MARKS AND PAUSES.
These marks are used to point off written or printed matter into sentences and parts of sentences, and thus to assist the reader in obtaining the meaning of the writer. They seldom indicate the length of the pause to be made; this must be determined by the sense. A Hyphen (-) is used between syllables in a word divided at the end of a line; as, "be-cause," "ques-tion," and between the parts of a compound word; as, Rocking-chair, good-by.
12 ECLECTIC SERIES.
The Comma (,), Semicolon (;), and Colon (:) mark
grammatical divisions in a sentence; as,
God is good; for he gives us all things.
Be wise to-day, my child: 't is madness to defer.
A Period (.) is placed at the end of a sentence; as,
God is love. Life is short.
Or is used after an abbreviation; as,
Dr. Murphy. Jan. 10, 1879.
An Interrogation Point (?) denotes a question; as,
Has he come? Who are you?
An Exclamation Point (!) denotes strong feeling; as,
O Absalom! my son! my son!
The Dash (—) is used where there is a sudden break or pause in a sentence; as, The truth has power—such is God's will—to make us better.
Quotation Marks (" ") denote the words of another; as,
God said, "Let there be light."
An Apostrophe (') denotes that a letter or letters are left
out; as,
O'er, for over; 't is, for it is.
And is also used to show ownership; as,
The man's hat. Helen's book.