Macmillan Holdings, LLC. Grammar Girl, Grammar Girl's, QDnow, and Quick and Dirty Tips are all trademarks of Macmillan Holdings, LLC. Today's topic is how to use colons. mageed adlan grammar this story is alsome!!!!!! http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/colon-grammar.aspx?commentid=20751#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/colon-grammar.aspx?commentid=20751#Comments Tue, 03 Nov 2009 17:49:52 GMT Misty grammar This is the best site that i can use to learn what I need to learn http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/colon-grammar.aspx?commentid=17887#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/colon-grammar.aspx?commentid=17887#Comments Fri, 17 Jul 2009 01:32:58 GMT Meir grammar Great blog! What about vertical lists of steps in Technical Writing? Can you introduce the procedure with an incomplete sentence, followed by a colon? For example, "To write a procedure: 1. Introduce the procedure with an explanatory statement. 2. Follow the procedure introduction with a colon, if Grammar Girl permits." http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/colon-grammar.aspx?commentid=16785#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/colon-grammar.aspx?commentid=16785#Comments Thu, 30 Apr 2009 12:33:49 GMT Katherine grammar Where would you put a colon when talking about a volume number? Volume 20: 2-23 or Volume: 20; 2-23? http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/colon-grammar.aspx?commentid=15825#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/colon-grammar.aspx?commentid=15825#Comments Fri, 20 Feb 2009 17:42:31 GMT francine grammar do you still use the period before the colon in abbreviations like Re.: or No.: http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/colon-grammar.aspx?commentid=12951#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/colon-grammar.aspx?commentid=12951#Comments Mon, 16 Jun 2008 20:40:15 GMT Kristin grammar I hope I don't take over the comments section. This one is for William McLaughlin, who asked about the semicolons in a list that follows a colon. In my experience, semicolons are generally used in lists where commas or other punctuation would make reading the list difficult. e.g., "I have many hobbies: writing and grammar; sports, like hockey and bowling; and learning to cook." This becomes more difficult to read when only commas are used. Wouldn't it be harder to understand or at the very least look inconsistent to write the previous sentence like this: "I have many hobbies: writing and grammar, sports, like hockey and bowling, and learning to cook." However, this method is commonly used in regular lists too. e.g., "Some of my favorite hobbies are writing and grammar; sports, like hockey and bowling; and learning to cook." http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/colon-grammar.aspx?commentid=12071#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/colon-grammar.aspx?commentid=12071#Comments Thu, 20 Mar 2008 04:20:11 GMT Kristin grammar Mary, "a good night's sleep" is correctly punctuated, just the same as "two weeks' notice" is correct. The idea is that you are having the good sleep in a night, or "of" a night. Basically, the night owns the good sleep, even though you are the one sleeping through it. In the same vein, when we say "two weeks' notice," we are giving the notice "of" two weeks, therefore we use the possessive apostrophe, *not* a contractive apostrophe. I hope this helps. http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/colon-grammar.aspx?commentid=12070#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/colon-grammar.aspx?commentid=12070#Comments Thu, 20 Mar 2008 04:07:05 GMT Celeste grammar Grammar Girl, My students keep using the colon after "By." Where can I find the rule for this use. For example, if they write a paper, they will write _George Orwell's Relevance for Today's World_ By: Jocelyn Medina. I have tried to make them stop writing the colon after "By," but it seems that I am wrong since no one has stopped writing it. http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/colon-grammar.aspx?commentid=11715#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/colon-grammar.aspx?commentid=11715#Comments Thu, 14 Feb 2008 23:19:30 GMT Mary grammar Grammar Girl: I wanted to ask about punctuating 'a good night's sleep' - as I've seen it written. I think that is incorrect - doesn't that mean 'a good night is sleep'?! How is this phrase properly punctuated?! Thank you! http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/colon-grammar.aspx?commentid=9972#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/colon-grammar.aspx?commentid=9972#Comments Sun, 11 Nov 2007 17:15:14 GMT Grammar grammar "Girls" should be possessive; think of it as the night out of a group of girls. So the proper way to write the phrase is "girls' night out." http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/colon-grammar.aspx?commentid=2974#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/colon-grammar.aspx?commentid=2974#Comments Fri, 10 Aug 2007 09:59:05 GMT Tue, 03 Nov 2009 17:49:52 GMT http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/colon-grammar.aspx feedback@quickanddirtytips.com (Managing Editor) feedback@quickanddirtytips.com (Webmaster) en-us