Using punctuation to write better sentences

Speaker 1: Commas are punctuation marks that are vital for helping us to be understood correctly.

Speaker 2: (TO OTHER PEOPLE) Can you believe I wrote that on my dating profile?

Speaker 1: Hobbies and interests. 'I like running, swimming, cooking cats and going to clubs.'

I see what you’ve done there.

(TO AUDIENCE) One missing comma between 'cooking' and 'cats' has completely changed the meaning of what Beth was trying to say.

Speaker 3: (TO OTHER PEOPLE) Look you’ve got loads of responses.

'Lovely profile but I wouldn’t let you anywhere near my pets.'

Speaker 1: (TO AUDIENCE) We use commas when we’re trying to list things.

So here Beth has listed her favourite types of music.

'Rock, indie, techno, rap and hip hop.'

They all need a comma between them.

Commas can also be used to help separate different parts, or clauses, of a sentence.

'Although I like travelling, I also really enjoy spending time at home.'

Here the comma separates the two parts of the sentence and, without it, things can get a little confusing.

(SPEAKER 1 ADDS COMMA TO CHALK BOARD WHICH SAYS: Please take care customers, slippery when wet.)

That’s better.

Speaker: When reading and writing, apostrophes help us to be clear about what we’re saying, and to avoid misunderstandings.

They come in two varieties. First the apostrophe of omission, for when a letter is missing out of a word or words you’re writing, so 'you are' becomes 'you’re': y-o-u- apostrophe -r-e.

And 'it is' becomes 'it’s': i-t- apostrophe -s.

The other kind of apostrophe is the apostrophe of possession, for when one thing belongs to another.

When the owner or possessive noun is singular, the apostrophe-s goes after their name.

Like Freddie’s Juice Bar. Spelt F-r-e-d-d-i-e.

But when the owner or possessive noun is plural, and it ends in an s, the apostrophe goes after the s.

So right now this entrance says it belongs to one worker: w-o-r-k-e-r- apostrophe -s… but it’s really for many workers.

The word is plural and ends in an s so the apostrophe goes after the word workers: w-o-r-k-e-r-s- apostrophe.

That’s better. These apostrophes are little, but can have a big effect.

Speaker 1: 'Do you like great music

Are you free on Friday night

Don’t miss us!!! Tonight!!! At The Old Crown!!!

Set list includes
Horror Horror Horror
Darkness Darkness Darkness
Black Black Black'

I think it needs a few small changes.

Speaker 2: (TO AUDIENCE) There’s a whole load of punctuation, not just full stops and commas, that makes your writing clearer.

Adding question marks to (the first two) lines means the reader knows they’re being asked a question.

Then there’s the exclamation marks, for giving an order or adding an air of excitement, although if you overuse them they can lose their impact.

A colon introduces part of a sentence that explains, balances or elaborates on the part before it.

That includes a list that gives more information.

The phrase 'Set list includes' needs a colon between it and the list below.

Quotation marks are useful too. They’re sometimes called inverted commas or speech marks.

(TO OTHER PEOPLE) Now we need some quotation marks around the review of the band so we know that it’s someone else’s words.

Speaker 1: "Best band I’ve heard all year." Who said that?

Speaker 3: My mum.