The Proper Way To Use A Semicolon

There have been a lot of debates about English grammar and perhaps some of the most confusing topics involve symbols and punctuation. In this case, the semicolon. We rarely see semicolons being used these days and with good reason. It's hard to find its place in contemporary English.

A semicolon’s main purpose is to connect two independent clauses. These are both fully formed statements that could each stand alone with their own periods. And that’s perfectly fine; go ahead and do that if you want. If the two clauses are closely related, though, and you want to emphasize their bond, you can connect them with a semicolon.

To make things clearer, Meghan Moravcik Walbert of Lifehacker discusses the ways in which semicolons are used correctly so that we won't have to feel intimidated with them as much.

(Image credit: Mauricio Balvanera/Flickr)


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