Punctuation is the difference between a sentence that reads clearly and one that trips a reader up. Below is every punctuation mark Professor Grammar has covered so far — what it does, when to use it, and the mistakes almost everyone makes with it. Pick a mark to get started.
Punctuation Marks
- Apostrophe — possessives, contractions, and the it’s/its mistake
- Colon — introducing lists, explanations, and quotes
- Comma — the core rules, plus the comma splice
- Ellipsis — trailing thoughts and omitted text
- Em Dash — emphasis, interruption, and the AI-writing myth
- Hyphen — joining words without turning into a dash
- Oxford Comma — the serial comma debate, and the lawsuit it caused
- Parentheses — adding quiet context without overdoing it
- Quotation Marks — placement rules and the scare-quote trap
- Semicolon — joining related sentences the right way
New marks get added regularly — bookmark this page to keep track of what’s covered.