Grammar and punctuation cheat sheet

Are you lost without your office copywriter pal right now? Need a hand with writing up reports correctly? Our unofficial resident copywriter has made English class a breeze for those who need a refresher on all things grammar and punctuation.

Why not learn (or relearn!) something new today, and bookmark this page for when you need it most.

Clause

 A part of a sentence that separates ideas within a sentence. Usually before any main splitting punctuation.

EXAMPLE: It was my first day at work today, and I decided to treat myself to lunch at a cafe.

It was my first day at work today is the first clause of that sentence, and and I decided to treat myself to lunch at a cafe. is the second clause of the sentence as it falls after the comma and expresses a separate idea.

Full stops (.) 

Easy one to start. Full stops finish sentences. It’s just so easy. Elementary stuff. They should be used far more often than they are. Keep sentences short and sweet rather than using a comma to break up a million different ideas.

Commas (,)

Used when you are listing items consecutively in a sentence. When these items are extended phrases and not just words, you graduate to a semi-colon. 

EXAMPLE:

I called the client and asked for the brief, the planning calendar, last month’s report and some of their products to shoot.

EXAMPLE, as per memes:

Let’s eat Grandma!  vs. Let’s eat, Grandma!

Oxford commas (, and)

You’ve probably seen plenty of memes about poor grammar usage, especially with commas and oxford commas. This sub-group of commas is to avoid ambiguity in sentences where there could be confusion around the meaning of the phrase.

The Oxford comma is a very contentious grammar subject and divides many professionals in their opinion but as the adage goes, it’s better to be safe than sorry!

EXAMPLE:

For breakfast, I ate cereal, coffee and orange juice. vs.  For breakfast, I ate cereal, coffee, and orange juice.

The first sentence could be read that the coffee and orange juice are combined together as one drink, whereas the second sentence implies that they are separate beverages.

Colons (:)

These are used to begin lists or end sentences with a dramatic or emphatic revelation.

EXAMPLES:

There was only one thing that she desperately wanted for her Christmas present: a dog.

Could you please get the following items from the supermarket: milk, granola, yoghurt and chocolate.

Semicolons (;)

As mentioned above, semicolons are used to break up long lists when commas are used throughout the clause, especially when commas will continue to be used in proceeding clauses. They’re also used to break up very long sentences when there is potential ambiguity (similar to the Oxford comma).

EXAMPLE: 

When I was on my holiday in Italy, I went to Rome and ate so much pizza, pasta and gelato; in Tuscany I drank red, rosé, white and sparkling wine; and once I got to Milan, I couldn’t get enough of risotto.

Apostrophes (’)

Only to be used for possessives or where a letter is omitted from a word. Apostrophes are often confused and used with plurals and this is infuriatingly incorrect (says the copywriter).

EXAMPLES:

Chip is Tiara’s dog. (Possessive)

I can’t go to the meeting today. (Omission of letter)

‘Tis a grand day today. (Omission of letter, Elizabethan style)

NOT I went and bought some apple’s from the supermarket. No no no no no no.

Hyphen (-)

Often confused with dashes. Hyphens are word joiners, used for many purposes such as compound words or phrases, writing out numbers; and breaking up strings of words, often comically. 

EXAMPLES:

Well-made

She is twenty-one years old.

Subject-verb agreement

Have you ever had that got-to-have-it-now-or-you’ll-cry feeling?

Dashes (– or —) (Yes, they are different.)

Often confused with hyphens. Dashes come in many lengths, with names like em dash (—) and en dash (–). They are used for expressing thought mid-way through sentences, or after thoughts at the end of a sentence. They can also be used for emphasis, especially in creative writing, as well as in some prefix and suffix examples.

EXAMPLES:

Bea was planning the work Christmas party— it was her first time doing so— and she did it so well that she got a promotion. [em dash]

These fashions are pre–WWII. [en dash]

Single quotations (‘xx’)

Style of quotation marks change between languages (even the sub-sets of English like UK or USA English), as well as independent style guides. It is worth consulting your company or client’s style guide for their preference, unless you’re in a position to make your own mind up. Each country has an official style guide: in America, it is the Chicago Style Manual. Here in Australia, it is Style Manual. Either is used for direct or indirect speech.

Personally, I use single quotations for direct speech (dialogue), and double quotations for indirect speech (quoting in retrospect).

EXAMPLES:

‘You should have waited,’ said Nick. [Direct]

She said that she was “more tired than she’s ever been”. [Indirect]

(**These examples would reverse depending on the preferred style.**)

Double quotations (“xx”)

Similarly to single quotation marks, double quotations are up for discussion depending on what or who you’re writing for. It’s best to check.

Double quotation marks are predominantly also used for supposed speech, and for specificity as to what the writer is talking about. Also can be used when quoting foreign words or slang, or when the true word is unknown.

EXAMPLES:

He said that he was “more tired than he’s ever been”.

The word “team” does not sound right here and should be changed.

Exclamation marks (!)

Completely overused most of the time. Simply, exclamation marks are for exclamations. They are also used for imperatives (which are a type of exclamation) and onomatopoeia. Avoid using more than one unless you are expressing utterly confounding excitement. It is also best to avoid double punctuation marks where possible: for example, ?!. Just pick one.

EXAMPLES:

I told you not to!

Congratulations!

Stop!

Come back!

Whoosh!

Bang!

Ampersands (&)

If you can write the word “and”, just write it— especially in paragraphs. Ampersands are largely used in titles and names, and not a whole lot else. It is often a stylised choice as well as a space saver, and it can look out of place when used incorrectly.

EXAMPLES:

I work at Hotglue & Co.

Mr & Mrs

Scomo & Trump Meet At White House

Subject-Verb Agreement

This is a more familiar concept to those who have learnt foreign languages as many English classes in Australian schools focus more on language analysis and novels rather than grammar after a certain stage.

Subject-verb agreement is simply how pronouns and the conjugated verb match, such as:

I write

You write

He/She/It writes

We write

You write (plural; “you all”)

They write

In English, there are minor differences in all verbs but making sure you match correctly when substituting the pronouns with names or collective nouns is crucial, especially when writing professionally.

Number Agreement 

This point relates to the agreement of verbs to plurals, collective nouns and indefinite/non-specific words such as “each”, “none” or “either”.

Collective nouns can be confusing to some as they are used to inherently express a group of something, but the noun itself is more often than not a singular noun.

EXAMPLE:

The team is excited to go on a trip to New Zealand together.

> Whilst the team may express twenty people as part of a team, the word “team” is a singular noun as it would be equal to saying “one team”.

When using the words “There is” or “There are”, it can be easy to mix up the agreement. Whether you use “is” or “are” depends on the noun used, even when using descriptive phrases to further say how many of something there is. Words like “much” and “many” also refer to singular and plural words separately.

EXAMPLE:

There is so much onion in this sauce.

There are so many songs that I cannot choose my favourite.

> “Are” corresponds with “songs”, although many would say “There is so many songs”.

The words “each”, “either”, “neither” and “none” can also be confused in this way.

EXAMPLES:

Each = one of many.

Each of the employees (plural) receives (singular verb relates to “each”) a plane ticket for the surprise trip.

One = one (really!), even when it is put in a phrase such as:

One of the birds flies off in the other direction.

“None” is similar to “each”. Because “none” refers to nothing, it cannot be a plural, even when written as “None of us…”

None of us wants to miss out on the virtual catch-up.

“Neither” is a comparison between two nouns, therefore is plural.

Neither of the girls want to go to the party.

If you need help in this area, relate it to the pronoun conjugation above. Is it an “it” or a “they” that you need to work with? Then, go from there and figure out how it makes sense:

He/She/It loves to learn grammar.

They love to learn grammar.

For some fun memes (and extra learning), check out this article from The Language Nerds (also worth a follow on FB!): https://thelanguagenerds.com/16-hilarious-memes-about-the-importance-of-grammar/