Comments on: MM: Colonoscopy

By: --Deb

--Deb — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 21:25:46 +0000

@Jeanine–
Colon. Although, technically, it’s not doing the abbreviating–what it’s doing is saying, “what this is regarding is _____.” To be really precise, you’d need a period to mark the abbreviation, followed by the colon’s announcement. “Re.:” but nobody ever bothers with the period to abbreviate “regarding.”

Semi-colons connect things. Colons announce them.

By: Jeanine Satterwhite

Jeanine Satterwhite — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 20:13:08 +0000

Would you use a colon or a semi colon when shortening “regarding” to “re”? Would it be re: or re;?

By: Ellen Wilson

Ellen Wilson — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 18:42:40 +0000

Man, I think I just did a comma mess up on my last blog post. Time to go fix it! Punctuation was never my strong point. Literary analysis was/is. Oh, well. Ellen Wilson's last blog post..Writing the Wild Within: Part 4 - Standing Out From the Crowd

By: --Deb

--Deb — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 01:51:02 +0000

Oh sure, give away the secret for next week’s Mangled Monday topic….

By: Melissa Donovan

Melissa Donovan — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 20:05:35 +0000

Deb, yours is the second blog I've visited today that seems to have eaten my earlier comment. I'm certain I left one for this post on Monday and mentioned something about semicolons. A comment I left on Ellen's blog seems have gotten devoured by the comment monster as well. Hmm, it's not even a full moon. Melissa Donovan's last blog post..June Announcements

By: --Deb

--Deb — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 15:31:19 +0000

You could absolutely say, “My favorite foods are chocolate, pie, and brussels sprouts,” and, in fact, you probably SHOULD. It’s just that you don’t need the colon, and every now and again, you’ll see people putting colons right after verbs (when it’s a little less obvious than this example) without ever realizing that it’s incorrect.

By: Ellen Wilson

Ellen Wilson — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 14:21:45 +0000

Deb, I need to go over your website thoroughly and refresh myself on all this good grammatical stuff. It's a lot more fun than reading a grammar text! I wish American English would not waffle about this...it is better to have strict rules regarding capitalization. Actually, couldn't you say, "My favorite foods are chocolate, pie, and brussel sprouts." That would be technically correct. Right? Because, like you said the "are" makes the colon redundant. Ellen Wilson's last blog post..With Love from E: Britishisms

By: --Deb

--Deb — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 12:51:51 +0000

That’s Because Nobody does It consistently Any More so noBody is Sure What should Be Capitalized….

By: Brad Shorr

Brad Shorr — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 11:26:04 +0000

Thanks for the clarification on capitalizing after the colon. I've wondered about that. We learned to capitalize in grammar school, but I don't see it much anymore. Brad Shorr's last blog post..What I Learned from Shooting a Muskrat

By: Melissa Donovan

Melissa Donovan — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 02:41:58 +0000

Good topic Deb, especially since colons are commonly misused (almost as much as semicolons). Thanks for the refresher! Melissa Donovan's last blog post..Stepping Out of Your Comfort Zone and Pushing Your Boundaries