Answer: How many exclamation marks are too many?

Monday, 17 October 2016 07:16
[identity profile] green-grrl.livejournal.com
One of our readers asks, “How many exclamation marks are too many? What is the standard usage on number of exclamation marks in a sentence or on a page?”

This sounds like a question born in the era of OMG!!!!!1!!1eleventy!, but questions around overuse of exclamation marks—or exclamation points in American English—have been around for much longer. ( Here is some advice, old and new, with examples from Stargate SG-1. )
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Friday Funnies: Third Way

Friday, 10 October 2014 07:00
[identity profile] chiroho.livejournal.com
While I can't say that I've encountered such inflammatory disagreements here at [livejournal.com profile] fandom_grammar, we grammarians certainly have our disagreements, don't we?


Third Way

[rollover text:] 'The monospaced-typewriter-font story is a COMPLETE FABRICATION! WAKE UP, SHEEPLE'
'It doesn't matter! Studies support single spaces!'
'Those results weren't statistically significant!'
'Fine, you win. I'm using double spaces right now!'
'Are not! We can all hear your stupid whitespace.'
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Friday Funnies: Don't be a Psycho

Friday, 15 November 2013 20:12
ariestess: (regina apple -- from miz_tith)
[personal profile] ariestess

Originally found via writing.com


Punctuation is so very vital, and this sign definitely shows just how important.

Unless you're some kind of cannibalistic serial killer with a large family and many pets, of course, in which case this is perfectly fine for you.


If you'd like a refresher on comma usage, check out all of the previous entries over here.
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Answer: What is the proper comma use with "therefore"?

Monday, 23 April 2012 12:38
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Answer: plural letters

Tuesday, 24 January 2012 07:57
[identity profile] green-grrl.livejournal.com
[livejournal.com profile] mirankos wants to know "How do you write out the plural of an alphabetic letter?" That is an excellent question! The answer is bad news or good news, depending upon whether you prefer your grammar prescriptive (with hard and fast rules) or not.

( Let's take a look at how plural letters can be written, with some examples from Harry Potter. )
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Answer: Using Punctuation with Abbreviations

Monday, 14 February 2011 08:01
chomiji: Tenpou from Saiyuki Gaiden. with the caption Not necessarily by the book (Tenpou - Not by the book)
[personal profile] chomiji

starwatcher307 asked us "How do you punctuate with abbreviations?"

One of the first things to get out of the way on this issue is whether you want to use periods (British usage: full stops) in your abbreviations. For a discussion about how to decide whether to use periods in an abbreviation, see our earlier article.

If the abbreviation in question is something like NCIS or CIA, without periods, you would follow normal rules of punctuation, as you would for the complete name of the organization. But if your abbreviation is, say, U.N. (United Nations) or Ph.D. (Doctor of Philosophy), things are a little more tricky - but only a little.

( With examples from C.J. Cherryh's novel Hellburner, part of her Alliance-Union series )

 

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Answer: question mark

Monday, 16 March 2009 22:18
[identity profile] green-grrl.livejournal.com
[livejournal.com profile] tejas asks: Should the sentence "Are you really sure you want to do that or would you rather live another day" end with with a period or a question mark?

Punctuation marks are cues to the reader as to how the text should sound. Commas indicate pauses, exclamation points indicate loudness or excitement, and question marks indicate the rise or fall of voice that comes with a question. ( Click here for the breakdown, with some examples from Stargate: SG-1. )
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ANSWER: When should you use periods in abbreviations?

Monday, 2 February 2009 19:12
[identity profile] lady-ganesh.livejournal.com
Is it just a fanfic thing to drop the periods in the abbreviations or has it become “acceptable” outside of fanfic as well? (ex. NCIS vs. N.C.I.S., SGC vs. S.G.C.)

While fanfic has been around for a long time, so have dropped periods in abbreviations. In fact, if you go to the Official NCIS website, you'll notice even the United States government drops the periods.

Unfortunately, whether or not the dropping is "acceptable" depends on who you're writing for and what style you're using.

( Dropping periods in abbreviations, and also some notes about style and consistency )
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