How to use an ellipsis

An ellipsis can be used for different purposes and can be very useful in your writing.

1. It can be used to show a word or words that have been removed from a sentence or quote. For example:

‘The space station has a cracked window and if you open it, it is very dangerous.’ could become ‘The space station has a cracked window… it is very dangerous.’

Here, part of the sentence (and if you open it) has been removed and replaced by an ellipsis.

2. When a character finishes a sentence in their head, or their thought trails off. For example:

If your grown-ups ask you if you have tidied your room, you might reply, “Well I was going to…”.

Here, the ellipsis has finished the sentence and replaced “but I haven’t”.

3. To create suspense by adding a pause before the end of the sentence. For example:

‘The hero saved the day, for now…’

Write a spooky short story (or story opening) using the picture below as inspiration.

In your writing, try to use an ellipsis for at least three of the following purposes.

To:

• leave a cliffhanger
• add suspense
• show thoughts trailing off
• introduce a character flashback
• show where part of the sentence was removed
• leave a cliffhanger at the end of a paragraph