punctuation

[ puhngk-choo-ey-shuhn ]
See synonyms for punctuation on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. the practice or system of using certain conventional marks or characters in writing or printing in order to separate elements and make the meaning clear, as in ending a sentence or separating clauses.

  2. the act of punctuating.

  1. Biology. the sudden or accelerated extinction of some species and emergence of others, occurring only in isolated periods, as set forth in the theory of punctuated equilibrium.

Origin of punctuation

1
First recorded in 1530–40; from Medieval Latin pūnctuātiōn- (stem of pūnctuātiō ) “a marking, pointing”; see punctuate, -ion

Other words from punctuation

  • punc·tu·a·tion·al, punc·tu·a·tive, adjective
  • non·punc·tu·a·tion, noun
  • re·punc·tu·a·tion, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use punctuation in a sentence

  • What good are thy volcanic bombs That serve as punctuations for the growlings of thy speech?

    Modernities | Horace Barnett Samuel
  • Like punctuations of sound came the popping of balloons and corks.

    Destiny | Charles Neville Buck
  • He bawled out orders to his crew, emphasizing his commands with sundry fistic punctuations.

    Boy Scouts in the North Sea | G. Harvey Ralphson
  • I will do as Mark Twain did—put the punctuations at the end, and one can take one's choice.

    The Sunny Side of Diplomatic Life, 1875-1912 | Lillie DeHegermann-Lindencrone
  • The answer came in a series of noisy punctuations—the rat-tat-tat of a machine gun.

    Panther Eye | Roy J. Snell

British Dictionary definitions for punctuation

punctuation

/ (ˌpʌŋktjʊˈeɪʃən) /


noun
  1. the use of symbols not belonging to the alphabet of a writing system to indicate aspects of the intonation and meaning not otherwise conveyed in the written language

  2. the symbols used for this purpose

  1. the act or an instance of punctuating

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012