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Perfecting the Period: Rules of Use

The period is an all-powerful punctuation that can put an end, literally, to anything you put it on. It is easy to disregard this punctuation as you go about your PTE review online; however, that will be a big mistake. Many test-takers have fallen to the trap of not caring enough and ended up failing their PTE.

As a PTE test-taker, you should understand that there’s more to this punctuation than just ending sentences. Take time to understand the intricacies of the use of the period and boost your exam preparation.


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3 USES OF THE PERIOD

1.     Ending a complete sentence

A complete sentence, of course, is a clause that has a subject and a predicate and expresses a complete thought. A period is used to signify that the sentence has ended. Hence that is why the period is also called a full stop. Seems simple enough, right?

Tomorrow, a new day is coming.

BE CAREFUL WITH…
…ending a non-sentence with a period. Remember: sentence expresses a complete thought. If it does not, then don’t end it with a sentence.

When she arrived. I was about to sleep.

The clause “When she arrived” has a noun (she) and a verb (arrived); however, it does not express a complete thought, unlike the statement following it.

2.     Aids in abbreviation

Abbreviations are contractions of longer words. Full stops are used to identify abbreviations and avoid confusion.

      etc. for et cetera
      p.m. for post meridiem
      Inc. for incorporated

BE CAREFUL WITH…
…sentences ending with abbreviations. Although rule #1 states you should end sentences with a full stop if the last word is an abbreviation, the full stop is omitted.

      For the trip tomorrow, bring some pocket money, your mobile phone, extra clothes, etc.
      Meet me in the hallway at precisely 6:00 p.m.
      I’ll be an instructor at JRooz Review Center, Inc.

Also, take although acronyms are technically abbreviations, you do not always need to use full stops after every letter. Per usual practice, if an acronym is pronounced as a word, the full stops are not used: NASA, NATO, SCUBA. If each letter is pronounced, you may or may not use the full stops: USA/U.S.A., NBA/N.B.A., UNICEF/U.N.I.C.E.F.

3.     Used for indirect questions

An indirect question is a statement where the writer states that someone asked something.

He asked if you love him.

BE CAREFUL WITH…
…sentences that needs to end with an exclamation or question mark. These punctuations omit the full stop at the end and are used to emphasize an emotion (as with exclamation marks) or ask a direct question (as with question marks).

Do you love me?
I love you!

Avoid punctuation pitfalls by following these tips during your PTE course preparation.

SOURCES

“Rules for Using Periods.” Webucator. Accessed on July 18, 2019. Accessed from: https://www.webucator.com/how-to/rules-for-using-periods.cfm

“Grammar Rules: Period Punctuation Rules & Examples.” Ginger. Accessed on July 18, 2019. Accessed from: https://www.gingersoftware.com/content/grammar-rules/use-period-correctly/

“Periods.” Grammar Book. Accessed on July 18, 2019. Accessed from: https://www.grammarbook.com/punctuation/periods.asp

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