafraidshesgoing
tomisssomething.
ThisisOK.Twoindependentideas,
separatedbyaperiod.

CapitalCommunityCollege

Our Friend, the Semicolon

Whatifwetrytocombinethetwoideas?
Grandmastaysuptoolate,shesafraidshesgoing
tomisssomething.
Somethings wrong. We connected two independent clauses
with only a comma. The dreaded COMMA SPLICE!

CapitalCommunityCollege

Our Friend, the Semicolon

Wecouldinsertacoordinatingconjunction:
Grandmaisafraidshellmisssomething,soshe
staysuptoolate.
Thisisbetter!Notethecommathataccompanies
thecoordinatingconjunction.

CapitalCommunityCollege

Our Friend, the Semicolon

Wecouldalsotrysubordinatingoneoftheseideas:
Grandmastaysuptoolatebecauseshesafraid
shesgoingtomisssomething.
Noticethatthecommadisappeared.Oneidea(the
secondone)nowdependsontheother;ithas
becomeadependentclause.

CapitalCommunityCollege

Our Friend, the Semicolon

Butletstrysomethingelse.

CapitalCommunityCollege

Our Friend, the Semicolon

Letstryusingasemicoloninthissentence.

Grandmastaysuptoolate shesafraidshesgoing
tomisssomething.
Noticethereisnoconjunctionusedwiththis
semicoloneithersubordinatingorcoordinating.
Justthesemicolon,allbyitself.

CapitalCommunityCollege

Our Friend, the Semicolon

Sometimessemicolonsareaccompaniedby
conjunctiveadverbswordssuchashowever,
moreover,therefore,nevertheless,consequently,
asaresult.
Grandmaisafraidshesgoingtomisssomething;

asaresult,shestaysuptoolate.

CapitalCommunityCollege

Our Friend, the Semicolon

Noticethepattern:

;asaresult,
semicolon+conjunctiveadverb+comma

Thisisatypicalconstructionwithsemicolons.

CapitalCommunityCollege

Our Friend, the Semicolon

Thereisoneotheruseofthesemicolon:tohelpus
sortoutmonsterlists,likethisone:
monsterlists

The committee included Peter Wursthorn, Professor of

Mathematics, from Marlborough, Connecticut, Virginia
Villa, Professor of English, from Hartford, Connecticut, Paul
Creech, Director of Rad-Tech, from Essex, Connecticut, and
Joan Leach, Professor of Nursing, from Farmington,
Connecticut.

CapitalCommunityCollege

Our Friend, the Semicolon

Becarefulwhereyouinsertsemicolonsinthis
sentence.
The committee included Peter Wursthorn, Professor of
Mathematics, from Marlborough, Connecticut; Virginia
Villa, Professor of English, from Hartford, Connecticut ; Paul
Creech, Director of Rad-Tech, from Essex, Connecticut ; and
Joan Leach, Professor of Nursing, from Farmington,
Connecticut.

CapitalCommunityCollege

Our Friend, the Semicolon

Nowyouknoweverythingyoulleverneedtoknow
aboutusingsemicolons!

CapitalCommunityCollege

This PowerPoint presentation was created by

Charles Darling, PhD
Professor of English and Webmaster
Capital Community College
Hartford, Connecticut
copyright November 1999

CapitalCommunityCollege