Semicolons and Colons

What is a Semicolon?

A semicolon is a form of punctuation that plays a role halfway between a comma and a period. Semicolons can be used to connect two independent clauses into a single sentence if they have a strong relation to one another. Semicolons can also be used to list items in a series if the items already include commas.

Semicolons to connect independent clauses

An independent clause is a group of words that can function as a complete sentence. If you have two sentences and the first one ends with a period, you can join them into one sentence using a semicolon.

Do not capitalize the first word that comes after a semicolon unless it is a proper noun.

Example: A single death is a tragedy. A million deaths are a statistic.
Example: A single death is a tragedy; a million deaths are a statistic.
Example: America’s national bird is the bald eagle. Canada’s is the gray jay.
Example: America’s national bird is the bald eagle; Canada’s is the gray jay.

If a compound sentence is connected by a comma and a coordinating conjunction, the comma and conjunction can be replaced by a semicolon.

Example: Maisy went to the carnival, and she had the time of her life.
Example: Maisy went to the carnival; she had the time of her life.

Semicolons and items in a series

Semicolons are used to separate more than two items in a series when there is a comma in one or more of the items.

Example: Linda went to Sparta, Georgia; Troy, New York; and Paris, North Carolina.

In the above example, Linda went to three different places.

Without the semicolons, the sentence would read as follows:

Example: Linda went to Sparta, Georgia, Troy, New York, and Paris, North Carolina.

In the above example, Linda went to five different places.

What is a Colon?

Colons are a form of punctuation used to introduce a relevant item, series of items, or quote into a sentence. Like the semicolon, a colon can only come after an independent clause in a sentence. Unlike the semicolon, the words that come after a colon do not need to be an independent clause.

Here are some examples of how to use a colon in a sentence.

Colon to introduce a single item

Example: One food item from the Western Hemisphere completely changed Korean cuisine: the chili pepper.

Colon to introduce items in a series

Example: I have so many allergies: nuts, dairy, dust, dogs, cats, and bees.
Example: I’ve traveled all over the world: Canada, Turkey, China, and Brazil.

Colon to introduce a quote

He ended his presentation with the words of Mister Spock: “Live long and prosper.”