punctuation

[puhngk-choo-ey-shuhn]

noun

1. the practice or system of using certain conventional marks or characters in writing or printing in order to separate elements and make the meaning clear, as in ending a sentence or separating clauses.

2. the act of punctuating.

3. punctuation marks.

4. Biology.,  the sudden or accelerated extinction of some species and emergence of others, occurring only in isolated periods, as set forth in the theory of punctuated equilibrium.

punctuation

/ ˌpʌŋktjʊˈeɪʃən /

noun

1. the use of symbols not belonging to the alphabet of a writing system to indicate aspects of the intonation and meaning not otherwise conveyed in the written language

2. the symbols used for this purpose

3. the act or an instance of punctuating

Other Word Forms

• punctuational adjective
• punctuative adjective
• nonpunctuation noun
• repunctuation noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of punctuation¹

First recorded in 1530–40; from Medieval Latin pūnctuātiōn- (stem of pūnctuātiō ) “a marking, pointing”; punctuate, -ion

Example Sentences

The idea that AI adoption could unwittingly recast any single piece of punctuation as a literal mark of fraudulence seems like an unbearable irony.

From Salon

But they speak so fast, and talk about no punctuation — there’s not a period or a comma in the world to stop them once they start talking.

From Los Angeles Times

“This was the best game we’ve played so far from start to finish, but we have one more. Let’s put a punctuation mark on the season!”

From Los Angeles Times

And of course, that's where language really gets rivered and really, whole new orders of punctuation arrive – often their absence – and orders leave.

From Salon

The shoulder injury was a punctuation mark on a promising, but injury-riddled rookie year for Hart.

From Los Angeles Times