Tardis:Semi-colon

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Semi-colons are used to link two complete sentences, where the second sentence is usually caused by or strongly related to the first. They're also used for clarity in lists. Although related to the comma, the semi-colon can never' be replaced by the comma.

Replacement for other types of "sentence glue"

Shortcut:

T:SEMI

Semicolons are largely a matter of personal preference. Many people never use semi-colons in their everyday writing, yet they can be quite correct in their punctuation. A semi-colon is largely an alternative to a conjunction or a full stop, generally used to suggest there's a fairly close, even causal, relationship between two sentences.

Correct: The Doctor didn't care; he was going whether the Brigadier liked it or not.

Correct: The Doctor didn't care. He was going whether the Brigadier liked it or not.

Correct: The Doctor didn't care, because he was going whether the Brigadier liked it or not.

All of these are correct. It's really just a stylistic choice that can help vary one's sentence construction in an article. What's not correct is:

Incorrect: The Doctor didn't care, he was going whether the Brigadier liked it or not.

For clarity in lists

If you're listing long series of things, semi-colons help make the border between listed items clearer. This can be vital if one's list include a lot of clauses set off by commas. Consider the following:

Correct: The Doctor was forced to remember his companions: Leela, the one with the savage tongue; Amy, the girl who didn't want to grow up; Harry, the doctor who was an imbecile; Jamie, the man who had to forget his boyhood; and Barbara, the teacher who should never have come along at all.

Semi-colons help the reader understand where each of these descriptions end. Note, however, that if you start using semi-colons in a list, you must always use them, even if some of the items in the list are uncomplicated. Thus:

Correct: He appeared in Dallas with Larry Hagman; Dynasty; Coronation Street; EastEnders with Michelle Ryan, Wendy Richard and John Smith; and Last of the Summer Wine.

Although only one of the options here — EastEnders — actually required a semi-colon, they all get semi-colons for consistency.

Not a substitute for other punctuation

Semi-colons mean something different to commas. They are not colons or periods, either. They are a more forceful break than a comma, but less forceful than a colon or period.

Below is a list of several different scenarios where a semi-colon would in fact be wrong. The correct punctuation mark is instead given.

Before a list

He wanted the following things: apples, pears and water.

Separating items comprising a simple list

The TARDIS control room contained a hatstand, a big chair, a clock, a hexagonal console and one very perplexed girl.

Before the direct quotation of a full sentence

The Master said, "Peoples of the Earth, please attend carefully."