Usage of Period and Semicolon on GMAT
Description: In this brief video, we will cover the correct usages of periods (.) and semicolons (;), two very common pieces of punctuation on the GMAT.
Usage of Period and Semicolon on GMAT
In this brief article we will explain the appropriate usages of periods (.) and semicolons (;), two very common pieces of punctuation on the GMAT.
Periods
Periods (.) are simply used to mark the end of a sentence. Once a sentence has ended, the last word is followed by a comma. Please take a look at the following examples.
Example 1 –
Jack won.
Here, the sentence ends with the word “won”, so it is followed by a period.
Semicolons
The sole usage of semicolons (;) is joining independent clauses, clauses that can stand on their own as complete sentences. To understand this concept better, please consider the following example.
Example 2 –
Professor entered the class; the students were waiting.
Here, the two clauses that make up the sentence are both independent. See, “Professor entered the class” and “the students were waiting” are both complete sentences in and of themselves. So, to separate them a semicolon is used.
This article has deliberately been kept brief; for a more elaborate explanation, please refer to the Experts’ Global Stage One Sentence Correction videos.
