VideoJug.com - How To Use Exclamation Marks?

How To Use Exclamation Marks

How To Use Exclamation Marks

Learn how to use exclamations marks properly and effectively with VideoJug's help. Spice up your sentences with this emotive use of punctuation.

Step 1:
Introduction
The exclamation mark is used instead of a full stop at the end of a short phrase or sentence that expresses very strong feelings. They are also known informally as a bang or a shriek. Here are some examples:

That's amazing!

David, stop that!

I love cress sandwiches!

Aaarrgh!

If a writing is trying to represent ordinary speech - in a novel, for instance - then examples like these are quite normal. However in formal writing exclamation marks usually appear out of place, and using them frequently will give your work a breathless, almost immature, quality.
Step 2:
Exclamations and statements
Exclamation marks also often appear after an exclamation beginning with how or what:

How well did he take that goal!

What a mistake the goalkeeper made!

These sentences are both exclamations, and not statements. If they were statements, they would simply end with a full stop and not an exclamation mark

That goal was very well taken.

The goalkeeper made a bad mistake.
Step 3:
Surprise!
If a statement is very surprising, you can use an exclamation to draw attention to the fact:

After weeks of planning he finally managed to break in and crack the safe. It was empty!
Step 4:
Interruptions
Exclamation marks can also be used to draw attention to an interruption in a sentence, for example:

On the (rare!) occasion he bought his wife flowers, he forgot to take the price tag off.
Step 5:
Formal writing
Apart from these points you should generally avoid using exclamation marks in your formal writing. Don't use an exclamation mark unless you're certain it's necessary - for example there's no need to use one in the statement:

Do not use exclamation marks in formal writing!

And never use two or three of them in a row!!!

While this sort of thing is fine in personal letters it is completely out of place in formal writing.

VideoJug.com - How To Use Parentheses And Square Brackets?

How To Use Parentheses And Square Brackets

How To Use Parentheses And Square Brackets

Here is a detailed guide on how to appropriately use parentheses and square brackets. Improve your punctuation inventory with VideoJug's helpful guide.

Step 1:
Bracketing parentheses
Parentheses are the posh name for what most of us call brackets – they're also known as round brackets. Parentheses can be used in the same way as a pair of dashes or a bracketing comma: They indicate a strong interruption in the flow of the sentence. The words within parentheses should represent an aside from the writer to the reader:

Although Barcelona is one of the most sociable places on earth (especially if you enjoy sitting in cafes) you will rue the day you forgot your manners there.

You will notice that everything inside the brackets could be removed and the remaining sentence still makes sense:

Although Barcelona is one of the most sociable places on earth you will rue the day you forgot your manners there.
Step 2:
Extra information
You can include extra information in brackets:
The rock star Kurt Cobain (1967 – 1994) was a major influence on a whole generation of musicians.
Step 3:
Options
Sometimes, particularly in forms or official documents, it may be necessary to use parentheses to illustrate options:
Your teacher(s) may not always know the name(s) of your sibling(s).
Step 4:
Listing
If you are writing a list and you want to use either numbers or letters to mark each separate point, they should appear in parentheses:

To get into the club you should make sure you are
(a) not wearing trainers
(b) not visibly drunk, and
(c) on the guest list.
Step 5:
Square brackets in quotes
You should only ever use square brackets to clarify a point, or insert additional information into a direct quote:

“These two nations [Russia and America] seem to sway the destinies of half the globe.”

The original quote did not make it obvious which two nations are referred to, but the addition of the square brackets is a good way of making that clear.

You can also use square brackets to add words to a quote, or to replace words without changing the original meaning of the sentence:

“I'm sure it [was] always like that.”
Step 6:
Full stops and brackets
Always remember that a full stop always falls outside the brackets at the end of the sentence.

VideoJug.com - How To Use Capital Letters?

How To Use Capital Letters


How To Use Capital Letters

VideoJug presents a definitive guide on how to use Capital Letters, from place names, to sentence structure, this VideoJug film covers all uses of capital letters in English.

Step 1:
Starting a sentence
Capital letters are always used at the beginning of a sentence.
Step 2:
Names
You should also use a capital letter at the beginning of people's names, days of the week and month, and brand names.
Step 3:
Countries
The names of all countries and cities are spelt with a capital letter, like France and Paris. So are words that are connected to them, like French and Parisian. This isn't necessary when they don't refer directly to the country in question, like danish pastries or french windows - which don't have to actually be Danish or French. It also applies to regional and ethnic divisions like Basque and Catalan, and black and white, when they refer to people – as in Black American.
Step 4:
Language and religion
The names of languages and religions like Hindi and Buddhism should always get capital letters, as do many religious people, concepts and events like The Last Supper, God, Jesus, The Prophet Mohammed and The Old Testament. This doesn't apply to pagan deities, like the Greek god Prometheus.
Step 5:
Holidays
Capitals are also used to indicate historical periods like The Middle Ages and holidays like Easter and Hallowe'en.
Step 6:
Titles
In titles, like the title of a book or essay, you should use a capital letter for the first word of the title, and all significant words after it. For instance:
How to Make Friends and Influence People. The title makes it clear that Making Friends and Influencing people are the main themes of this book.
Step 7:
I
The word I – as in oneself – is always a capital letter.
Step 8:
Abbreviating
When abbreviating, you should always use a capital letter. It is always preferable to set your standard abbreviation early on:
Meg Ryan was outstanding in the film When Harry met Sally (WHMS).
But some abbreviations (of large organisations and companies) are well-known enough to be written in capitals without an explanation: BBC, UN, NATO etc.
Step 9:
Highlighting words
Capitals can be used to highlight certain words in a sentence, but shouldn't be used for whole sentences, unless you want to sound angry: STOP STEALING MY MILK!
Step 10:
Context
The context in which you are using some words changes whether or not they are spelt with a capital letter. Words like Parliament and Government are spelt with capitals when they refer to a specific parliament etc.
But note the difference in the following uses:
I want to meet the President of America.
I want to be president of a large company.

VideoJug.com - How To Use Quotation Marks ?

How To Use Quotation Marks


How To Use Quotation Marks


VideoJug present you with a simple guide on how to properly use quotation marks in your English writing. This great film will show you everything you need to know about quotation marks.

Step 1:
An exact quote
Quotation marks are used to show that the words inside them are a direct quote from someone. Only the person's exact words should appear within quotation marks. In most cases, quotations that span multiple paragraphs should be block-quoted, and do not require quotation marks. Have a look at How to Use Block Quotes to find out how to do this properly.
Step 2:
Single or double?
There's no real difference between the single (‘) and double (“) versions, but be consistent; it's normally better to use the double version to differentiate it from an apostrophe (‘):
‘I was at St. Thomas' hospital that day,' she said.

You can use the different types of quotation mark to indicate a quote within a quote: “John said, ‘Good morning Dave,'?” recalled Frank.
‘John said, “Good morning Dave,”?' recalled Frank.
Step 3:
Quotation commas
When introducing a quote use a comma or colon between the end of your introduction and the first quotation mark. If there is no introduction, but you want to carry on writing after the quote, use a comma at the end:
“There's no need to be like that about it,” she said.
Or:
She said, “There's no need to be like that about it.”

All quotes start with a capital letter, unless you are quoting part of a sentence:
According to Thomas Edison, “Genius is ten percent inspiration and ninety percent perspiration.”
Or:
Thomas Edison declared that genius was, “ten percent inspiration and ninety percent perspiration.”
Step 4:
Interrupting a quote
You can interrupt a quote in three of ways. Firstly with bracketing commas:
“There's no need,” she said, “to be like that about it.”

Secondly, you can use square brackets to clarify a point, or insert additional information:
“These two nations [Russia and America] seem to sway the destinies of half the globe.”
The original quote doesn't make it obvious which 2 nations are referred to.
You can also use square brackets to add words to a quote, or to replace words (without changing the original meaning of the sentence):
“I'm sure it [was] always like that.”

Finally, an ellipsis (…) can be used to indicate that some words have been removed, so the quote:

“I asked him to bring my shoes from the car, right, and when he turned up, yeah, after 3 hours, he'd been at the pub and he was totally drunk! And worst of all (you'll love this) as if he hadn't mucked me around enough, he brought the wrong ones!”
Becomes:
“I asked him to bring my shoes from the car... he brought the wrong shoes!”
Step 5:
Ironic quotes
Sometimes quotes can be used to show that the writer is employing irony, or questioning someone's version of events:
My brother said he was too “busy” to help me.
But this is not common in formal speech.
Step 6:
Punctuating quotes
A debate has been raging over whether punctuation marks should be put inside or outside punctuation marks. The logical view is that if the punctuation mark is part of the quotation then it should go inside, like so:
“The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.”
Because Roosevelt's wise words are a full sentence we include a full stop at the end of it, inside the quotation marks.
But if the punctuation is not an intrinsic part of the quote then it should go outside the quotes, like this:
“The Chancellor said he was fed up with “silly policies”.
Because we have lifted the phrase “silly policies” out of context from the chancellor's original quote, we should close the quotation marks before ending the sentence with a full stop.

But another view, commonly held in America, is that you should always put any punctuation inside the quotation marks, so it is difficult to be wrong on this one.
Step 7:
Inside or outside
In standard British-English punctuation should appear inside the quotation marks if it is relevant to the quote, and outside if it's relevant to the sentence it's in.

Did he say "Good morning, Dave"?

No, he said "Where are you Dave?"

VideoJug.com - How To Use i.e. And e.g.?

How To Use i.e. And e.g.


[TEXT]

How To Use i.e. And e.g.

Here is a guide on using i.e. And e.g. In everyday sentences correctly. Follow this VideoJug film and improve your punctuation with these simple steps.

Step 1:
E.g.
E.g. is an abbreviation for the Latin phrase exempli gratia, and is used instead of the phrase 'for example'. It is used to clarify a preceding statement.

I love playing sports, e.g., football, cricket, tennis and rugby

To make sure that you use e.g. correctly, especially if you don't speak Latin, it may help to remember that it is also the initials for 'example given'.
Step 2:
I.e.
I.e. is an abbreviation of the Latin phrase id est, and is used to clarify a preceding statement by restating the idea more clearly or expanding upon it.

I can't decide which colour crayon to use, i.e., there are so many wonderful colours to choose from.

Again, for the non-Latin speakers out there, to make sure you use i.e. correctly you may want to remember that it also stands for 'in effect.'
Step 3:
Grammatical issues
For both e.g. and i.e. there are a few grammatical issues you should remember in order to use them properly.

Make sure you use a full stop after each letter, they are abbreviations after all.

Either one can be used to start a sentence. Use a capital letter for the first letter and remember to follow it with a comma.

They can also both be used in a parenthetical statement; again remember to follow with a comma

Finally if you're using either one within a sentence, and not in parentheses or at the beginning, make sure you precede and follow it with a comma.

VideoJug.com - How To Use Colons And Semi-Colons ?

How To Use Colons And Semi-Colons


[ TEXT ]


How To Use Colons And Semi-Colons

Stop being confused about colons and semi-colons, and learn how, when, and why to use them with VideoJug's help. This film explains the conventional way of punctuation English with colons and semi-colons to VideoJug users.

Step 1:
Colon introduction
A colon introduces an explanation or elaboration of what has come before it: like this. To use a colon, you should be satisfied that the two sections of your sentence aren't complete sentences in their own right, and the information in one section explains the other section:
Africa is experiencing a terrible problem: perpetual drought.
Or:
Perpetual drought, poverty, corruption: these are all terrible problems Africa is experiencing.
Step 2:
Titles
Colons are also used to separate a book title and sub-title, as in:
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead mans chest.
Step 3:
Ratios
You can use a colon to indicate a ratio, "The man/woman ratio is 1:4!!" In formal writing this isn't normally acceptable. So the sentence would be written as:

There are four women to every man here.
Step 4:
Semi-colon introduction
A semi-colon links two complete sentences which work as sentences on their own; it indicates that there is some sort of relationship between them.
Step 5:
Stylish semi-colons
Using a semi-colon is always a literary (stylistic) choice, for instance:
It was the best of times; it was the worst of times.
Could also be written as:
It was the best of times, and it was the worst of times.
Or:
It was the best of times. It was the worst of times.
Step 6:
Complete sentences
To use a semi-colon, you should be satisfied that the sentences are too closely related to be separated by a full stop, and one sentence isn't a direct explanation of the last.
You can do this in list form too:
1. The sentences are too closely related to be separated by a full stop;
2. One sentence isn't a direct explanation of the last.
Step 7:
Marking important breaks
There is one circumstance where you can use semi-colons to break up a very long sentence, to help it be understood. Consider the following sentence:

In Chad, where the famine still continues, western aid workers, in spite of their efforts, are unable to operate, and the people, starving, and desperate, are flooding to refugee camps.

You can use a semi-colon instead of comma to mark the most important breaks in the sentence, just to aid comprehension, like so:

In Chad, where the famine still continues, western aid workers, in spite of their efforts, are unable to operate; and the people, starving, and desperate, are flooding to refugee camps.
Step 8:
Joining words
Some words require a semi-colon before their use. It is important to remember though that certain joining words are more appropriate to commas:
Women's conversation is cooperative, while men's is competitive.
Or:
Women's conversation is cooperative; however men's is competitive.
Words like however, thus, therefore, consequently, nevertheless and meanwhile should all be preceded by a semi-colon, while words like and, but, yet and while should be preceded by commas.

VideoJug.com - How To Use An Apostrophe?

How To Use An Apostrophe

[ TEXT ]

How To Use An Apostrophe

Here is a short Video showing you how to use an apostrophe properly. Punctuate your writing using the apostrophe correctly and never be confused again.

Step 1:
Missing letters
Apostrophes are primarily used to indicate missing letters. Whenever you are taking away letters to shorten a word, or merge two words, put an apostrophe in their place> This is how we distinguish between words like he'll and hell, she'll and shell.


And it works with years too:
The summer of ‘69

It's important to remember the meaning of what you are writing. A common mistake is to write:
You could of won already. When we really mean: You could have won already. Which can be written as: You could've won already.
Step 2:
Ownership issues
An apostrophe also shows who owns what in a sentence. For instance:
The boy's dinner. (The dinner belonging to the boy)
And it's the same if the word ends with an s:
The bus's arrival.

Apostrophes are also used for something that is owned by more than one person. When the boy's dinner is written as the boys' dinner, it means the dinner is shared between 2 or more boys.

This could cause massive confusion if not done correctly:

Large children's playground (a large playground for children)
Large childrens' playground (a playground for large children)

It works the same with time:
One week's time (in the time of one week)
Two weeks' time (in the time of two weeks)

And quantity:
One pound's worth (worth one pound)
Two pounds' worth (worth two pounds)
Step 3:
Exceptions to the rule
There are a few exceptions to the rules, where the ownership apostrophe and missing letters apostrophe seem to clash. While they are exceptions, getting these wrong is the best way to annoy a punctuation-stickler. Watch out for words like:

It's (it is) As in: It's a lovely day today! Or: It's got to be done today (it has)
Its (belonging to it) As in: Dont pull its tail.
Who's (who is) Who's doing the counting? or Who's been to Newquay?
Whose (who it belongs to) Whose shop is this?
You're (you are) You're never going to believe this
Your (belonging to you) Where's your coat?
Step 4:
Improper English
Finally, we also use apostrophes to show that someone isn't speaking ‘proper' English:
Gone shoppin'