this post was submitted on 07 Sep 2023
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The colon is underused as punctuation and overused as an intestinal organ (reddthat.com)
submitted 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) by PeepinGoodArgs@reddthat.com to c/chat@beehaw.org
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Check it: colons are incredibly useful for introducing new ideas or adding emphasis. And the way people talk on the internet could use significantly more clarity: you can ramble and ramble, and just talk about whatever, expand on your point, really beat that dead horse, and then take a short break. But using colons allows you to introduce an important new idea: they provide a clear separation between different thoughts.

Oh yeah, about the colon as intestinal organ: idk...stay away from Taco Bell unless you have some extra time

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[–] gaydarless@lemmy.ca 8 points 1 year ago (2 children)

What are your thoughts on semi-colons? Not the ideal for organs, I'm sure, but for punctuation... ?

[–] LallyLuckFarm@beehaw.org 10 points 1 year ago

Semicolons are pretty neat too; the primary use is joining two related independent clauses without using a conjunction. Some folks seem to enjoy using them interchangeably with an em-dash; others prefer to use em-dashes as a less formal punctuation mark to replace a colon while still adding emphasis.

[–] PeepinGoodArgs@reddthat.com 10 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Also underused. Especially in lists. Like, if I want to go to Tokyo, Japan (again); Seoul, South Korea; (<- an Oxford semicolon??) and Bordeaux, France then semicolons are ideal rather than a bunch of commas that make it unclear.

I actually looked up how to use them and this site provides good examples.

[–] davefischer@beehaw.org 2 points 1 year ago

Whoa, never heard of that. Nice.