Punctuation Marks 

Punctuation marks are symbols used to organize and structure the writing. They also indicate the pauses that need to be observed and the intonation. Punctuation helps with understanding. There are many kinds of punctuation.

1. . Period or full stop

2. , Comma

3. ? Question mark or why?

4. !  Exclamation mark

5. ‘ Apostrophe

6. “Quotation marks

7. :  Colon

8. ; Semi Colon

9. … Ellipsis

10. – Hyphen

11. () Parentheses

12. /  Slash

13. (  Bracket

. Period

  This is used to mark the end of a sentence which is not a
  question or an exclamation. It also indicates an abbreviation.

Example:

• Mahatma Gandhi is the Father of the Nation.
• New Delhi is the capital of India.

, Comma

    This is a mark of punctuation that is used to indicate a
    separation of ideas within the structure of the sentence or a
    division in a sentence and a pause. It is also used to separate
    items in a list and to mark off thousands in numerals.
  

Example:

• After lunch, she went out for a picnic.
• He bought pencils, erasers, sharpeners and a ruler for
          School.

? Question Mark

      This is used to turn a sentence into a question. It denotes that
      The person is seeking information and hoping for a reply.
      

Example:

• Are you ready to speak?
• When did you write this article?

                  

!  Exclamation Mark

   This is used at the end of sentences that express a strong 
    Emotion. Exclamatory sentences are often short.

 

Example:

• Help! I am drowning!
• What a miracle!

‘  Apostrophes

   This looks like a comma put above a word. It is used in the place   of a missing letter or word and to show possession.

    

Example:

• She doesn’t know where to find her bag.
• Susan’s dog is a German Shepherd.

“  Speech Marks

    Quotation marks or speech marks are used to show the exact 
     words spoken or written by a person. A direct quote repeats 
     the actual words a person says or writes.

      

Example:

• Rita said,” Take Rakesh to the store with you, Meena.”
• ‘I can’t find it anywhere,” replied Sonia.

                     

;  Semi Colon

   This is used in the place of a comma and conjunction when
     connecting two separate sentences. It just connects two
     independent sentences without the need for conjunction.
     There is usually a stronger condition between the clauses.

Example:

• You really don’t know how hard I have worked; You really 
   have no idea.
• I shall return today; I don’t intend to stay here.

:  Colon

 A colon is used to introduce a list. It can be a formal introduction using as follows or less formal.
 

Example:

• The answers are as follows: weapons, ammunition, artillery 
   Cavalry.
• My list of guests include: the Mayor, Deputy Mayor, 
   Counciller and the local politicians.

 

...  Ellipsis

         This is indicated by three dots in succession or one after the
         other. When you leave part of a quotation which does not add
         much to the meaning of the quote, the omitted part is
         marked by using an ellipsis

Example:

• When the lady looked above she couldn’t believe what 
she saw…
• Neeta went to the market…Seema will meet her there.

()  Parentheses

     This is an explanation or a comment within a sentence that is
        already complete. This interrupts the normal flow of the
        sentence and is a message that digresses from the main
        subject. These are upright curved lines. They are also called
        round brackets and always occur in pairs.

       

Example:

• On that occasion (rare) she decided to invite everyone.
• The Battle of Plassey (as you have read) was in 1757.

(   Brackets

     These are marks of punctuation used within the text to set
        apart other text.They enclose words that have been inserted.
      

Example:

• I got my first job (in Melbourne) in 2008.
• He is still getting used to the language (the accent is very 
   strong) and the food.

- Hyphen

It is a horizontal sign indicating two words or compound read as one.

Example:

• This house has a nice walk-in closet.
• I traveled twenty-four hours at a stretch last week.

  

/  Slash

 This means ‘or’

            

Example:

• Do you want a pastry/ice cream?
• I enjoy reading fiction/non - fiction.

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Reference Link:

•  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/parentheses
•  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ellip
•  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-T4xw5C74Ps
•  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comma
•  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colon_(punctuation)