Colons:

1. Colons: • When and How to Use Them

2. Some examples of colons • “The old-timer on Sulfur Creek was right, he thought in the moment of controlled despair that ensued: After fifty below, a man should travel with a partner” (London 554). • “There was an excitement in her voice that men who cared for her found difficult to forget: a singing compulsion, a whispered ‘Listen,’ a promise that she had done gay, exciting things just a while since and that there were gay exciting things hovering in the next hour” (Fitzgerald 9). • “‘All right,’ said Daisy. ‘What’ll we plan?’ She turned to me helplessly: ‘What do people plan?’” (Fitzgerald 11).

3. When to use a colon • A colon means “note what follows.”

4. When to use a colon - #1 • “The old-timer on Sulfur Creek was right, he thought in the moment of controlled despair that ensued: After fifty below, a man should travel with a partner” (London 554). • Use a colon to combine two independent sentences if the second sentence clarifies or explains the first sentence.

5. Colon vs. Semicolon - #1 • The colon has less power to separate than a semicolon: • a semicolon makes you stop for a second, while a colon tells your eyes to move on to the next sentence.

6. When to use colons - #2 • “There was an excitement in her voice that men who cared for her found difficult to forget: a singing compulsion, a whispered ‘Listen,’ a promise that she had done gay, exciting things just a while since and that there were gay exciting things hovering in the next hour” (Fitzgerald 9). • Use a colon before a list of items, (especially after the expressions as follows and the following).

7. When to use a Colon - # 2 • Use a colon before a list of items, (especially after the expressions as follows and the following). • EX: “The literary movements that we have studied include the following: the Puritans, the Revolutionary Period, Romanticism, and Realism.”

8. When (not) to use colons - #2 • However, when using a colon to introduce a list, do not use the colon to separate a verb or preposition from its complements. • Just remember, you must have a complete sentence before the colon. • INCORRECT: “At the amusement park we rode: the tea cups, the ferris wheel, and the MindEraser.” • CORRECT: “At the amusement park we rode the tea cups, the ferris wheel, and the MindEraser.”

9. When (not) to use colons - # 2 • However, when using a colon to introduce a list, do not use the colon to separate a verb or preposition from its complements. • Just remember, you must have a complete sentence before the colon. • INCORRECT: “Our family has lived in: California, Arizona, and Texas.” • CORRECT: “Our family has lived in California, Arizona, and Texas.”

10. When to use colons - #3 • “‘All right,’ said Daisy. ‘What’ll we plan?’ She turned to me helplessly: ‘What do people plan?’” (Fitzgerald 11). • Use a colon before quotes if the quote is introduced with a complete sentence • , and use them to introduce long, formal statements.

11. When to use Colons - #4 • In time, use a colon between the hour and minute. • 6:15 P.M. • 8:30 tomorrow morning

12. When to Use Colons- #4 • Between chapter and verse in Biblical references. Also, between volume and issue number. • Psalms 8:9 (Biblical reference) • The Week Magazine 11:541

13. When to Use Colons- # 4 • Between a title and subtitle • Elements of Literature: Essentials of American Literature

14. When to Use Colons - # 4 • After the salutation of a business letter • Dear Ms. Weinberg: • Dear Sir or Madam: