Rules for writers, Tenth edition - Diana Hacker, Nancy Sommers 2021

Avoid common misuses of the colon
The colon
Punctuation

A colon must be preceded by a full independent clause. Therefore, avoid using it in the following situations.

EXERCISE 36-1

Edit the following sentences to correct errors in the use of the comma, the semicolon, or the colon. If a sentence is correct, write “correct” after it. Answers appear in the back of the book.

a. We always looked forward to Thanksgiving in Vermont: It was our only chance to see our Grady cousins.

b. If we have come to fight, we are far too few, if we have come to die, we are far too many.

c. Each of the gift baskets included: a greeting card, a scarf, and homemade cookies.

d. The news article portrays the land use proposal as reckless; although 62 percent of the town’s residents support it.

e. Activist and politician Stacey Abrams asks readers of her book Lead from the Outside a powerful question, “How do I banish doubts and get out of my own way?” (xxvii).