question mark
Also called interrogation point, in·ter·ro·ga·tion mark [in-ter-uh-gey-shuhn mahrk]. /ɪnˌtɛr əˈgeɪ ʃən ˌmɑrk/. a punctuation mark indicating a question: usually, as in English, the mark (?) placed after a question.
something unanswered or unknown: His identity is still a question mark to most of us.
an anglewing butterfly, Polygonia interrogationis, having a silver marking that resembles a question mark on the underside of each hindwing.
Origin of question mark
1Words Nearby question mark
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use question mark in a sentence
The big question mark Saturday is whether any snow falls before the icy precipitation takes over and then whether more sleet or freezing rain falls.
Snow and wintry mix continue overnight, especially north of District | Jason Samenow, Wes Junker, Andrew Freedman | February 11, 2021 | Washington PostNonetheless, there continues to be a question mark over whether circumstances could change.
Future of TV Briefing: Media companies grapple with getting advertisers to buy their platform video inventory | Tim Peterson | January 27, 2021 | DigidayThe big question mark is how far north and east the primary low center will track before a new low center develops.
Increasing chances for a wintry mix early next week in the D.C. area | Jason Samenow, Wes Junker | January 21, 2021 | Washington PostIt’s hard to be sure of any potential outcome when there are so many question marks over what comes after third-party cookies.
‘A challenging point for ID resolution’: Advertisers scramble to plan for the uncertain ‘cookieless future’ | Seb Joseph | January 11, 2021 | DigidayNow, whether he starts on the active roster or on the taxi squad is a question mark, and the lack of preseason games hurts his chances of moving up.
Five takeaways from the Capitals’ final scrimmage of training camp | Samantha Pell | January 11, 2021 | Washington Post
But I am very good at turning a question mark into an exclamation point.
Philippe Petit’s Moment of Concern Walking the WTC Tightrope | Anthony Haden-Guest | August 8, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTWhen asked what will happen to Giglio when the ship is gone, he simply draws a giant invisible question mark on the table.
Saying Goodbye to the Salvage Saviors of Giglio | Barbie Latza Nadeau | July 21, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTFor seven years now, Jon Hamm's debonair ad exec has been the existential question mark at the center of the series.
Jon Hamm on the Final Season of ‘Mad Men’ and the Advice He Got From Bryan Cranston and Tina Fey | Andrew Romano | April 14, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST“Now there's a question mark about where that's going to go,” he said.
White House Braces for Russian Retaliation Over Ukraine | Josh Rogin | March 14, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTShe remembers things like the time to she found “a note he wrote to himself that said ‘put on pants’…with a question mark.”
The Return of New Girl’s Coach…and of Faith in the Still-Great Comedy | Kevin Fallon | November 6, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTThis is but the replacing of the question mark with a meaningless label.
The Necessity of Atheism | Dr. D.M. BrooksSuch is the way of the buzzard—that shifting black question mark which punctuates a Southern sky.
The Escape of Mr. Trimm | Irvin S. Cobb"The question mark after the 'Whither' would look nice on the cover," he reflected regretfully.
Balloons | Elizabeth BibescoI scored this matter with a question mark, putting it aside to think on more when I should be alone.
The Master of Appleby | Francis LyndeWe always went to church in the morning, and people were very kind, but it was kindness with a question-mark.
The Gay Cockade | Temple Bailey
British Dictionary definitions for question mark
the punctuation mark ?, used at the end of questions and in other contexts where doubt or ignorance is implied
this mark used for any other purpose, as to draw attention to a possible mistake, as in a chess commentary
an element of doubt or uncertainty
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
Cultural definitions for question mark
A punctuation mark (?) that follows a direct question: “Is Ralph really seven feet tall?”
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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