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Colon Review

The colon is the mark at the end of a complete sentence that announces you will satisfy an expectation. The colon means for example, such as, namely, like, for instance, and so it replaces those words.

Only one structure can go before a colon: a complete sentence.

Any structure can go after a colon:

one word
a phrase
items in a series
a list
a bulleted or numbered list
a complete sentence.

One Word— 1. Sue looks for one quality in men: money.

A Sentence— 2. Dating Jim has one big drawback: he does not have a car.

A List— 3. Her vegetarian diet is strict: no red meat, no chicken, no fish, no dairy products.

A Sentence With A Capital— 4. In the 1990’s the American military suffered an embarrassing irony: Its Commander-in-Chief was a draft dodger.

A Phrase— 5. Al’s Halloween costume was offensive: a used Pampers.

In red are bad uses of the colon, and in blue are the corrections:

1. Recently I started dating Jim: he does not have a car.

(The first sentence does not set up an expectation.)
Dating Jim is a nuisance for one big reason: He does not have a car.

2. Her vegetarian diet follows strict rules, such as: no red meat, no chicken, no fish, and no dairy products.

(The colon means “such as”—no need for both.)
Her vegetarian diet follows strict rules: no red meat, no chicken, no fish, and no dairy products.

Her vegetarian diet follows strict rules, such as no red meat, no chicken, and no fish, no dairy products.

3. Al’s Halloween costume was: a used Pampers.

(A complete sentence should come before the colon. The linking verb was already sets up that something is coming; never put a colon after linking words such as was, were, include, or consisted of. A colon in the middle of a clause (after a verb) cannot set up an expectation or emphasis on its own.)
Al’s Halloween costume was a used Pampers.
Al’s Halloween costume was disgusting: a used Pampers.

4. Extra expenses of owning a power boat include:

a trailer
docking or storage fees
insurance
safety equipment
fishing and/or skiing equipment
gasoline
repairs
Owning a power boat involves extra expenses:

a trailer
docking or storage fees
insurance
safety equipment
fishing and/or skiing equipment
gasoline
repairs

Name ________________________

Colon Review Exercise

What goes in the blank? Put the letter at the end of the sentence. Also add a big, clear punctuation mark in the blank if the answer is not “d.”

Hint: Five sentences need a colon.
Four sentences need nothing.
One sentence needs a comma

A. colon

B. comma

C. nothing

My cousin showed up loaded down with__snack food, six packs, and videotapes.
School requires some useless subjects__such as__English and math.
Alex has an unusual hobby__collecting coathangers.
The defense called a surprise witness__the twin brother of the defendant.
The solution to all my problems is__money.
One company has incredible control over education and business__Microsoft.
My cousin’s perfect vacation includes__lots of__ sun, sex, and sleep.
There are three most important considerations in buying real estate__location, location, and location.
A special person guided me through my parents’ bitter divorce__my grandmother.
Two sports that may be too dangerous for young children are__dodge ball and soccer.
Answers

My cousin showed up loaded down with snack food, six packs, and videotapes. D nothing
School requires some useless subjects, such as English and math. B comma
Alex has an unusual hobby: collecting coathangers. A colon
The defense called a surprise witness: the twin brother of the defendant. A colon
The solution to all my problems is money. D nothing
One company has incredible control over education and business: Microsoft. A colon
My cousin’s perfect vacation includes lots of sun, sex, and sleep. D nothing
There are three most important considerations in buying real estate: location, location, and location. A colon
A special person guided me through my parents’ bitter divorce: my grandmother. A colon
Two sports that may be too dangerous for young children are dodge ball and soccer. D nothing
Last updated 9/18/06