The colon, semicolon and comma confuse many Dutch people on a daily basis. This is also the case when you start writing your thesis. Using punctuation properly is quite a challenge. When do you use a semicolon? When do you need a colon? When is a comma the right punctuation mark? We explain all of this to you, including a few helpful examples.
When do you use a colon?
A colon often stands for an enumeration, definition or explanation. You can see it as an explanation of the phrase before it. Furthermore, a colon is often placed before a quotation.
A handy mnemonic is that you can think of the colon as the word 'as follows' or 'the following’.
These are some examples of sentences with a colon:
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For this study, we divided the target group into three groups: one group was shown the old website, one group saw the revamped website with modification 1, and one group saw the revamped website with modifications 1 and 2. (enumeration)
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In this study, we understand lack of self-confidence to mean the following: a person does not stand firm in his/her shoes and needs a lot of affirmation from others. (definition/explanation)
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This is why the RIVM was created: the National Institute of Public Health and the Environment. (definition/explanation)
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The housing market is tighter than ever: there is twice as much demand for housing as there is housing supply. (explanation)
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Pietersen and Klaassen put it as follows: "It has been conclusively proven that smoking is bad for your health." (quote)
After the colon, you always use a lowercase letter. However, there are three exceptions to this rule. You only use a capital letter after the colon...
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...If the colon is followed by a bullet point list of whole sentences (each sentence then starts with a capital letter and ends with a full stop);
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...If the colon is followed by a name that always starts with a capital letter;
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...If after the colon is a quote of a whole sentence.
When do you use semicolons?
A semicolon is usually used between two main sentences. With the semicolon, you indicate that the two sentences are closely related without making the connection clear with conjunction ('such as', 'because', etc.). Technically, the two sentences you are relating should also be able to grammatically stand alone. You can see this in the examples below:
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The turnout was disappointing; a total of 10 out of 15 subjects were interviewed.
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Labour market shortages continued to increase in early 2022; unemployment was still high in early 2021.
A semicolon can sometimes enhance readability; it reads more pleasantly than two short sentences in succession that both end in a full stop. Only when sentences are on the long side is it better for readability to make them two separate sentences.
In addition, you use the semicolon when enumerating phrases. Each part of the enumeration ends with a semicolon. Only the last part of the enumeration ends with a full stop. You can see this in the example below.
This research consisted of three phases:
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taking the sample;
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collecting data from the sample;
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conduct data analysis.
A semicolon is almost always followed by a lowercase letter, unless the semicolon is followed by a name or a word that you always capitalise.
How do you use a comma?
A comma indicates a short pause in a sentence. When you read a sentence out loud, you can often hear the place where the comma should be. At this point in the sentence, you will hear a short pause. In general, commas are used in the following places in a sentence:
In listings
Commas are used between words in an enumeration in the running text (except for the word 'and' followed by the last part of the enumeration).
The study consisted of three phases: target group selection, data collection, and data analysis.
Explanation of a noun
If an expletive clause to a noun is meant as an explanation and starts with the word 'that' or 'that', then you usually put the clause between two commas.
Note that there is a difference between limiting and expanding adjectives. The example below is an expanding adjective: the comma-delimited adjective is intended as an additional explanation of 'the participants in the study'. The adjective does not limit the group of participants you are talking about; everyone was selected via random sampling.
Study participants, who were selected through random sampling, each completed a survey.
You can also phrase this sentence as a restrictive adjective. In that case, the meaning is as follows: only those participants who were selected through random sampling completed a survey. Besides the randomly selected participants, there are other participants you don't name here. In this type of adjective, you do not use a comma at the beginning.
Research participants selected through random sampling each completed a survey.
For conjunctions
For conjunctions like 'because', 'but' or 'like', you often use a comma. Note that the conjunctions 'and' or 'or' do not require a comma.
The representativeness of that survey is questionable, but it has been left aside for this thesis.
More tips on punctuation in your thesis
Besides these explanations of the colon, semicolon and comma, there are other aspects to consider in terms of punctuation in your thesis. For example, you should also pay attention to these points:
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In theses, avoid the exclamation mark as much as possible. This punctuation mark looks flashy and unprofessional.
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The question mark appears in theses almost exclusively in the research question or suggestions for follow-up questions. Rhetorical questions such as "Would you like to read more about this?" are not appropriate in academic writing.
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Use double inverted commas for quotations; use single inverted commas for self-deprecating words or to introduce new words (e.g., "In this thesis, the term 'self-flagellation' is used for this phenomenon.").
Getting your thesis checked for language and punctuation?
Do you find it difficult to make choices about the right punctuation in your thesis? Can't figure out how to make your sentences more readable? AthenaCheck's editors will help you word each paragraph more clearly, without language errors and with correct punctuation. Let us check your thesis for language, and, if necessary, for structure and a common thread. We are happy to help.