Semicolon (;)
Semicolon is a punctuation mark that is stronger than a comma and weaker than a full stop in pausing or showing the separation.
Ø Using in English
· Between a serial commas
Between items in a series or listing containing internal punctuation, especially parenthetic commas, where the semicolons function as serial commas:
- She saw three men: Jamie, who came from New Zealand; John, the milkman's son; and George, a gaunt kind of man.
- Several fast food restaurants can be found within the cities: London, England; Paris, France; Dublin, Ireland; and Madrid, Spain.
- Examples of familiar sequences are: one, two, and three; a, b, and c; and first, second, and third.
· Between clauses which are not conjoined with a conjunction
For example:
- I went to the basketball court; I was told it was closed for cleaning.
- I told Kate she's running for the hills; I wonder if she knew I was joking.
- Nothing is true; everything is permitted.
- A man chooses; a slave obeys.
· Before some Linking Words
Put a semicolon than a comma before some linking words such as: besides, however, nevertheless, as a result, for example, as a sequence, in any case, and still.
For example:
- We knew it was a useless thing to do; nevertheless, we tried.
- Everyone knows he is guilty of committing the crime; of course, it will never be proven.
- It can occur in both melodic and harmonic lines; however, it is subject to certain restraints.
Cooper, T., Fallas, J., & Flaherty, F. (2011). English Style Guide: Seventh edition. European Commission.
Englishclub.com. (2013). Punctuation. Retrieved from http://www.englishclub.com/writing/punctuation.htm.
Phythian, B. A. (2012). Correct English: Pedoman Belajar Bahasa Inggris. Jakarta : PT. Indeks.
Wikipedia. (2013). Punctuation. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ Punctuation.