English Punctuation
Whether you take IELTS or TOEFL, the accuracy with which you use punctuation marks will affect your score on Grammatical Range and Accuracy.
The two punctuation marks that you need to get absolutely right in your essay are the comma " , " and the full stop " . ".
Occasionally, you might also need to use a colon " : " or an apostrophe " ' ", but do not use exclamation marks ( ! ) or question marks ( ? ).
When proofreading your essay, do make sure that you have used full stops and commas where necessary.
Full Stop
A full stop is used to mark the end of a sentence. The new sentence that follows a full stop always begins with a capital letter. Remember to leave a small space between the full stop and the word which begins the next sentence.
In the following example, notice the full stop after imagination and also the capital 'H' on However:
- In my opinion, art classes are necessary to develop children's imagination.
- However, art classes should not be taught at the expense of other school subjects.
Comma
Below you will find the main uses of the comma summarised and divided into sections to help you identify the areas that the examiner will undoubtedly pay attention to.
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1. |
Subordinate clauses |
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2. |
Relative clauses |
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3. |
..., which is why ... |
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4. |
... not only ... but also ... |
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5. |
Linking words |
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6. |
Clauses with and, but, so, yet, nor and or |
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7. |
Length of clauses |
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8. |
Items in a list |
1. Subordinate clauses
• When a subordinate clause comes at the beginning of a sentence, it is followed by a comma:
- If the government decided to improve the public transportation system, fewer people would drive to work.
There is often no comma when the main clause is at the beginning:
- Fewer people would drive to work if the government decided to improve the public transportation system.
- Although gender equality has made a lot of progress, some school subjects remain male dominated.
- Some school subjects remain male dominated although gender equality has made a lot of progress.
- As the influx of visitors in the world's major cities has reached crisis point, global tourism urgently needs to rethink itself.
- Global tourism urgently needs to rethink itself as the influx of visitors in the world's major cities has reached crisis point.
2. Relative clauses
A non-defining relative clause always requires a comma before and after it:
- Schoolchildren, who take physical exercise regularly, often have a healthier lifestyle than their parents.
By contrast, no comma is required before or after a defining relative clause:
- Schoolchildren who take physical exercise regularly tend to perform better in exams than those who do not.
3. ... which is why ...
Remember to use a comma before which is why, and also before which used to refer back to a whole clause:
- All too often, prisons fail to offer suitable rehabilitation programmes, which is why many inmates have difficulty integrating back into society.
- Many people actually panic when they are unable to be online, which is a clear sign of their addiction to social media.
4. ... not only... but also...
Do not use commas in sentences with ... not only... but also ...:
- The lack of online security is a matter of considerable concern not only for businesses but also for private internet users.
5. Linking words
To make an essay 'hang together', we need to use linking words (sometimes called 'connectors', 'linkers' or 'discourse markers'). When they are used at the beginning of a sentence, those linkers are always followed by a comma:
- A relatively small number of brands have imposed themselves on the world stage. As a result, many local businesses have had to close down.
- Sports lessons can develop a child's interest in exercise and outdoor activities. Besides, they can also be effective in combating overweight and obesity.
- Over the past 50 years, there has been a growing awareness of ecological issues. On the other hand, the amount of plastic that is thrown away has led to an environmental disaster.
The main linkers that can be used at the beginning of a sentence can be grouped as follows:
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Result |
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Cause |
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Addition |
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As a result,... |
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Because of [N[P)],... |
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Besides, ... |
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Contrast |
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Alternatives/Choices |
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Text Organisers |
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However,... On the other hand,... |
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Alternatively,... Instead of [N(P)],... |
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First,... / Firstly,... To sum up,... In conclusion,... |
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In my opinion,... |
Some of the linkers in this table can also be used in the middle of the sentence. Note that when this is the case, a comma is needed before and after the linker:
- A good university degree is essential when applying for an academic job. In business, however, soft skills and experience are usually more useful.
- Some people argue that the only purpose of business is to make a profit. Such a stance is, in my view, short-sighted as well as unethical.
- In general, whether or not experience is more important than academic qualifications depends on the job being applied for. In law or medicine, for example, a university degree is absolutely essential.
5. Clauses with and, but, so, yet, nor and or
A comma is used to separate two main clauses linked with and, but, so, yet, nor and or. This is particularly the case when the clauses are long and quite distinct in meaning:
- Parents often spend a considerable amount of time watching television, and their children waste time chatting with friends online instead of doing their homework.
- High-rise apartment blocks offer moderately priced housing in urban areas, but the lack of outdoor spaces makes many people search for other types of accommodation.
- Few prisons offer adequate rehabilitation programmes, so prisoners have problems when they return to the community.
- The horrors of war are well documented in history books, yet those who govern us do not try hard to maintain peace.
- Governments do not seem willing to adopt measures that would ensure a fairer distribution of wealth, nor do they try to address the root causes of poverty.
- Parents should encourage their children to talk at mealtimes, or create other opportunities for all family members to talk to each other.
However, the comma may be omitted if the clauses are very short and closely linked:
- Children watch too much television and do not take enough exercise.
- Many people like nature but would not like to live in a village.
- Many children wish to attend school yet are unable to do so.
6. Length of clauses
As stated above, the length of the clause will determine if you need to use a comma or not. However, there are no fixed rules in English grammar to distinguish how many words constitute a long clause or a short clause. This means the writer must decide if the length requires punctuation or not.
As a general guide:
a) the comma sometimes signals the place where we might take a pause to breathe if we were speaking the sentence out loud
b) if the clause is very long, it might be easier for the reader to have the comma present in order to distinguish one clause from the other.
Modern English usage does tend towards using fewer commas than in the past. However, use the above two suggestions as a guide, as well as the examples provided, to decide whether you will use a comma or not. The examiner will be flexible about this aspect of punctuation.
7. Items in a list
Use a comma to separate items in a list:
- Even in developed countries, many people cannot afford the bare necessities of life, such as food, shelter, proper clothing and medical care.
Between the last two ite,ms in a list, a comma is not usually used except if the items are long:
- Schools are places where not only subjects should be taught but also human values such as solidarity, team spirit, compassion for the suffering of all creatures, and readiness to help anyone in need.
Colon
On rare occasions, it may happen that you need to use a colon. A colon is used to introduce items in a list:
- There are three things we can easily do without if we want to protect our environment: CFCs, fossil fuels and single-use plastic bags.
You can also use a colon to introduce an explanation:
- Our planet is on the verge of an ecological disaster: sea levels are rising, the ozone layer is depleted, and an increasing number of plant and animal species are facing extinction.
Apostrophe
We use an apostrophe for two main reasons: in contracted forms (e.g. can't / we're / won't / hasn't, etc.) and after a noun to indicate possession. As you must not under any circumstances use contracted forms in academic essay writing, only the possessive marker is of interest here.
- Unless we stop depleting the Earth's natural resources, we will cause irreversible damage to the environment.
- For our children's sake, the issue of global warming needs to be dealt with urgently.
- People's opinions about current issues such as climate change and overpopulation vary greatly from one country to another.
- Trade wars between superpowers are in nobody's interest.
- The right to express one's opinions should be protected by law in all countries.
- In my view, younger children should only be allowed to use social media under their parents' supervision.
As the sentences above illustrate, 's is used:
(1) after singular nouns that do not end in -s;
(2) after plural nouns that do not end in -s;
(3) after indefinite pronouns that do not end in -s.
(4) after plural nouns ending in -s.
Remember that an apostrophe is not used with possessive pronouns (its / yours / his / hers / ours / theirs).