Punctuation Marks
 

:typing: I don't always get it right, but here are some punctuation rules for anyone interested in improving their writing skills. (Should I have said "there" instead of "their"?)

1. Periods and commas always go inside the closing quotation mark. This is the preferred American style. (Some writers in the US follow the British style: Place the period outside when it punctuates the whole sentence, inside when it punctuates only the quoted material.)
   
2. Semicolons and colons always go outside the closing quotation mark.
   
3. Question marks and exclamation points go inside or outside the quotation mark, depending on its usage. Place the mark outside when it punctuates the whole sentence, inside when it punctuates only the quoted material.

I go by the Greg Reference Manual, American style.

http://http://www.getitwriteonline.com

Also has some good ones.

Thanks, Forrest and Jaebyrd!
I'm helping (teaching) a group of not more than 30 Filipino preachers in our area improve their English grammar, writing, and speaking skills each month. Sometimes I feel "inadequate", being busy in the ministry. I'm looking for materials online which I can use that will suit their needs.

Thanks Forrest for the info. I was not only bad in reading but am in wrighting also and as you can see spelling to. any help is apreciated. I want to wright a booklet on the difference between biblical salvation and Roman Catholic tradition salvation.
I have visited a few sights to help on wrighting skills in the past couple months but have not had the time to sit down to study.
Is there an easy to study sight because, no offence, what you said above might as well be in Japanese, that is how ignorant I am and would like to do better.

Thank You verry much

Sorry if I come across wrong since I'm a grammar Nazi, but since Bro. Forrest's post seemed to have a positive response, I figured I'd throw out some commonly misused or misspelled words and their correct counterparts to help those that are interested.

Too vs. To: "Too" indicates a higher degree, such as "too hot" or "too many." "To" indicates a direction or identifies a recipient.

Since vs. Sense: "Since" denotes a time frame, as "since I got home" or "since Jesus came into my heart." "Sense" is the knowledge or understanding of something, such as "common sense" or "sixth sense."

Your vs. You're: "Your" indicates possession, such as "your purse" or "your car." "You're" is a contraction of "you" and "are," used like "you're right" or "you're late."

Its vs It's: unlike many other contractions, an apostrophe is not used with the possessive of this word. "It's" is nothing but a contraction of "It" and "Is," used like "it's cold out here" or "it's as plain as day." "Its" is a possessive, used like "its fur was ruffled" or "he tried to get its attention."

Usage of apostrophes: admittedly this is my worst pet peeve ever. Apostrophes are used solely to denote contractions or possessives; they are not used to pluralize words. Multiple MP3 audio files wouldn't be "MP3's," just "MP3s." Apostrophes can also indicate that more than one person possesses the same thing: a "person's salvation" could also be said to be the "peoples' salvation." An apostrophe at the end of a plural word means that the entire group possesses something, and an apostrophe plus an "s" means that a singular individual or thing possesses something.

This is the whole reason I like math better than grammar; math is 1, 2, 3, 4 and so on: numbers are static and always the same. Language, on the other hand, is full of "rules" that change like the wind based on certain things and always have exceptions. For example: "'I' before 'E,' except after 'C'...or when it says 'eigh' as in "neighbor' and 'weigh.'" Confusing!

So far, you're the only "grammarian" who likes math better!:D