Student's guide to writing college papers, Fourth edition - Kate L. Turabian 2010
Complete sentences
Punctuation
Style
22.1 Complete Sentences
22.1.1 Summary
22.1.2 Three Ways to Punctuate Sentences
22.1.3 Sentence Fragments
22.2 Independent Clauses
22.2.1 Summary
22.2.2 Eight Ways to Punctuate Compound Sentences
22.3 Introductory Elements
22.3.1 Summary
22.3.2 Four Ways to Punctuate Introductory Elements
22.4 Trailing Elements
22.4.1 Summary
22.4.2 Three Ways to Punctuate Trailing Elements
22.5 Elements Internal to Clauses
22.5.1 Summary
22.5.2 Adjective Strings
22.5.3 Interrupting Elements
22.5.4 Explanatory Elements
22.6 Series and Lists
22.6.1 Summary
22.6.2 Two Coordinated Elements
22.6.3 Series of Three or More
22.6.4 Run-in Lists
22.6.5 Vertical Lists
22.7 Quotations
22.7.1 Summary
22.7.2 Punctuating Quotations
22.8 Punctuation Don'ts
This chapter offers general guidelines for punctuation in the text of your paper. (For punctuation in citations, see part 2.) Some rules are clear-cut, but others are not, so you often have to depend on sound judgment and a good ear.
How to Use This Chapter
This chapter is organized not by kind of punctuation but by the kind of structure you need to punctuate: sentences, clauses, series, quotations, and so on. Find the section that corresponds to the part of your writing you want to punctuate, find the appropriate model, and match your text to the model. If you find a grammatical term that you don't recognize or cannot define, look in the glossary (appendix B).
22.1 Complete sentences
You must end every complete sentence with a terminal punctuation mark: a period (.), a question mark (?), or an exclamation point (!). Exclamations are rare in academic writing, and you should avoid them except in quotations.
22.1.1 Summary
You have three ways to end complete sentences:
1. Period
2. Question Mark
3. Exclamation Point
22.1.2 Three Ways to Punctuate Sentences
1. Period (for declaratory statements, imperatives, and indirect questions)
He chose to use a graph.
Consider the advantages of this method.
The question was whether these differences could be reconciled.
2. Question Mark
Did you consider the advantages of this method?
3. Exclamation Point
Boy, am I surprised that you used this method!
22.1.3 Sentence Fragments
Experienced writers sometimes try to achieve a stylistic or rhetorical effect by punctuating incomplete sentences as though they were complete—called sentence fragments.
Which can be dangerous. Especially for students.
You should avoid fragments: teachers usually disallow them because they cannot distinguish intentional fragments from grammatical mistakes.
You can end fragments with any terminal punctuation.
Which can be dangerous.
For whom?
Especially for students!